Thai constitutional drafters, under the military regime, is including regulations on ‘hate speech’ in the new constitutional draft for the first time in Thai law.

 

Kamnoon Sidhisaman, the spokesperson of the Constitution Drafting Committee (CDC), announced the results of the CDC meeting on freedom of expression that on top of mentioning vaguely that freedom of expression is guaranteed with the limitations of respect towards the rights of others, the committee has included ‘hate speech’ into the new draft constitution. 

 

Kamnoon said the inclusion of hate speech and acts of instigating hatred is written for the first time on Article 14 of the draft charter. The Article does not mention about the liability of criminal offences punishable by law or not and that it is up to relevant parties to consider this further.

 

He did not explain how hate speech is defined in the draft.

 

Section 45 of the 2007 Constitution, torn up by the current junta government, also place limitations on the rights to freedom of expression as following:

 

“The restriction on liberty under paragraph one shall not be imposed except by virtue of the law specifically enacted for the purpose of maintaining the security of state, protecting the rights, liberties, dignity, reputation, family or privacy rights of others, maintaining public order or good morals or preventing or halting the deterioration of the mind or health of the public.” stated the 2007 Constitution.