<p dir="ltr">A Thai court has handed a three year suspended jail term to Andy Hall, a well-known British migrant labour rights defender, for defaming a canned fruit company.</p> <p dir="ltr">On 20 September 2016, Bangkok’s Southern Criminal Court read a verdict on the case between Natural Fruit Co. Ltd., a Thai canned fruit company based in southern Prachuap Khiri Khan Province, and Andy Hall, a well-known human rights defender who advocates for migrant worker rights.</p>

<p>Thai authorities should drop charges against a prominent migrant worker rights activist, Human Rights Watch said today. The charges violate the free expression rights of the activist, Andy Hall, and undermine his research into labor rights abuses by companies in&nbsp;<a href="http://hrw.pr-optout.com/Tracking.aspx?Data=HHL%3d8%2c84A8-%3eLCE593719%26SDG%3c90%3a.&amp;RE=MC&amp;RI=4369775&amp;Preview=False&amp;DistributionActionID=82055&amp;Action=Follow+Link" target="_blank">Thailand</a>.<br /></p>