The Chonburi Provincial Court has dismissed a defamation lawsuit filed against journalist Kowit Photisan, editor of The Isaan Record, by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Suchart Chomklin for sharing a Facebook post.

The post was originally written by The Isaan Record’s editor-in-chief Hathairat Phaholtap, whom Suchart previously sued over a report alleging that Thai politicians have been taking bribes from a former executive of a Finnish berry-picking company. The lawsuit has since been withdrawn.

Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) said on Monday (8 June) that the lawsuit was dropped because the court ruled that the post concerns an issue of public interest and that it was not intended to be defamatory.

The Court believes that Suchart was named in the post because he was the Labour Minister at the time and so was responsible for explaining to the public whether an official in the Labour Ministry committed misconduct. It noted that Kowit did not name a specific agent or official in his post, and that he used a collective pronoun referring to everyone involved in the bribery case without specifying that only Suchart was involved.

The court also noted that a part of the post mentioning that Suchart was accused by the Department of Special Investigation of bribery is written in the manner of a news report and is not an accusation against Suchart.

The Court noted that Suchart has been a minister for two terms, first as Labour Minister and now as Minister of Natural Resources and Environment. It ruled that running for election means he has presented himself as an honest person who can be trusted. Because of this, Kowit as a journalist is justified in disclosing information about Suchart’s conduct and expressing his opinion in good faith as any citizen can. It also noted that, during cross-examination, a witness called by the plaintiff said that the trafficking of Thai workers to pick berries in Finland is a public interest issue. 

The Court therefore believes that Kowit did not make the post to harass or defame Suchart but to raise awareness about a case of injustice on behalf of citizens.

TLHR noted that, since the February 2026 election, a trend has emerged  of politicians filing defamation lawsuits against citizens and journalists who criticize them or demand scrutiny of their qualifications or conduct. Most lawsuits are filed in a province where the politician is influential and far away from where accused lives.