5 people detained on a royal defamation charges were released on Wednesday morning (27 August) after becoming eligible for early release under a Royal Pardon Decree issued on 29 July 2025.

Anchan Preelert receiving flowers from her supporters after her release from the Central Women's Correctional Institution after serving over 8 years of her record-breaking 43 years sentence. Her sentence was at the time the longest ever given for royal defamation. She is also the oldest woman ever detained for the charge and has spent the longest time in prison.
(Photo by Ginger Cat)

Anchan Preelert, 69, was released from the Central Women’s Correctional Institution at around 10.30. She had been found guilty on 29 counts of royal defamation for  sharing and uploading on social media clips of an online talk show that allegedly made defamatory comments about the monarchy.

Anchan was arrested in January 2015, denied bail, and detained pending trial until November 2018. In January 2021, she was sentenced to 87 years in prison, halved to 43 years and 6 months because she pleaded guilty. Her sentence was at the time the longest ever given for an offence under the royal defamation law.

She was denied bail, and later decided not to appeal. In total, Anchan spent 8 years, 4 months, and 19 days in prison. According to Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR), she is the oldest woman ever detained on charges relating to political expression and has spent the longest time in prison.

While she was held in pre-trial detention, the government agency she previously worked for informed her that it had launched a disciplinary investigation against her because royal defamation is a severe offence. After she was granted bail during her trial, she was told that she had been dismissed for serious misconduct, depriving her of her pension from 39 years of civil service.

Anchan became eligible for early release since she is over 60 years old and her sentence has been reduced to under three years by previous Royal Pardon Decrees. She said after her release that she is very happy as in her old age she has been waiting for freedom for a long time. She thanked her supporters for coming to greet her at the prison, and said that she did not expect to be received by so many people.

Anchan said that she would like the amnesty bill for political cases to be passed. Her husband is living overseas and she hopes that they will be reunited in Thailand if an amnesty is granted.

Student activist Sirapob Phumpheungphut's friends greeted him at the Bangkok Remand Prison. He was released after 1 years and 5 months of his 2-year sentence. (Photo by Ginger Cat)

Meanwhile, at the Bangkok Remand Prison, student activist Sirapob Phumpheungphut was released after 1 year and 5 months in detention.

Sirapob has been detained since 25 March 2024, after he was found guilty of royal defamation over a speech given at a protest on 18 November 2020 about the monarchy’s role in Thai politics. He was sentenced to 2 years in prison and subsequently denied bail.

Sirapob went on a hunger strike from 21 February to 16 March 2025 to protest his detention. He was admitted to the Corrections Hospital for treatment and, while hospitalized, decided that he would no longer file sn appeal.

Having already served a third of his sentence, Sirapob became eligible for early release under the Decree.

Sombat Thongyoi, a former Red Shirt protest guard, was also released from the Bangkok Remand Prison. The 56-year-old was charged with royal defamation for 3 posts he made on his personal Facebook profile in October and November 2020. The South Bangkok Criminal Court sentenced him to 6 years in prison. The Appeal Court later upheld the guilty verdict, but reduced his sentence to 4 years.

Sombat has been detained twice. The first time was after he was found guilty by the South Bangkok Criminal Court and was detained from 25 April 2022 to 9 February 2023 pending appeal. He was denied bail again on 13 September 2023, after the Appeal Court upheld the verdict. He later decided not to file an appeal with the Supreme Court.

In total, he spent 2 years, 8 months, and 27 days in prison. He became eligible for early release as he has served over a third of his sentence.

At the Thonburi Women Correctional Institute, 25-year-old Thanaporn (last name withheld) was released after 1 year and 3 months in prison.

The mother of two was sentenced to 4 years in prison on a royal defamation charge for her comments on a Facebook post containing an edited picture of King Ananda Mahidol and King Bhumibol. Her sentence was halved to 2 years because she pleaded guilty. Both the Appeal Court and the Supreme Court upheld the guilty verdict.

Teepagorn, a 40-year-old massage therapist, was also released from the Ayutthaya Provincial Prison. He was sentenced to 3 years in prison on a royal defamation charge for sharing a YouTube video clip along with a caption questioning the role of the monarchy. He was denied bail pending appeal, and subsequently decided not to file an appeal. He was released after 2 years, 2 months, and 9 days in prison.

The Royal Pardon Decree was issued on the occasion of King Vajiralongkorn’s birthday. Any prisoners who meet the criteria are eligible for early release, while others have their sentence reduced. TLHR speculated that other political prisoners might also be released over the next few months as the Decree requires prisons to compile a list of eligible prisoners within 120 days of the issuance of the Decree.