The following is based on a communication written by the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders and other UN experts to the Government of Thailand on 20 February 2025. The communication remained confidential for 60 days before being made public, giving the Government time to reply. The Government acknowledged receipt of the communication on 28 March 2025. If more replies are received, they will be posted on the UN Special Procedures communications database.
At the time of publication, the witness and evidence examination in relation to the first case presented against Ms. Niraphorn Onkhao in 2021 under section 112 of the Criminal Code is still scheduled to take place on 26-29 August 2025. It is expected that the court will hand down the verdict this year. The witness and evidence examination in the second case presented against the human rights defender in 2022 under section 112 had been scheduled to take place on 25 February 2025, but has then been postponed to 23 June 2025, 12 and 19 September 2025, and 21-22 October 2025. The verdict is expected to be handed down within this year also in this second case.
This is a shorter version of the original communication.
BACKGROUND
Topic: the prosecution of youth human rights defender Ms. Niraphorn Onkhao under section 112 of the Criminal Code of Thailand (lèse-majesté law), which appears to stem from her human rights work and the exercise of her right to freedom of expression.
Ms. Niraphorn Onkhao is a 23-year-old youth human rights defender and pro-democracy activist, who has been active in the promotion of freedom of expression, gender equality and digital rights in Thailand. She is a member of the United Front of Thammasat and Demonstration, a student-led group advocating for monarchy reform. Since 2023, she has been taking part in Amnesty International’s Digital Rights Champion project, focusing on online rights advocacy.
Special Procedures mandate holders have raised concern regarding the use of lèse-majesté legislation to criminalise human rights defenders, activists and critics for exercising their right to freedom of expression on several occasions in the past, most recently in THA 8/2024 and THA 4/2022. Concerns were previously voiced by Special Procedure mandate holders about alleged use of the Pegasus spyware to target human rights defenders and activists in Thailand in communication THA 1/2023.
ALLEGATIONS
On 17 September 2021, at 7 a.m., officers of the Khlong Luang Provincial police station and of the Technology Crime Suppression Division (TCSD) of Thailand’s Central Investigation Bureau searched the residence of Ms. Niraphorn Onkhao, following the issuing by the Thanyaburi Provincial Court of a search warrant authorizing the search of devices and other items associated with alleged criminal offences committed by the human rights defender. Ms. Niraphorn was asked to hand over her mobile phone, but she refused.
During the search, an arrest warrant issued by the Criminal Court of Thailand was presented to Ms. Niraphorn, accusing her of “inputting computer data that could threaten the Kingdom’s security or constitute terrorism” under section 116 of the Criminal Code and section 14(3) of the Computer Crimes Act.
After the search, Ms. Niraphorn was brought to TCSD headquarters, where she was informed that a complaint had been filed under sections 112 and 116 of the Criminal Code, accusing the United Front of Thammasat and Demonstration of inciting violent protests and alleging that Ms. Niraphorn was the administrator of the student group’s Facebook page.
In November 2021, following another complaint, Ms. Niraphorn was summoned on charges under sections 112 of the Criminal Code and section 14(3) of the Computer Crimes Act. The accusations reportedly resulted from the publication of three posts, on 10 August 2020, 10 January 2021 and 6 October 2021, on the United Front of Thammasat and Demonstration’s Facebook page and her alleged role as administrator of the social media page. She reported to TCSD on 17 November 2021 to acknowledge the charges pressed against her, denying all of them.
On 24 November 2021, Ms. Niraphorn received an alert on her phone warning her that allegedly state-sponsored hackers might have targeted her device and been able to remotely access her communications, the phone’s camera and microphone, and other sensitive information. Following an examination of her phone, in July 2022, she received the confirmation that her device was attacked by the Pegasus spyware at least 14 times between February and June 2021, which is reportedly the highest number of recorded Pegasus attacks against one person in Thailand.
In 2022, Ms. Niraphorn was summoned again under section 112 of the Criminal Code and the Computer Crimes Act, following another complaint accusing her of posting a message violating such provisions. On 7 March 2022, she acknowledged the charges by reporting to TCSD, again denying accusations. She was given one month to submit a written statement.
On 19 April 2022, Ms. Niraphorn was summoned to appear before the prosecutor in relation to the first case presented against her under section 112 of the Criminal Code.
On 18 April 2023, she was indicted before the Criminal Court of Ratchada in the second case under section 112 of the Criminal Code and the Computer Crimes Act, which had been brought against her in 2022. During the court proceedings, she was granted bail pending trial. The Court is expected to issue its verdict in this case between April and May 2025. If found guilty under section 112, Ms. Niraphorn might face between 3 and 15 years in prison.
On 12 March 2024, Ms. Niraphorn spoke at the 55th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva during the Interactive Dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders. On 11-15 April 2024, Ms. Niraphorn took part in the Digital Rights Youth Summit in Buenos Aires, hosted by Amnesty International.
Upon her return to Thailand on 18 April 2024, her lawyer informed her that the first case presented against her in 2021 under section 112 of the Criminal Code would be brought to court on 21 April 2024. The investigation file had reportedly been submitted to the prosecutor on 19 April 2022, remaining pending for over two years. The hearing eventually took place on 29 April 2024, and Ms. Niraphorn was formally charged by the Criminal Court of Ratchada, which ordered her prosecution under section 112 of the Criminal Code and the Computer Crime Act. She was granted bail during the court proceedings. On 23 September 2024, the Court set the dates for the witness and evidence examinations, which are scheduled to take place on 26-29 August 2025. If found guilty, Ms. Niraphorn might face between 3 and 15 years in prison for each of the three messages that were posted on the United Front of Thammasat and Demonstration’s Facebook page in 2020-2021, for a total of 9 to 45 years.
CONCERNS
In the communication, we express our concern about the prosecution of Ms. Niraphorn, which we fear might be linked to her human rights work and the exercise of her right to freedom of expression. We urge the Government of Thailand to put an end to the use of the Criminal Code, and particularly its provisions on lèse-majesté (section 112), to target the peaceful and legitimate work of human rights defenders, activists and dissidents or critical voices in the country. We reiterate our call to the Government of Thailand to repeal section 112. In addition to such repeated calls by Special Procedures mandate holders, the Human Rights Committee and other international mechanisms have also urged for this provision to be repealed as it is incompatible with international law and Thailand’s international obligations.
We further wish to voice concerns about the reported attack on the device of Ms. Niraphorn with the Pegasus spyware. Our serious concern about the information received is aggravated by the fact that this does not seem to be an isolated incident, with several human rights defenders, activists and critics in Thailand having allegedly been subject to surveillance through the use of this spyware (as reported in THA 1/2023).
