This article was originally published on Prachatai.
The Criminal Court has dismissed a defamation by publication charge filed against activist Sirawit Serithiwat for a speech criticizing the Election Commission of Thailand (ECT) during a protest in March 2019.
In April 2019, Pinit Chanchai, then Election Commissioner, filed a complaint against Sirawit, activist Parit Chiwarak, and Phayao Akhad, the mother of volunteer nurse Kamonked Akhad who was killed at Wat Pathum Wanaram during the 19 May 2010 crackdown on the Red Shirt protest. The complaint stemmed from a protest at the skywalk around the Victory Monument on 21 March 2019, which was part of a campaign to collect 1 million signatures to impeach the ECT for its failure to produce reliable election results.
After repeated postponements, Sirawit was indicted in November 2024, five years after the charge was filed.
Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) reported yesterday (24 February) that the Criminal Court found Sirawit not guilty on the grounds that he was reading a statement about irregularities during the 2019 election. The Court noted that, at the time of the protest, the ECT did not announce the certified election result, raising questions among the public. It also noted that the statement did not target a specific Election Commissioner and that the criticism was made in good faith to ensure fairness and transparency. It therefore does not constitute defamation.
The verdict came almost 7 years after the charge was filed. TLHR noted that Pinit never testified during the trial. Neither did any representative from the ECT. The only prosecution witnesses were the inquiry officer who worked on the case and another opinion witness. The Court also prohibited the publication of the proceedings.
The 24 March 2019 General Election led to criticisms against the ECT of mismanagement and possible election fraud. Overseas voters faced difficulties casting their votes, from long waiting times at the poll to ballots not arriving in the mail and candidates being listed under the wrong party on documents. Ballots from New Zealand did not arrive in time to be counted. Meanwhile, several irregularities were reported during the day of the election and afterwards, from there being more votes than voters in one constituency and irregularities in the lists of eligible voters, to uncertainties about the ECT’s calculation of party-list seats.
TLHR noted that the ECT filed charges against at least 20 people for criticizing its management of the 2019 election and other forms of political expression, including sharing a Change.org ECT impeachment petition on their Facebook profiles.