The self-proclaimed royalist Sulak Sivaraksa has faced at least three lèse majesté charges. The latest one filed against him at the age of 82 was brought by two retired generals who were not satisfied with Sulak’s speech on King Naresuan, a monarch who ruled the Ayutthaya Kingdom about 400 years ago.  

 

Prachatai’s Thaweeporn Kummetha interviewed Sulak Sivaraksa, a renowned royalist and lèse majesté critic at his home in Bangkok. Sulak talked about lèse majesté cases involving former kings, analyzed the ultra-royalists who hold narrow and nationalistic views of Thai history, the planned education reform, with more nationalistic, and royalist elements, the coup and succession, and other topics.  

 

 

Note to readers: In the  lèse majesté case against Opas C., an alleged statement about the King, considered merely a description of a person, was deemed lèse majesté by the police. Prachatai has decided to censor part of the Sulak interview, since he used a rather similar description.