Lawyers representing US academic Dr Paul Chambers filed an administrative lawsuit on Thursday (4 September) over the revocation of Chambers’ visa, seeking over 3.6. million baht in damages.

On behalf of Chambers, the lawyers requested that the Administrative Court revoke two orders made by the Immigration Bureau cancelling his visa. They also sued the Police Chief, the Immigration Bureau Commissioner, as well as the Police and the Immigration Commission for compensation for abuse of power.

Chambers was charged with royal defamation and violation of the Computer Crimes Act over a blurb on the ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute website, which Chambers said that he did not write or publish because he is not an admin for the site.

After reporting to the police at Mueang Phitsanulok Police Station on 8 April, he was denied bail. He was detained for two nights before being granted bail. Although charges against him were later dropped due to lack of evidence, the Immigration Bureau revoked his visa on 9 April. Chambers was immediately detained by the Immigration Bureau after being granted bail and had to post bail again.

After his release, Chambers appealed the visa revocation order. On 18 April, he received another order from the immigration office in Phitsanulok amending the 9 April order. Where the original order said that his visa was revoked for involvement in immoral activities such as sex work or drug trafficking under Section 12 (8) of the Immigration Act, the 18 April order says that his visa was revoked because he is a threat to public safety or national security under Section 12 (7).

On 21 April, Naresuan University terminated Chambers’ contract because his visa had been revoked. He has since appealed the termination on the grounds that the University did not follow the protocol stated in the contract. Chambers subsequently left the country.

The lawsuit stated that there is not enough evidence to indict Chambers for royal defamation, so he should be treated as innocent. Using Sections 12 (7) and 12 (8) to revoke his visa is therefore unlawful. Changing the sections used as the grounds for visa revocation is also not a minor change that can be amended at a later date as allowed by the Administrative Procedure Act.

The order revoking Chambers’ visa was also not written according to the appropriate form, did not follow the legal protocol, and did not allow Chambers the opportunity to defend himself, violating the Administrative Procedure Act.

Chambers told Prachatai that the lawsuit also seeks compensation for damages, including loss of income from employment and other projects, and for the violation of his liberty and dignity after being wrongfully imprisoned, as well as for damages to his reputation and academic freedom. He insisted that he did not insult the King, and said he believes he was prosecuted because a senior military person was upset about his work on the Thai military.

He said that he is not sure how long the lawsuit will take or whether he will win, noting that the process could last a long time. If he wins, he said, he still wants to return to Thailand, where he had lived for 30 years.

After leaving Thailand, Chambers now lives with his mother in Oklahoma, USA. He is a visiting fellow at ISEAS, and is still writing about Thai politics and civil-military relations. He said he is doing fine, but is far away from his wife, who is the dean of Naresuan University’s Faculty of Social Sciences.

“It's difficult because I cannot go to Thailand now, and it's difficult for her to leave there, so there are problems, but I still stay in touch with everything in Thailand.” he said.

“I love Thailand and I love Thai people, and before March of 2025, I never expected this to happen to me. I was just a common teacher in Naresuan University in the provincial city of Phitsanulok. One day, I was called into the office at Naresuan University and told 'My god, you have been charged with 112,' and since then my life has been a rollercoaster.”

Chambers alleged that the Army and its spokesperson once said that while he was still in Thailand it will try to find a way to bring another royal defamation charge against him for his past work. The intimidation frightened his wife, family, and friends, while he fears returning to Thailand even if he wins the administrative lawsuit. He said that he will not be returning to Thailand unless he is sure that he will not be prosecuted. His mother is 86 years old and lives alone in the US, and he said she would not be able to take it if he is arrested again.

“For me to go back to Thailand, I have to be assured that the Army is not going to be prosecuting me again, that the Police will not be prosecuting me again, and that, of course, waits for this case to be over with. I have lived in Thailand for about 30 years. I have worked on Thai politics, and I understand the chances of me winning this case are slim, especially now since the crisis between Thailand and Cambodia. Since that crisis, the military has gained more influence in Thai politics,” he said.

Chambers said that, given the military’s growing influence, it is not a good time for him to return to Thailand and risk imprisonment. He said that the prison was “a terrible place” and that he now wants to raise awareness about prisoners’ rights, especially political prisoners, which he considers himself one.

When asked what the University told him when he was dismissed, Chambers said that he believes its executives were pressured into dismissing him. He said he was notified of his dismissal one day after the prosecutor dropped charges against him. He and his lawyers had notified the University that he will press charges against the University for wrongful dismissal, because the usual protocol was not followed and he was not allowed to defend himself before a committee. He said, however, that the University could claim that it had to dismiss him because his visa was revoked.