The professional membership of the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Thailand is greatly concerned over the indictment of Murray Hunter, an Australian writer and blogger, by the Thai authorities. Mr Hunter was detained in September at Suvarnabhumi airport as he was about to leave the country. He has been charged with criminal defamation, after a complaint was filed by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission over articles published by Mr. Hunter on his Substack blog.
His prosecution highlights the ease with which Thailand’s criminal defamation can be misused. The way the law operates is a serious threat to freedom of expression.
The MCMC has filed a civil defamation case against Mr. Hunter in Malaysia, but only filed a criminal case here in Thailand, where it is very unlikely that his blogs on the MCMC, written in English, would have been widely read. As a result, he has had his passport confiscated and been required to post bail while the case is pending. His trial is dues to start on 21 December.
Those convicted of violating the criminal defamation law face up to two years in jail, and they must go through trials sometimes lasting years, during which time they must cover all their legal costs and cannot leave the country. The bar for taking criminal defamation cases to trial is very low. Even if the published content over which the complaint has been filed can be shown to be accurate and fair, that is not sufficient to ensure an acquittal. It is rare for a Thai judge to dismiss a defamation complaint, and Thai courts are tied up with thousands of ongoing trials for often frivolous charges.
The charges against Murray Hunter should be dropped, and he should be released immediately.
19 November 2025
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