Activist network calls for repeal of 1976 coup-era order
The October 6 Memorial Network has filed petitions with the Bhumjaithai Party and the People’s Party calling for the repeal of an order made following the military coup of 1976 which increased the penalty for royal defamation.
Network representatives at the People‘s Party headquarters. (Photo by Ginger Cat)
Network representatives visited the Bhumjaithai Party on the morning of 22 September, before going to the People‘s Party in the afternoon. The network also plans to visit the Democrat Party on 28 September and the Pheu Thai Party on 29 September.
The petition is part of a campaign marking the 50th anniversary of the 6 October 1976 Thammasat University Massacre, a violent crackdown and lynching by police and right-wing paramilitaries of protesters gathering at Thammasat University and nearby Sanam Luang to protest the return of Field Marshal Thanom Kittikachorn. The massacre resulted in the death of at least 45 people. That evening, Admiral Sangad Chaloryu ousted the government of Seni Pramoj in a military coup. He became head of the National Administrative Reform Council (NARC), the junta which would rule Thailand until 1980.
Within 15 days after the coup, the NARC issued Order 41, amending the Criminal Code to increase the penalties for several offences, such as defaming a foreign head of state, insulting a place of worship, flag desecration, defamation, and defamation by publication. It also increased the penalty for royal defamation from up to 7 years to between 3 and 15 years.
The October 6 Memorial Network plans to propose a bill repealing Order 41 and has launched an online campaign for voters to back the bill at https://decoup6octsins.com/. As of 25 September, the bill had over 25,000 signatures.
In its petition, the Network calls on political parties to back their proposal. The NARC no longer exists, says the petition, but the effects of its order still linger as people continue to be detained on royal defamation and similar charges. Repealing the order would show that juntas and their laws have no place in Thai society. Relics of military coups should not be allowed to stand without review, says the statement.
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