Panupong Jadnok (; ) is a social activist,

Ramkhamhaeng University Ramkhamhaeng University (RU; , ) is Thailand's largest public university. It was named in honour of King Ramkhamhaeng, one of the 5 children of Por Khun Sri-Intharathitaya and Nang Sueng, who was believed to have created the Thai alphabet and ...

student, and a leading protester in the 2020 Thai protests, from the Eastern Youth Leadership group, currently facing multiple charges including

sedition Sedition is overt conduct, such as speech or organization, that tends toward rebellion against the established order. Sedition often includes subversion of a constitution and incitement of discontent toward, or insurrection against, establ ...

. He was imprisoned without trial throughout the year of 2021, start from 9 February to 1 June, and 9 August to 15 September. On 24 September, he has been denied bail and detained await trial on

Lèse-majesté ''Lèse-majesté'' or ''lese-majesty'' ( , ) is an offence or defamation against the dignity of a ruling head of state (traditionally a monarch but now more often a president) or of the state itself. The English name for this crime is a mod ...

for days until today.

Background

Panupong has a "grassroots" upbringing and is particularly popular with lower-middle class youth; he has worked with underprivileged youth in youth leadership programs.

Activism

On 16 June 2020, Panupong was charged with violation of the Emergency Decree and the Public Assembly Act for a 14 June protest against the

forced disappearance An enforced disappearance (or forced disappearance) is the secret abduction or imprisonment of a person with the support or acquiescence of a State (polity), state followed by a refusal to acknowledge the person's fate or whereabouts with the i ...

Wanchalearm Satsaksit Wanchalearm Satsaksit (, , ; born 11 August 1982) is a Thai pro-democracy activist and political exile. He was an activist for human rights in Thailand and HIV protection in various countries. Wanchalearm is an alleged lèse majesté offender ac ...

. On 15 July, Panupong protested against Prime Minister General

Prayut Chan-o-cha Prayut Chan-o-cha (sometimes spelled Prayuth Chan-ocha; , ; born 21 March 1954) is a former Thai politician, army officer and dictator who became the 29th prime minister of Thailand after seizing power in the 2014 Thai coup d'état, 2014 coup ...

's visit to Rayong Province to address the Rayong coronavirus incident, for which he was arrested. On 18 July, Panupong was part of the 18 July Free Youth Movement protest at

Democracy Monument The Democracy Monument () is a public monument in the city center of Bangkok, capital of Thailand. It occupies a traffic circle on the wide east–west Ratchadamnoen Avenue, at the intersection of Dinso Road. The monument is roughly halfway betw ...

in Bangkok which read out the 'Three Demands' before approximately 1,000 protesters, the largest since the 2014 military coup. On 7 August, Panupong and human rights lawyer

Anon Nampa Arnon Nampa (; ; born August 18, 1984) is a Thai lawyer and activist known for his critical stance on the Thai monarchy, a highly controversial topic in the country. Initially celebrated as a leading human rights defender, Nampa's involvement i ...

were arrested for speeches they had delivered at several rallies during the 2020 Thai protests, including for sedition, prompting a protest and at the police station where they were being held and statements by

Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says that it has more than ten million members a ...

and

Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Headquartered in New York City, the group investigates and reports on issues including War crime, war crimes, crim ...

calling for Panupong and other student protesters to be released and for charges to be dropped. They were subsequently released. Panupong was then one of the four leaders of the 10 August rally which raised the issue of reform of the

Thai monarchy The monarchy of Thailand is the constitutional monarchy, constitutional form of government of Thailand (formerly ''Siam''). The king of Thailand (, historically, ''king of Siam''; ) is the head of state and head of the ruling Chakri dynasty. ...

, together with Panusaya Sithijirawattanakul, Arnon Nampa, and Nutchanon Pairoj, for which he is facing six charges. On 24 August, Panupong protested in Rayong against the proposed government sea reclamation project, part of the third phase expansion of the

Map Ta Phut Map Ta Phut (, ) is a town (''thesaban mueang'') in Rayong Province, Thailand. It is the site of Thailand's largest industrial park, the Map Ta Phut Industrial Estate. Provincial offices are in Map Ta Phut. Geography The town covers parts of the ...

industrial estate

Eastern Economic Corridor The Eastern Economic Corridor ( Abrv: EEC; , , ) officially the Eastern Special Development Zone (ESDZ), is a special economic zone of three provinces in eastern Thailand. Collectively, these provinces occupy an area of , and in 2016 had an estima ...

project. Panupong was again arrested, then released on bail, then re-arrested for violating his bail conditions and for refusing to request further bail, being released on 7 September. Panupong subsequently prepared for and then addressed the 19–20 September mass protest, where he emphasized the position to reform the monarchy, not abolish it.

Imprisonment without trial: 2021–

On 9 February 2021, Panupong was sent to pretrial detention on

charge. He had been detained for 86 days. On 1 June 2021, he was released on bail from Bangkok Remand Prison but imprisoned again on 9 August. He was released from the Thanyaburi Remand Prison on 15 September. On 24 September 2021, Panupong has been denied bail and detained on

charge filed for a Facebook post about monarchy reform. He has been detained at the Bangkok Remand Prison since then. On 10 November 2021, the

Constitutional Court A constitutional court is a high court that deals primarily with constitutional law. Its main authority is to rule on whether laws that are challenged are in fact unconstitutional, i.e. whether they conflict with constitutionally established ru ...

ruled that Panupong, Arnon, and Panusaya aimed to overthrow the state and the monarchy in their speeches. The court ordered them and other protest groups to end all monarchy reform movements. The petition was filed by Natthaporn Toprayoon on 3 September 2020.

Awards & honors

*Jarupong Thongsin for Democracy Award,

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

(2020)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jadnok, Panupong 1996 births Living people Panupong Jadnok Panupong Jadnok Panupong Jadnok Panupong Jadnok Panupong Jadnok Panupong Jadnok Panupong Jadnok Panupong Jadnok Panupong Jadnok Panupong Jadnok 2020–2021 Thai protests

Background

Activism

Imprisonment without trial: 2021–

Awards & honors

See also

References