BANGKOK — A spokesperson for Thailand's military junta explained to a group of foreign dignitaries today that the Kingdom's lese majeste law is needed to protect the "feelings" of the Thai people.

Thailand’s lese majeste law, the strictest of its kind in the world, criminalizes criticism of the monarchy with up to 15 years in prison. Since seizing power in a coup d'etat on 22 May 2014, the ruling junta has rigorously enforced the law to crackdown on perceived "anti-monarchists," granting martial courts jurisdiction over lese majeste cases. Human rights groups say the law is abused to silence critics and political enemies.

Today, a spokesperson for the junta, known formally as the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO), told a conference of foreign military attaches from 25 countries that lese majeste violations "affect the hearts of many Thai people." He insisted that prosecuting lese majeste offenders does not constitute a violation of human rights.

"They attempt to destroy the identity, tradition, and culture of Thailand," Col. Winthai Suvaree said. "Therefore, we have to give priority to solving these problems." 

He continued, "Security officers are not violating human rights, as it has been claimed. There are many suspects, especially those who have fled the country to live abroad, who are trying to distort information and paint it as a political persecution."

The Thai government has struggled in vain to seek the extradition of lese majeste suspects living abroad, as most foreign nations do not recognize the law. 

Col. Winthai's comments came on the heels of a string of recent lese majeste arrests in Thailand. Last week, soldiers arrested a Redshirt activist who allegedly circulated a forged royal statement on social media that said His Majesty the King had appointed a Regent to act on his behalf. The 25-year-old activist, Krit Bootdeecheen, was held at an army camp without any access to a lawyer for five days before he was transferred to the military court for formal prosecution. 

On 9 February police arrested a man named Hasadin Uraipraiwan who allegedly produced a series of audio clips on the internet that criticize the Thai Royal Family. Like Krit, Hasadin is facing trial in military court, where appeals are not possible. Two other alleged members of Hasadin's "network" were arrested on 7 February. 

Lese majeste suspects are rarely granted release on bail and often spend months in prison awaiting trial. Among those currently facing prosecution are two theatre activists who were accused of insulting the Royal Family by staging a play about a fictional monarch in October 2013. The pair has been held in prison since they were arrested last August.

Speaking to foreign military attaches today, Col. Winthai also touched on a number of other issues related to the political situation in Thailand, including:

– The necessity of the 22 May coup: Col. Winthai repeated that the NCPO was forced to seize power for the sake of national stability, and claimed that "The Thai coup is different to what happened in other countries, so you should not consider it with an outdated perspective like in the past." 

– Return to democracy: "The NCPO is working hard to follow the road map … to become a full-fledged democracy." 

– Judicial independence: "The NCPO has focused on the administration of the country, solving national problems, and maintaining peace and order. We do not interfere with the justice system."

– Summoning and detaining dissidents: "The NCPO respects and listens to constructive opinions. We have set up many channels to express opinions. The invitations were in fact about exchanging opinions with individuals, under our perspective that the situation in the country is still sensitive. Some parts of the country are not moving in the same direction. Our main objective is to prevent any expression that distorts facts or misleads the public with personal viewpoints, which may lead to conflicts in the society or hostile expressions that affect peace and order."

– The need for martial law: "There is still need for the martial law, because we need the military to assist the measures to maintain peace and order, and ensure public security." 

– The junta is not a dictatorship: "The NCPO doesn't want you to use the word dictator, because, in all of our actions in the past, we allow members of the public to participate in the channels that we have set up for them. It's not like we do things on our own or refuse to listen to anyone or behave like dictator – contrary to the attempt by some people to distort that fact." 

BANGKOK — Former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra's lawyer has asked the Thai military to stop trailing the former leader, which he called an infringement of her rights to privacy and freedom of movement.

The lawyer, Norawich Lalaeng, was referring to the soldiers who stopped and searched Yingluck’s convoy in Chiang Mai province yesterday and followed her for the rest of the day to a temple and market. While the military insisted that the soldiers were merely providing security, Norawich said Yingluck never requested the "protection," and felt threatened by the gesture.

"The police officers and soldiers followed her all day. Even at night, soldiers were posted around her residence," Norawich told Khaosod today. "Such action may not have been a direct attempt to detain her, but it could be seen as indirect detention. It infringes on her privacy, and it restricts her individual rights and freedom. If security forces want to provide us with VIP protection like they said in the news, they should coordinate with us directly, so both sides will be relieved."

Norawich also insisted that Yingluck has complied with all of the conditions set by the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) since it seized power on 22 May 2014, such as refraining from "inciting any chaos" or participating in political activities.

"As the legal representative of Ms. Yingluck, I'd like to urge all relevant authorities, such as the military and the police, to stop infringing Ms. Yingluck's rights and freedom that are guaranteed in the constitution," he said.

Norawich also urged the military junta to lift its travel ban on Yingluck and allow her to fly to Hong Kong as she requested last week. The NCPO denied her travel request, citing the criminal lawsuit she is currently facing for allegedly failing to stop corruption in her administration’s rice-pledging scheme.

However, Norawich argued that judicial authorities are only permitted to issue travel bans on defendants who have been formally indicted, according to court regulations. 

"The Office of Attorney-General has said that it will take about a month to write her indictment, and estimated that she will be formally indicted in March," Norawich said. "So Yingluck understood that between the period of 10 and 21 February, she would be able to use her rights and freedom to travel abroad." 

There is  speculation that the NCPO rejected Yingluck's travel request out of fear that she may follow in her brother's footsteps and flee the country to evade the lawsuit. Yingluck's brother, former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, was deposed in a military coup in 2006 and has lived in self-imposed exile since 2008 to avoid a corruption charge of which he was found guilty in absentia. Thaksin has several residences around the world, including one in Hong Kong. 

Last month, Yingluck was also retroactively impeached for the same offense by an interim parliament appointed by the junta. The verdict, which Yingluck’s supporters say was an effort to cripple her political faction, came with an automatic five-year ban from political office. The Office of Attorney-General announced that it would press criminal charges against Yingluck on the same day of the impeachment vote.

Yingluck was initially ousted from the premiership last May by the Constitutional Court, which found her guilty of unlawfully transferring a government official in 2011. Two weeks later, Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha, who was serving as army chief at the time, dissolved what was left of her government in a coup d’etat. He was later appointed Prime Minister by a rubber stamp parliament in August.  

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BANGKOK — Only one of the two suspects charged with lese majeste in connection with a forged royal statement was released on bail today.

Niran Yaowapha, the online editor of the pro-monarchy newspaper that published the false document, which purported to be issued by His Majesty the King, surrendered to police today and was later released on bail after posting 400,000 baht in cash and a land title deed. Niran briefly posted the forged statement on the website of ASTV Manager before pulling it down and replacing it with an apology.

However, the 25-year-old Redshirt activist who authorities say was "one of the first" people to share the document on social media was denied release on bail today. The suspect, Krit Bootdeecheen, was arrested on 4 February and held in an army camp for five days of interrogation without a lawyer before he was handed over to police yesterday. 

Krit's lawyer, Winyat Chartmontri, told Khaosod that his client's bail application was rejected because of an "incomplete document" problem. A report on Prachatai news site quoted Winyat as saying that Krit's family could not afford the 400,000 baht bail money set by the court.

According to the report, Winyat said he would try to submit another bail application "as soon as possible."

The fake palace statement, a radical and unprecedented act of forgery in Thailand, appeared on the night of 2 February and claimed that 87-year-old King Bhumibol had decided to appoint a Regent to act on his behalf. The government declared it to be fake within an hour. 

Both Krit and Niran have been charged with violating Section 112 of the Thai Criminal Codes, a law known as lese majeste that criminalizes defamation of the Royal Family.

The two men are facing trial in military court, which was granted jurisdiction over lese majeste cases and other lawsuits involving "national security" after the military coup on 22 May 2014.

Krit is currently being detained at Bangkok Remand Prison, where a number of other lese majeste suspects are being held. It is very uncommon for lese majeste suspects to be released on bail.