A Woman Has Been Sentenced to 7 Years for ‘Insulting’ the Thai King on Facebook

A Thai woman was sentenced to seven years in prison on sedition and lèse majesté charges on Tuesday for supposedly “insulting” Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej in a Facebook post, according to the Bangkok Post.

Identified only as Chayapha, the single mother of a 14-year-old, was initially arrested and charged with sedition in June for writing that “a countercoup against the junta was imminent,” the Post said.

A lawyer for the defendant was not present at the sentencing.

Thailand’s strict lèse majesté laws prohibit insulting the royal family and King, who is the longest-reigning monarch in the world. Since the army seized power in a coup in 2014, however, the law has often been used to stifle dissent or settle political scores and arrests and prosecutions under it have climbed.

Most recently, a man was arrested for insulting the King’s dog. He could face up to 37 years in prison.

[Bangkok Post]