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Jools

An update on the Harry Nicolaides case. Frightening. December 5th passed without a royal pardon and his next bail hearing is January 19th. Possibly, he could be detained until December 2009.


Australian author stuck in Thai jail - Breaking News - National - Breaking News

kingwilly

erm, whole thread already about this issue mate.

bkkpirate

I can't find the thread that was started in September when Harry was first arrested.

sabang

He'll be kept there to suffer, and then granted a royal pardon.

The Judiciary are soooo busy right now.

helge

Will the King smile on Harry?

03-02-09


CJ Hinke of FACT comments:
I found these two 2008 threads on New Mandala (http://rspas.anu.edu.au/rmap/newmandala/) to be fascinating reading. (Don’t know how we missed them!)
The first is an interview with Paul Handley, author of the notorious banned book, The King Never Smiles (http://rspas.anu.edu.au/rmap/newmandala/2007/09/19/interview-with-paul-handley/). Comments are by Thais in Thailand, Thai and Western academics in the field of Thai studies, expatriate Thais and foreign academics and observers living in Thailand and abroad.
The comments are a liberal mixture of fact, opinion, speculation, gossip and innuendo about the Thai monarchy. The second thread continues with further comments by both Thais and foreigners with the author’s responces (http://rspas.anu.edu.au/rmap/newmandala/2007/09/28/paul-handley-replies-to-comments/).
The most fascinating item was, for me, a hallmark of Royal myth which, repeated so often, has come to be regarded as truth.
We have all heard that His Majesty pardoned Swiss national Oliver Rudolf Jufer following his conviction and sentence to ten years in prison for lèse-majesté in 2007. While drunk, Jufer, a resident of Chiang Mai for 10 years with his Thai family, defaced public portraits of the King by spray-painting on the King’s birthday. This was obviously a case of drunken vandalism which may, or may not, have really been directed at the King and be merely vandalism due to drunkeness or mental illness.
A poster to this thread has commented that the Swiss Embassy petitioned the King with official information that Jufer was mentally ill which resulted in Royal pardon and deportation. (We have no further information on what has become of his Thai family.)
Perhaps because the Jufer case is so recent, most people in Thailand now believe it is the King’s normal practice to pardon all those convicted of lèse-majesté. Certainly to do so would be a clear message that His Majesty does not support the lèse-majesté laws and their flagrant application.
This rumour has been repeated so many times (I have been guilty of spreading it myself on FACTsite) that it has been given the ring of truth about Royal compassion. Perhaps it is what we want, or need, to believe.
However, the poster goes on to say that the King has never pardoned anyone else, Thai or foreigner, serving a lèse-majesté sentence.
In short, we don’t know what to believe.

keda

so is <cough> the bestower of pardons.

pickel

Regardless of whether or not you believe in free speech, this is no different than somebody getting caught with drugs in this country. He knew the rules and he broke them. Kind of like MKP but much more severe. I don't agree with it, but T.I.T. in the harshest form of reality.

terry57

I must agree with this, whether you think its right or wrong only an absolute moron would slight the royal family whilst they are in country.

More than likely figured he was above the law???

Wrong foking call mate.

Repubblicano

So we are all under the law and live in constant fear that a few words can lead us to jail, torture and death.
Indeed, something we can celebrate upon.

nidhogg

Celebrate upon? Of course not. Be realistic about, maybe.

As far as I am aware, I was not kidnapped and forced to live and work in Thailand. Your case must be differernt.

mancon

Well said, I could not agree more. We have to remember that we are all guests in Thailand even if we bring in a lot of money to the country!

Repubblicano

And Thais should remember nowhere else in the world guests get jailed for three lines written in a book.

Jools

One point of optimism is that, in most respects, Thais have been keenly sensitive to how they were perceived by more advanced countries. Even past monarchs have been eager to make reforms when subjects of countries such as England considered some of their customs to be "barbaric". Rama IV and Rama V were greatly influenced by western ideas during a time when sweeping changes could be made by decree. Lese Majeste will surely be the last such barbarism to fall into the dustbin of history, but it will happen eventually. The precipitating factor will most likely be the coming succession crisis.

Wallalai

Sad, very sad, when the thais who insulted and ruined the nation (and the guenine thai people I should add) during the last three weeks are free like if nothing happened.

Little Chuchok

He's Australian and he's in jail....just going back to his roots really.

Repubblicano

The nation has no right whatsoever in this country. Expecially the right to speak.

Muadib

Sends a loud & clear message to anyone who blasphemes HMK...

bkkandrew

^Sends a load of what?

Muadib

Oops...

As HMK is revered as a Demi-God and that the peasants are unworthy to bear the dust under his shoes, there are those who would argue that point...

Ah, but they were playing for the home team, so all is forgiven...


I need to practice conveying irony, and my spelling...

__________________
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panama hat

I'm starting to take a different view of this situation, the previous one being 'he knew what he was doing and knew the consequences'.

Now I'm thinking that three years ago he wrote one 'blasphemous' paragraph about one of the previous kings, which was probably correct, but in this nation of the blind stating facts is neither rewarded nor even wanted.

Also, in light of - as Wallalai mentioned - the last few months of what can be described as the mother of all lese majestes I find this situation pathetic to say the least.

Again, this guy's family and friends should hold an all-out attack on the internet like the Swiss guy up in CM.