Overview
- Murray Hunter was charged in Bangkok on November 17 after Malaysia’s Communications and Multimedia Commission lodged a complaint over four Substack articles.
- Thai authorities detained him at Suvarnabhumi Airport on September 29, released him on 20,000 baht bail, and still hold his passport under travel restrictions.
- A trial is scheduled for December 21 under Section 328 of the Thai Criminal Code, which carries up to two years in prison and a 200,000-baht fine.
- Advocacy groups describe the prosecution as a transnational SLAPP and note it is the first known use of Thailand’s defamation law to pursue reporting on a foreign state body.
- The MCMC has rejected Hunter’s allegations, and earlier a Malaysian court issued a civil defamation ruling without his participation as his Substack has been blocked in Malaysia.