WILL THERE BE A ROYAL PARDON?

From Malaysiakini:
The Attorney General today preferred charges against six men in a nationwide swoop against those who had allegedly insulted the Sultan of Perak in the Internet over the ruler's role in the ongoing political crisis in the state.

Simultaneous charges were tabled in Kuala Lumpur, Petaling Jaya, Kota Kinabalu and Butterworth this morning.

They were all charged under Section 233 (1)(A) of the Multimedia and Communications Act 1998 for "unwise use of network or network services for making comments, demands, suggestions or communication which are vulgar, false, threatening or disturbing".

This is the first time anyone had been charged under this Act, which granted a maximum fine of RM50,000 or a maximum jail term of one year, or both for those found guilty.

In Kuala Lumpur, a lab assistant pleaded guilty at the Sessions Court for insulting Sultan Azlan Shah (photo) in the Perak sultan's website and was fined RM10,000.

At press time Azrin Mohd Zain, 33, had not paid the fine. Failure to pay the fine would result in him being jailed for five months. He was not represented by any lawyer.

Earlier in the court, Azrin had tried to appeal to judge Rozana Ali Yusoff to reduce the fine to RM2,000 as his monthly income was only RM1,680. He added that he has a wife and child to support.

No doubt, to insult a fellow human being is not right. A sultan is no different. He is also a human. ;-)

Nevertheless, will there be a royal pardon for any or all of the six?

From Committee to Protect Journalists:

Thai monarch pardons jailed Australian writer

New York, February 23, 2008--The Committee to Protect Journalists welcomes the release from a Thai detention facility of Australian writer Harry Nicolaides but calls upon authorities to reform the draconian lese majeste laws under which he was sentenced.

Nicolaides was sentenced to three years in prison on January 19 for a passage in his book, Verisimilitude, which referred critically to an unnamed crown prince. He was originally arrested in August at Bangkok's main international airport and spent more than five months in prison on charges that he criticized the Thai royal family. Thailand's lese majeste laws are among the most severe in the world, allowing for three to 15 years in prison if found guilty of criticizing the king or royal institutions.

King Bhumibol Adulyadej issued a pardon for Nicolaides' release on February 20 and he arrived in Melbourne the next day, according to international news reports.

"While we welcome the release of Harry Nicolaides, we strongly believe he never should have been imprisoned in the first place," said Shawn Crispin, CPJ's senior Southeast Asia sepresentative. "Thai authorities have used his case to sow fear and confusion among local and foreign journalists who touch upon the monarchy and monarchical institutions in their reporting. It's time for that cynical practice to stop."

The growing and arbitrary use of the law by government officials, including three cases filed by a senior Thai police official against BBC Bangkok correspondent Jonathan Head, have had a chilling effect on the country's media environment. CPJ met earlier this month with senior BBC editors to discuss mounting concerns about the law's usage.

On January 27, CPJ wrote to Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva to express its concern about Thailand's fast-deteriorating media climate, including growing censorship of the Internet to block materials critical of the Thai royal family.