Thailand on Saturday warned against the creation of online content that risked insulting the country’s monarchy, after a video by a social media influencer promoting the e-commerce platform Lazada incensed royalists, who said it was mocking the palace. Thai law prescribes punishments of up to 15 years in jail for each offense if found guilty of defaming, insulting or threatening King Maha Vajiralongkorn and his closest family.
The video, which has since been taken down, was promoting Lazada’s May 5 sale and featured a woman dressed in a traditional Thai costume sitting in a wheelchair and playing the role of an influencer’s mother. Royalists complained the woman in the wheelchair was a veiled reference to a royal family member. The video did not use the language used by the royal family, nor mention any of its members.
In videos posted on Facebook, the influencer, Aniwat “Nara”…
