US issues sanctions against Myanmar after coup

The Human Rights Watch is speaking up against Thailand’s use of the lèse majesté law after 4 prominent pro-democracy activists were denied bail by the Bangkok Criminal Court and ordered into pretrial detention for allegedly insulting or defaming the Thai Monarchy. The HRW says the activists could be in detention for years until their trials are concluded.

At a time of ongoing political protests calling on monarchy reform, Thai authorities have been “abusing” the draconian lèse majesté law by using it to “aggressively clamp down on speech they don’t like,” according to HRW’s Asia director Brad Adams.

“Holding people in pretrial detention for peaceful expression portends a return to the dark days when people simply charged with this crime end up spending years in jail while their trials drag on interminably.”

The lèse majesté law, under Section 112 of Thailand’s…