<p>Two students facing charges under the lèse majesté law for participating in a &ldquo;fashion show&rdquo; during a pro-democracy protest on Silom Road went to hear the charges yesterday (17 December), while members of the We Volunteer protest guard group and other protesters gathered outside the police station in Thai traditional dress to show support.</p>

<p>The number of people involved in recent protests who have been charged under Section 112 continues to rise as 31 people have now been summoned, one of whom is 16 years old. Meanwhile, the public prosecutor in Nakhon Phanom has issued a prosecution order in the case of a man accused of royal defamation for a Facebook post made in 2016.</p>

<p>A group of alumni and current students from the Faculty of Arts, Chulalongkorn University, has issued an <a href="https://www.facebook.com/nisitchulaparty/posts/196286588789050">open letter</a> to King Vajiralongkorn, calling for the repeal of Thailand&rsquo;s lèse majesté law, with which at least 24 people involved with recent protests have been charged in the past two weeks.&nbsp;</p>

<p>17 activists have received summonses to hear lèse majesté charges during the past week, since Parit Chiwarak received a summons on 24 November. The law has not been used in the past two years.&nbsp;</p>

<p>US Senators Bob Menendez&nbsp;and Dick Durbin, along with seven other senators, introduced yesterday (3 December 2020) a Senate Resolution in support of Thailand&#39;s pro-democracy movement,&nbsp;which have been met with violence and repression from the authorities.&nbsp;</p>

<p>As the government&#39;s attempts to curb dissent in the country increase, the spread of hate speech on social media has spiked. Limiting the spread of hate speech has proved to be difficult.</p>

<p>Yesterday (3 November 2020), representatives of five Thai human rights organisations went to submit a letter to the police commander on the violation of law and human rights during the legal action taken against pro-democracy protesters.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Panusaya Sithijirawattanakul, Parit Chiwarak, and Panupong Jadnok faced a long night after the court denied a police request to extend their temporary detention in Bangkok Remand Prison. Re-arrest was waiting for them outside amidst allegations of illegal arrest by the police, where violence was involved.</p>

<p>PEN International issued a <a href="https://pen-international.org/news/thailand-government-crackdown-and-drop-all-charges-against-peaceful-demonstrators?fbclid=IwAR2iEhm0AUvb6j8cBmDnObm-mtsu57j0zMF8u1TSFd-dpYDhXXPx71J5Hg0">statement</a> on Thursday (29 October) raising concern over the ongoing crackdown against dissenting voices and called for the Thai authorities to drop all charges against peaceful demonstrators.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The Manushya Foundation and its partner organizations issued a statement on 25 October&nbsp;calling on the Thai government to end its control over the digital space by attacking media freedom, tech companies and&nbsp;anyone telling the truth about pro-democracy protests online.</p>

<p>UN human rights experts&nbsp;urged today (22 October)&nbsp;the Thai government to guarantee the fundamental rights of peaceful assembly and free speech and called for an end to a crackdown on peaceful protests.</p>