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15 Years In Jail For Clicking 'Like'
patiwat writes "Thailand has warned Facebook users that they could face 3 to 15 years in jail if they press 'share' or 'like' on images or articles considered unflattering to the Thai monarchy. And it doesn't just apply to Thai subjects: a U.S. citizen was arrested and convicted while visiting Thailand for posting a link to an unauthorized biography of King Bhumibol on his blog. Convictions for virtual lese majeste have sky-rocketed in recent years as efforts to defend the widely revered royal family from criticism have ramped up."
Fuck that greasy yellow slope
Why do people continue to go to countries that suck?
I want to delete my account but Slashdot doesn't allow it.
as efforts to defend the widely reviled royal family from criticism have ramped up
FTFY
It's better to be told in advance when you're going to be beaten, have property confiscated or simply be whisked off for saying the wrong thing. Wastes a lot less time than letting you mouth off until you're speaking loudly enough for others to hear.
As an America, it angers me to see some from a country not their own get arrest for a bullshit law that serves no legitimate purpose.
Wait...are we talking about defamation of monarchy or copyrights?
efforts to defend the widely revered royal family from criticism have ramped up.
That, right there, is the critical point. From my visits to Thailand, I also got the impression that they really love their king.
As a democratic country, they can agree to not wanting to have criticism of the royal family, can they not? Remember that this is not the USA - there is no 1st amendment in Thailand. With that in mind - test yourself on how devoted you really are to the concept of democracy. If you think that there are limits to what a democracy can democratically decide to do - who gets to set those limits?
Assorted stuff I do sometimes: Lemuria.org
Don't they know their laws don't apply to Americans!
Except that in the Good 'Ole USofA we routinely arrest and detain, often without trial, citizens of other nations. We cover it up with nonsense like "security" and "copyright". If we feel the need to get outraged by this kind of behaviour we need look no further than our own shores.
I've never been to Thailand, so maybe they really are enamored with the king. However, when it's illegal to say otherwise, who won't say they love the king? This reminds me of Napoleon Bonaparte's election, where voting consisted of checking yes or no to the question "Do you vote for Napoleon? Sign here."
You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it dissolve.
My girth assures me that I am, indeed, an America.
Do you live in Thailand and you hate your neighbor? tell the police that the neighbor said something bad about the king they will jail him/her and he/she will probably die in jail !
Damn, this simply calls for bait and switch technique.
1. Post a video of a cat hugging a kitten
2. Collect a whole load of "likes"
3. Switch the video for something different entirely
4. Land a lot of people in jail for up to 15 years.
Why not extend that to presidents? They can just not get elected if they don't want to be assasinated.
The link in the summary provides all the details. Click and ye shall find.
Some of what I say is fact, some is conjecture, the rest I'm just blowing out my ass...you guess.
Someone needs to show these guys some useful fables.
Personally, I believe the King carrying such a long sword clearly is a futile attempt to compensate for other shortcomings.
Sorry, but gray text on gray background is making my eyes bleed.
A reverse lottery? Oh, memories of a Sliders episode... to adapt:
For power and wealth you must buy lottery tickets. Each week, a set of winners is chosen... and euthanised[tm].
All in favour?
I'd prefer 'after-elections'. 4 years or so after your term of office ends there is an election where people vote if they were satisfied with what you achieved in office. If they are not, you're sent to prison for low level positions, and executed for anything high up.
The grossest example for copyright being the Russian who was arrested for a DMCA violation by breaking Adobe copy protection whilst in Russia. On security, a pilot was arrested in the UK on the orders of the US after 9/11. They wanted him deported without the required deportation hearing and without knowing what he was charged with. The UK ultimately refused, gave him an extradition hearing, and he proved his total innocence of the charge. Had the UK not done that, he'd be in Gitmo to this day with no rights and no knowledge of even the charges made.
This doesn't make the UK particularly heroic - obeying its own laws should not be considered exceptional, it should be considered the norm. The UK was also involved in a number of renditions that DID violate UK law, just not that one.
It's a small world and it smells funny; I'd buy another if it wasn't for the money; Take back what I paid (SoM)
I doubt very much if anyone would be arrested for stating "Abolish the lese majeste laws because they are being misused" as it is a comment about the law and not the royal family.
If the lese majeste laws are anything like English libel laws, as demonstrated in McDonald's v. Steel and Morris , then commenting against the lese majeste law might still be grounds for I-can't-believe-it's-not-frivolous legal action, be it civil or criminal, just to create a risk of having to pay for a legal defense and thereby chill such comment.
Is that you, King Bum?
FYI, here's an informative/interesting article from Time magazine: What's Behind Thailand's Lèse Majesté Crackdown?
tl;dr: it's used as a political tool to silence/jail one's enemies--while the law has been around forever, prosecutions skyrocketed after the 2006 coup that ousted the prime minister as the different political parties fight for power. The king himself has publically stated that he doesn't support the lese majeste law, and no member of the royal family has ever filed a lese majeste charge.
No, thank you. With Thai censorship, you never know where he's been.....
Call of Duty: Thailand.
New Economic Perspectives
You probably wouldn't go to jail. The secret service takes all threats seriously and investigates them, but they aren't idiots. They realize most are just people being stupid and they just go and have a little what's what chat with the person. If you were a tourist I could see them also sending you home. However unless they find other evidence or get the feeling that you are serious at the chat, no arrest is made.
This happens occasionally at the university I work for. Some idiot sends the president a threat for whatever reason (as newspapers like to say: alcohol is often a factor), the USSS shows up explains that is a bad idea, and that is the end of it.
The king doesn't give two hoots about this matter and is on the public record as saying he doesn't support lese majeste laws. The royal family has never launched a lese majeste action. It is the government that imposes and enforces these laws (and being a constitutional monarch, the King is powerless to stop them).
So while I fully agree with your sentiment, it is the Thai Govt. that FB would be selling their back door to, not the king.
1) The Lese Majeste law was established in 1908 when the monarchy had absolute power in Thailand
2) Anyone proposing a change to the Lese Majeste law may be charged with Lese Majeste
3) Judges are afraid to dismiss any Lese Majeste case because that of itself can be interpreted as insulting the king
Now where do you see any democratic process in that mess
I thought most people used wget? then you can be accused of using the command line.
All cows eat grass!
Don't let Erdogan in Turkey hear this post. He will like this.
twitter.com/ismetozozturk
... I click "like" from my country, and then travel to Thailand (I know, I'd be dumb to do that now, but I'm dumb anyway) ?
Could they charge me? Could they charge me before I even travel there?
Good correction! If Slashdot was like Reddit I could change my post to reflect your correction, but we're still stuck with it the way it is.
The dangers of knowledge trigger emotional distress in human beings.
Precisely - he is, and knows he is, a figurehead, and he should not interfere in the democratic process. His only interventions have been calmly to ask the politicians to get their act together and stop behaving like spoiled children (free translation). It is one faction of politicians who build him up for their own purposes. He cannot interfere with the law without interfering with democracy. He can then pardon those convicted. It is one of the problems of a constitutional monarchy that things done in the monarch's name are actually totally, out of the control of the monarch. His function is roughly the same as the flag in the US - something to salute, and produce prominently on state occasions, but not as functional part of the legislations. These laws are roughly like the rules, which some consider laws, about respectful treatment of the Stars and Stripes.
Consciousness is an illusion caused by an excess of self consciousness.
Thus making it certain that only people with a pathological need for power will ever try for public positions, making all the current problems even worse.
Forget magic. Any technology distinguishable from divine power is insufficiently advanced.
sure, but is the king doing _anything_ to get these people out of jail? NO! is he doing anything to make their time in thai prison more bearable? NO! he just says he doesn't like them. then goes with his life like before whilst he can't be even called on not doing anything since that would get you to jail too. nice combo. if he would initiate lese majeste action it would lead to streisand effect anyways, though of course that couldn't be publicly mentioned on thai press.
facebook should have a disclaimer at least when accessed from thai or if the user has thailand marked on his trips.
the real problem with throwing someone to thai prison from a facebook like is simply that it's too easy to abuse.
world was created 5 seconds before this post as it is.
Remove all access to people from Thailand until they join THIS century/millennium.
Really? Why is it ethical to punish the people for something their government does?
By that logic, Americans REALLY have it coming...
Karma: Terrifying (mostly affected by atrocities you've committed)
It's not so terrible different than the large number of Americans who want to ban flag burning. People don't like it when their national symbols are desecrated.
Unless you get rid of monarchy, or autocracy for that matter, because even when not written it WILL be enforced. It is taboo, forbidden to criticise your head of state unless you live in a republic with sufficient citizen rights, and even some of those have exemptions. See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lese-majesty
Artix
Your Linux, your init.
If you meant to ask a question they do that.
Years ago, I worded more things as questions, but other users would complain that I worded too many things as questions. How should I tell the difference between where wording as a question is warranted and where it is not?
By starting with "If" it appears that you are taking the statement as a fact and not a question.
I thought "if A then B" was logic-ese for "B or not A". Someone could still reply by showing not A, with the implication "not A, so you may not always have to worry about B".
What if he just linked like he did originally?
Change is certain; progress is not obligatory.
I had to get a retina scan and my 10 fingerprints taken to get a US visa.
I am Mexican, and I understand those requirements are the same for all countries that don't enter the visa waiver program.
America, North America, South America, those are all different things.
Also close but different:
Virginia and West Virginia
West Virginia and Westminster
tonsil and tonsillectomy
bidden and forbidden
frontal and frontal lobotomy
apple and apple butt
Thailand's history with it's monarchy is a lot different than Europe and America's!
Thailand is the only country in SE Asia not to be colonized by Europe, thanks to a series of clever Kings. They have a history and cultural tradition of individual freedom.
It is dangerous to make assumptions about Asian history and culture based on Western history.
Sure, you want to protect the image of your country and all but you've got to be kidding me with this. Apparently Thailand took the initiative to start an internet police kind of thing they just MIGHT have overdone it