The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Thai politician Suchart Chomklin to immediately drop his criminal defamation lawsuit against Kowit Phothisan, editor of the independent online outlet The Isaan Record, and on Thai authorities to strengthen protections against strategic lawsuits targeting journalists.

Kowit faces charges for sharing a Facebook post related to The Isaan Record’s reporting in January on a Department of Special Investigation case alleging that Suchart, the minister of natural resources and environment and a ruling Bhumjaithai Party parliamentarian, accepted bribes from Thai brokers and private Finnish companies in a labor recruitment scandal, the outlet’s editor-in-chief Hathairat Phaholtap told CPJ.

“Thai politician Suchart Chomklin must immediately drop his criminal complaint against journalist Kowit Phothisan and stop harassing The Issan Record’s staff with frivolous lawsuits,” said Shawn Crispin, CPJ’s senior Southeast Asia representative. “Thailand’s criminal defamation laws have become a weapon of choice for the powerful against the press, and that must end now.”

The journalist has been charged under Sections 326 and 328 of the Penal Code, which carry maximum prison penalties of one and two years, respectively, said Hathairat. A parallel civil defamation against Kowit seeks 1 million baht ($30,900) in damages. Hearings in the cases began on April 27.

Suchart earlier filed criminal and civil defamation suits against Hathairat, seeking 50 million baht ($1.54 million) in damages, over the same bribery-related news report, but withdrew the complaint on April 26, The Issan Record reported.

Journalists in Thailand are frequently targeted with Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs) lawsuits, filed under Thailand’s punitive criminal defamation law.

SLAPPs are abusive lawsuits filed by powerful officials, businesspeople, or corporations against journalists or news outlets to silence critical reporting, using lengthy, costly legal proceedings to prevent further reporting, rather than seeking to address actual wrongs.

Thailand’s Senate Committee on Political Development, Public Participation, Human Rights, Rights, Freedoms and Consumer Protection is studying measures to prevent the filing of SLAPP cases and will hold a parliamentary panel hearing on the issue on May 22, one of its organizers told CPJ, on condition of anonymity as they are not authorized to speak publicly.