VZCZCXRO6016
RR RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHHM
DE RUEHBK #4926 2560359
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 130359Z SEP 07
FM AMEMBASSY BANGKOK
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 9602
INFO RUEHZS/ASSOCIATION OF SOUTHEAST ASIAN NATIONS
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC

UNCLAS BANGKOK 004926 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT PLEASE PASS EAP/PD, ECA, EAP/MLS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PHUM PGOV KPAO TH
SUBJECT:  New Cyber Law Nets First Violator 
 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary:  The recent apprehension and release on bail of 
the webmaster of a website often critical of the monarchy was the 
first known arrest under the controversial Computer Related Offenses 
Act -- also known as the Computer Crimes Act -- which was signed 
into law in June.  Authorities have declined to prosecute the 
webmaster for lese majeste, which carries more stringent penalties. 
Intimidated by his arrest, the webmaster has not gone public with 
his case and many media outlets have hesitated to report his story. 
There is no evidence, however, that there are efforts afoot to 
cover-up this story.  End summary. 
 
¶2. (SBU) A prominent human rights attorney, and close contact of the 
embassy, informed us on September 6 that Mr. Waree Sai Li, who 
writes under the pen name of Pichai or Prayapichai on several 
popular Thai internet web sites, was arrested on August 24 and was 
held without bail at Khlong Prem Remand Prison in Bangkok.  Pichai 
was the prolific webmaster of an internet discussion group and was 
arrested after allegedly posting comments that some had interpreted 
as critical of Thailand's revered monarchy.  Waree was released on 
bail on September 6.  Our contacts could not confirm the arrest of a 
woman, whom other sources say was arrested at the same time and 
location as Pichai and under similar charges. 
 
¶3. (SBU) According to our contact, prosecutors had considered 
charging Waree with lese majeste -- committing an offense against 
the dignity of the monarchy which carries a prison term of up to 15 
years.  Reportedly fearing a public outcry however, prosecutors 
instead opted to prosecute Waree under a section of the 
recently-enacted Computer Crimes Act which prescribes a punishment 
of a maximum five years imprisonment or a $3,000 (100,000 baht) fine 
for "posting false content on the Internet to hurt others and public 
security".  Civil liberties advocates have in the past several 
months expressed serious concerns over ambiguous language in the new 
law which would appear to give the authorities broad powers to 
interpret and suppress content they view as a threat to the 
country. 
 
¶4. (SBU) Report of the arrests first surfaced in the Financial Times 
on September 1 but did not appear in the Thai media until September 
7 in the online edition of the English language The Nation -- the 
day after Waree was released on bail.  While the internet community 
was reportedly abuzz over this incident, mainstream media has been 
relatively silent.  Many editors and writers we spoke to had either 
not heard of the incident or were too uncertain of the details 
to make much of it.  A senior member of the Webmasters Association, 
a private group which focuses on web rights, said that they had not 
heard of the arrest.  Even more surprising, when we contacted the 
Ministry of Information and Communication Technology, the proverbial 
internet watchdogs, they claimed to not know anything about the 
arrests either. 
 
¶5. (SBU) Comment:  That the first case of an arrest under the new 
cyber laws has made little public impact may have more to do with 
how journalists cover stories rather than any conspiracy to downplay 
this incident.  We will continue monitoring arrests under the 
Computer Crimes Act closely and will also continue to encourage 
government officials to ensure enforcement of the law meets 
international human rights standards.  End comment. 
 
BOYCE