The following is a statement from Associate Professor Giles Ji Ungpakorn, Faculty of Political Science, Chulalongkorn University.

Details of lese majeste charges against Giles Ji Ungpakorn

Today, the police informed me that I have been charged with lese majeste because of 8 paragraphs in Chapter 1 of my book “A Coup for the Rich”. The paragraphs are listed below.

According to the police charge sheet, the charges arise from the fact that the Director of Chulalongkorn University bookshop decided to inform Special Branch that my book “insulted the Monarchy”. The bookshop is managed by the academic management of the university. So much for academic freedom!

… [As an interim measure, and on advice, I have removed the relevant paragraphs from the statement. A full copy of the book is available here. AW]

Reading through these paragraphs it is clear that this lese majeste charge is really about preventing any discussion about the relationship between the military junta and the Monarchy. This is in order to protect the military’s sole claim to legitimacy: that it acted in the interests of the Monarchy.

Associate Professor Giles Ji Ungpakorn
Faculty of Political Science
Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand
20 Jan 2009
[email protected]