Bangkok, Thailand – Netiporn “Bung” Sanesangkhom was known by her friends and family as brave, outspoken and fierce. At just 28 years old, she was a formidable force within the Thai democracy movement, defiant in the face of legal and physical risks as she and her friends called for real reform.
Dressed in her trademark all-black uniform at street demonstrations, Netiporn was not afraid of the authorities: she often defied their near-constant surveillance and stared down the police at protests and other public events. Always willing to speak her mind, she had a strong voice that carried far away, electrifying crowds at rallies.
“Let there be a reform of the judicial process,” Netiporn said at an event last year. “No one should be imprisoned for having political differences.”
But on April 14, Netiporn died of cardiac arrest while in custody awaiting trial. She had been jailed since Jan. 26 and charged with royal defamation, also known as lèse majeste, for conducting public opinion polls about the Thai royal caravans, among many other charges.
Even after being detained, she continued to protest. She had been on hunger strike for more than 110 days in protest at the bail conditions faced by democracy protesters.
“What did Bung do? Nothing. She just wanted democracy and to reform the justice system,” Emilie Palamy Pradichit, founder and executive director of the Manushya Foundation, a human rights group based in Thailand, told Al Jazeera.
Emilie and Nitiporn were friends and often worked together.
“A young woman is dead because she wanted democracy and justice,” Emilie said. “She died because she defended the people, for the end of the dictatorship and the absolute monarchy, for a better Thailand. I hope this is a wake-up call for the generation of dinosaurs, the establishment and the State.”
'Broken judicial system'
Netiporn was a prominent member of the underground anti-monarchist group Thaluwang, a name that translates as “destroy the palace” and is made up mostly of young people in their 20s, who use performance art, provocative acrobatics and other tactics to challenge the immense power King. force.
Netiporn, one of many critics of the monarchy who have been under legal pressure in Thailand since protests broke out in 2020, had been calling on the government to release activists held in pre-trial detention for more than a year.
“Netiporn's tragic death in custody shows how brutal the punishment for royal defamation is in Thailand,” Sunai Phasuk, senior Thailand researcher at Human Rights Watch, told Al Jazeera.
“He [28-year-old] The activist sacrificed her life by going on hunger strike to demand the right to bail for political prisoners and that no one should be punished for expressing dissenting opinions, including criticism of the monarchy.”
Sunai noted that there has been no improvement in the fundamental freedoms and human rights of those who challenge the monarchy in modern Thailand, noting that nine months after Prime Minister Srettha Thavasin took office, “Thailand is still as repressive as it was under the military government.”
At least 270 Thai activists have been charged with royal defamation since 2020. Human rights groups say palace critics risk spending months in pretrial detention without bail and decades in prison if convicted of royal defamation. .
More than 2,000 people have also been prosecuted on a host of other charges since 2020, including sedition and “cyber crimes” for their involvement in anti-government protests, according to legal group Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR).
“Ms. Netiporn's death is proof that the problems of political prosecution and detention of pro-democracy activists, especially in lese majeste cases, are still very much alive under the Pheu Thai government,” said Akarachai Chaimaneekarakate, TLHR advocacy leader. he said in a statement.
“His death also highlights the importance of the popular amnesty bill, which is currently before parliament. The right to bail must be granted to political detainees who have not been convicted of any crime by a final sentence.”
Akarachai noted that Netiporn died while Thailand was running for a seat on the United Nations Human Rights Council, an irony not lost on Thai observers.
Along with pro-democracy protesters and other activists, members of the Thai opposition party have been calling on the government to fix a “broken justice system,” which allows activists like Netiporn to suffer in pretrial detention for months.
“What happened to Ms. Boong is a reminder that our justice system needs to change,” Rangsiman Rome, a member of Thailand's House of Representatives and deputy secretary-general of the opposition Move Forward Party, told Al Jazeera. “No one should have to go through this situation.”
Rangsiman, a former democracy protest leader, added that the presumption of innocence was explicitly written into Thailand's constitution and that those awaiting trial must be treated according to the law. He said the Move Forward Party was awaiting the results of Netiporn's autopsy and hoped there would be a full investigation into his death.
“The faith that the people of Thailand have in our justice system is at an all-time low,” Rangsiman said. “Our government should have a serious discussion with the judicial body and make the necessary changes to resolve this crisis.”
