Thailand: Lèse-majesté conviction and prison sentence of Arnon Nampa upheld by the Court of Appeals

THA 002 / 0923 / OBS 038.9
Sentencing /
Arbitrary detention /
Judicial harassment/
Restriction to freedom of expression/
Restriction to peaceful assembly
Thailand

4 August 2026

The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a partnership of the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) and the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), has received new information and requests your urgent intervention in the following situation in Thailand.

New information:

The Observatory has been informed about the lèse-majesté conviction and prison sentence imposed on Mr Arnon Nampa, a prominent pro-democracy activist, human rights lawyer, and recipient of the 2025 Front Line Defenders Award for Human Rights Defenders at Risk, who has been arbitrarily imprisoned since 26 September 2023 at the Bangkok Remand Prison.

On 16 July 2026, the Court of Appeals Region 5 in Chiang Mai Province upheld the Chiang Mai Provincial Court’s conviction of Arnon Nampa and his two-year prison sentence under Article 112 (“lèse-majesté”) of the Criminal Code. The Court of Appeals concurred with the Chiang Mai Provincial Court’s reasoning that Mr Arnon’s speech constituted defamation of King Rama X. The charges stemmed from a speech he delivered during a protest organised by pro-democracy students in front of the Chiang Mai University Art Center on 23 November 2020. In his speech, which called for democratic reforms of the Thai monarchy, Arnon Nampa criticised the transfer of public property into the private ownership of King Rama X. On 27 March 2025, the Chiang Mai Provincial Court sentenced him to three years’ imprisonment, reducing it to two years because he had provided "valuable testimony" during the trial.

This is the first ruling in a lèse-majesté case issued by a Court of Appeals in one of Arnon Nampa's 14 lèse-majesté cases, which add up to a cumulative prison sentence to 31 years, 9 months, and 20 days.

The Observatory recalls that Arnon Nampa has been arbitrarily detained at the Bangkok Remand Prison since his first lèse-majesté conviction on 26 September 2023. Since then, Arnon Nampa has been convicted in 11 separate cases under Article 112 and sentenced repeatedly in connection with social media posts and speeches delivered during peaceful pro-democracy demonstrations between 2020 and 2021.

The Observatory recently condemned his eleventh conviction and prison sentence, imposed by the Bangkok Criminal Court on 20 February 2026, under which he received a four-year prison sentence that was reduced to two years and eight months.

All of his bail applications and appeals against bail denial orders have been rejected. Throughout the proceedings, Arnon Nampa has consistently denied the charges, maintaining that his speech and remarks constituted legitimate and constructive criticism protected under his right to freedom of expression.

In addition to the lèse-majesté prosecutions, Arnon Nampa was sentenced in March 2025 by the Thanyaburi Provincial Court in Pathumthani Province to nine months in prison for violation of Article 116 of the Criminal Code (sedition) in connection with a speech delivered during a protest at Thammasat University (Rangsit Campus), Pathumthani Province. In the same month, he was also convicted of contempt of court by the Bangkok Criminal Court after removing his shirt in the courtroom to protest the court’s unprecedented decision to hold his sixth lèse-majesté trial in secret.

The Observatory recalls that Arnon Nampa is currently facing legal proceedings in three additional lèse-majesté cases.

On 30 August 2024, the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD) found Arnon Nampa’s detention to be “arbitrary” and urged the Thai government to release him “immediately” and “accord him an enforceable right to compensation and other reparations”. This opinion was issued in response to a petition filed jointly by the Observatory and Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) on 5 March 2024.

The Observatory also notes that, on 8 July 2026, Thailand’s House of Representatives passed an amnesty covering victims of political prosecution between 2005 and 2025. The bill will be submitted to the Prime Minister before being presented to the King for royal assent. However, it explicitly excludes individuals charged or prosecuted for lèse-majesté, such as Arnon Nampa and 281 others, including many human rights defenders and 20 minors.

The Observatory strongly condemns the upholding of Arnon Nampa’s conviction and prison sentence, his continued arbitrary detention, and the persistent judicial harassment against him. These actions appear to be solely intended to punish him for his legitimate human rights work and for the peaceful exercise of his rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly.

The Observatory calls on the Thai authorities to immediately and unconditionally release Arnon Nampa and all other arbitrarily detained human rights defenders in Thailand, and to put an end to all forms of judicial harassment against them.