Defiance, grief after detained Thai royal reform protester dies on hunger strike
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Netiporn Sanesangkhom, a 28-year-old democracy activist, died from heart failure after a two-month hunger strike while in pretrial detention for allegedly defaming Thailand's monarchy. She was a prominent youth leader of pro-democracy group Thaluwang and was detained in January on charges of royal defamation. Sanesangkhom spent nearly four months in detention awaiting trial, entering a hunger strike for the last two months. Her death has sparked candlelit memorials and expressions of condolences from Western envoys and human rights advocates. The royal defamation law, which carries up to 15 years in jail for each conviction, has been used against 270 pro-democracy activists. The reform of this law has become a dividing line between young Thais and older conservatives. The ruling coalition, led by the Pheu Thai party, has vowed not to touch the law, while the progressive Move Forward Party (MFP) has campaigned for its reform. MFP faces a court ruling that may see it dissolved. The issue is likely to be awkward for Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin's government as it seeks to drive through economic plans and distance itself from political troubles.
#Thailand #Protests #RoyalReform #HungerStrike #Democracy #Activist
https://www.voanews.com/a/defiance-grief-after-detained-thai-royal-reform-protester-dies-on-hunger-strike/7611628.html
Voice of America - VOA News /
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2024-05-15 02:06:51
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npub1fn0gfyngcp8c9nap0y0fppuxxrvq76pyqckvk3vn3vagvp2lteks99fzfcPublished at
2024-05-15 02:06:51Event JSON
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"content": "Defiance, grief after detained Thai royal reform protester dies on hunger strike\n==========\n\nNetiporn Sanesangkhom, a 28-year-old democracy activist, died from heart failure after a two-month hunger strike while in pretrial detention for allegedly defaming Thailand's monarchy. She was a prominent youth leader of pro-democracy group Thaluwang and was detained in January on charges of royal defamation. Sanesangkhom spent nearly four months in detention awaiting trial, entering a hunger strike for the last two months. Her death has sparked candlelit memorials and expressions of condolences from Western envoys and human rights advocates. The royal defamation law, which carries up to 15 years in jail for each conviction, has been used against 270 pro-democracy activists. The reform of this law has become a dividing line between young Thais and older conservatives. The ruling coalition, led by the Pheu Thai party, has vowed not to touch the law, while the progressive Move Forward Party (MFP) has campaigned for its reform. MFP faces a court ruling that may see it dissolved. The issue is likely to be awkward for Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin's government as it seeks to drive through economic plans and distance itself from political troubles.\n\n#Thailand #Protests #RoyalReform #HungerStrike #Democracy #Activist\n\nhttps://www.voanews.com/a/defiance-grief-after-detained-thai-royal-reform-protester-dies-on-hunger-strike/7611628.html",
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