A royal defamation case against Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit, leader of the Progressive Movement, has been dismissed. The case stems from Thanathorn’s criticism of the government's COVID-16 vaccine procurement programme and its strong relationship with a private company owned by King Vajiralongkorn.

The charge was based on Thanathorn’s 30-minute-long Facebook live presentation, which was uploaded on YouTube.

Thanathorn’s "Royal Vaccine: Who Benefits and Who Doesn't?" on Facebook live on 18 January 2021, criticising the government's slow procurement of vaccines in comparison with other countries in Asia. He also questioned why Siam Bioscience was the only company to strike a deal with AstraZeneca to produce its mRNA vaccine.

He expressed concern that ‘betting on a single horse’ puts at risk timely access to the vaccine for Thai people.

The company has King Rama X as its only shareholder, replacing CPB Equity Company Limited, an investment arm of the Crown Property Bureau, which had held all shares since the company was founded.

The public prosecutor indicted Thanathorn on 11 April 2022, claiming that the video contained content that caused damage to national security and was intended to have the people question if King Rama X had something to do with the government’s policy in procuring the AstraZeneca vaccine via Siam Bioscience, causing damage to and insulting the King.

On Thursday (28 May), the Criminal Court ruled to dismiss the case. The court concluded that Thanathorn’s remark claiming that the King holds 100% of the company shares was not an exaggeration. 

Given that a witness from the Finance Ministry testified that the King holds 99% of the shares, Thanathorn’s claim did not constitute defamation toward the King.

The Court also concluded that Thanathorn intended to target the government’s vaccine management under former Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha.  

However, the Court ordered the video clip in question to be suspended from social media platforms since it affected national security. The Court’s order was based on the grounds that it could attract from the audience comments which may refer to the King.

After the Court delivered the verdict, Thanathorn revealed to reporters that the case against him was a SLAPP lawsuit. He also referred to other SLAPP lawsuits pressed against dozens of citizens and political activists, saying that those facing the suits, as well as the state officials, have to waste valuable time on cases that should never have been pursued.

He called on the relevant authorities to adhere to the principle of law and refrain from pursuing such cases.