- Important case
Sirikan: Human Rights lawyer faces sedition charge with clients
Latest Update: 01/12/2017
Defendant
Sirikan
Case Status
Under investigation
Case Started
2015
Complainant / Plaintiff
No information
Table of Content
On 14 September 2016, Sirikan, lawyer from the Thai Lawyer for Human Rights (TLHR) was summoned to police station to be inform of accusation under section 116 of the Criminal Code (sedition law) and under the head of NCPO order no.3/2015 (prohibition of the political gathering of more than 5 person).
On 25 June 2015, Sirikarn went to observe the activity of the New Democracy Movement at Democracy Monument. Sirikarn's summon was sent to her house while she was attending the Universal Periodic Review on Thailand in Geneva, Switzerland.
Defendant Background
Sirikarn Charoensiri graduated with a bachelor’s degree from Faculty of Law, Thammasat University and with master’s degree in International Human Rights Law from University of Essex, United Kingdom.
She has obviously work experience on human rights work with the international organizations, such as American Bar Association and International Commission of Jurists(ICJ) before being a lawyer and documentation specialist at Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR).
On May 19,2017, Sirikarn got Lawyers for Lawyers Award 2017 from Lawyers for Lawyers organization which is a human right organization in Netherland.
On June 26,2015, at Bangkok Military Court, the 14 student activists from the New Democracy Movement(NDM) declared their’s intention not to be bailed out and accepted to enter the prison with their will, so they left their personal stuffs with lawyers from the TLHR who were at the court to provide legal support on the process.
After finishing a trial at midnight, the police requested to search Sirikarn’s car for confiscating the phones of the 14 activists(NDM). Sirikarn refused to consent to warrantless search. That is the reason why her car was impounded at the Military Court. In the next day, the police searched her car with a court warrant. Sirikarn went then to the police station to file a complaint for malfeasance because the car was locked through the night without any legal power.
This case led to her charges under two offenses which are refusing to comply with the order of an official and giving false information to official for reporting the a criminal offense against the police.
Offense
Article 116 Criminal Code
NCPO Head’s Order 3/2015
Allegation
Information on the summon warrant, Sirikarn was alleged that she with Rangsiman Rome and other key members of the NDM violated order 3/2015 of the Head of National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) which prohibits the political gathering of more than five people and a sedition-type offense under Section 116 of Thai Criminal Code, but the summons did not set out any precise grounds for the accusations.
Circumstance of Arrest
Sirikan reported to the inquiry officer on the appointment date. There was no arrest.
Trial Observation
No information
Black Case
No information
Court
No information
Additional Info
No information
Reference
No information
25 June 2015,
Sirikarn and lawyers from the TLHR went to observe the rally staged at the Democracy Monument by the so-called New Democracy Movement.
26 September 2016,
TLHR reported that Sirikarn received the summon order from police from Samranrat Police Station to report while she was attending the 33rd UPR Session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva, Switzerland, where she conducted advocacy on the human rights situation in Thailand. The warrant stated that she was charged with violating the Head of NCPO Order no. 3/2015 which prohibits the political gathrings of more than five people and a Sedition charge under section 116 of Thai Criminal Code. The summon letter indicated that Sirikarn committed the offenses with the 14 activists who were arrested and charged earlier.
Since she could not travel back and report herself to the police on 27 September, so she sent her lawyer to meet with police and the police allowed Sirikarn to postpone the appointment.
22 October 2016,
TLHR reported that Sirikarn had appeared to the police station with the representatives from ifferent emmbassies who attended to observe the event, such as Canada, France, Switzerland, and Delegation of European Union to Thailand. The inquiry official informed Sirikarn that, on June 30, 2015, Lt.Col.Pongsalit Phawangkanan reported the inquiry official of the Samranrat Police Station to file charges against Sirikarn because he claimed that she ,Rangsiman Rome,and other key memmbers of the NDM violated the Heeaf of NCPO Order no. 3/2015 and a Sedition offense under Section 116 of Thai Criminal Code
On June 26,2015, Rangsiman and other key members were taken to Bangkok Military Court to wait the provisional order until 10.00 p.m. Lt.Col.Pongsalit saw Sirikarn brought something to her car and he doubted that there will be some stuffs related to the charges of Rangsiman and others. And when inspected the picture of Sirikan with the detective team, he found that Sirikan was likely to join activities with Rangsiman and other activists. Furthurmore, there was an information that after the police searched her car on June 27, 2015, the police found 5 mobile phones then it was believed that Sirikan committed offeses with Rangsiman and activists.
However, Sirikarn refused all of the accusations and defended herself that she is just a lawyer of her clients, Rangsiman and the 14 activists, and she would gave hertestimony in written document to the police later.
22 November 2016,
Sirikarn appeared to the Samranrat Police Station with the representatives from Swedish Embassy and other organizations, who attended to observe the event. She denied all of the accusations.
She told the police that, on June 26, 2016, TLHR was informed the activists from the NDM were arrested, so she and her colleagues from the TLHR went to provide legal aid at Pharatchawang Police Station. When they were taken to Bangkok Military Court, she also followed to opposed the detention request and managed the bail request, but when she arrived, the official of the court stopped every outsider to enter the court area.
She continued that the correctional official informed her clients to leave their stuffs with their lawyers before the trial began because they could not bring anything into prison, so her clients followed the advice. While the relatives of detainees cannot enter the court's area, she recieved some stuffs without noticing what they are. Then, her lawyer colleague kept their stuffs in her car which parked in front of the court's building
After the official took her clients to the prison, Pol.Maj.Gen.Chayapon Chatchaidet requested to search her car to find phones of her clients. Sirikarn requested to see a search warrant and the police could not provided and also could not explain her how their phones related with the alleged offense. On June 27, 2016, when the official showed her a warrant, she permitted them to search her car. After searching, there was nothing aginst the laws. The phones of her clients that the police confiscated, she was already told to get them back later.
Sirikarn added Lt.Col.Pongsalit's claim that she kept the stuffs of her clients in her car suspiciously, so he believed that she and her clients had a joint offense is an accusations without factual or legal support. In her opinion, she did the duty of a lawyer who protected her clients' confidentiality by not permitting the police to search her car without a warrat or a proper reason. This is a normal pratice of lawyer not a crime.
Verdict
No information