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    HomeAdvocacy GroupsThai court extends sentence for lawyer who called for monarchy reform

    Thai court extends sentence for lawyer who called for monarchy reform

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    BANGKOK, Feb 20 (Reuters) - ‌A Thai court has sentenced ​a jailed activist lawyer to an additional two years ⁠and eight months in prison for insulting the monarchy at a rally in November 2020, ​a rights group said on Friday, bringing his ‌combined sentence to more than 30 years.  

    Arnon Nampa, 41, was a prominent figure during unprecedented youth-led democracy ⁠movement protests in Bangkok in 2020 ⁠that openly called for the monarchy to be reformed.

    Thailand's lese-majeste law protects the palace from criticism and carries a maximum jail sentence of ‌up to 15 years for each perceived royal ⁠insult, a punishment widely condemned ‌by international human rights ​groups as extreme.

    Arnon has been in prison since September 2023 for violating the royal insult ‌law stemming from his speeches ​at political rallies ⁠and social media posts between 2020 and ‌2021.

    Friday's verdict was ⁠the 11th of 14 royal insult cases he faces.

    According to legal aid group Thai Lawyers for ​Human Rights, at ‌least 291 people have been charged with lese ⁠majeste offences since 2020. 

    (Reporting ​by Panarat Thepgumpanat and Chayut Setboonsarng; ​Editing by David Stanway)

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