Thailand Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha today warned people against posting politically provocative online messages against the government, saying they should not mix up human rights issue with law enforcement.
Ten people were detained recentlyin Bangkok and Khon Kaen city in the country's northeast for allegedly breaching the computer crime law by their criticism of the regime and prime minister.
Another 16 people were taken away by authorities on yesterday evening here for staging a protest against the detention of the 10 netizens.
Responding to concerns that the country would be pressured by the international community over human rights violations due to the arrests, General Prayut said people should not mix the human rights issue with law enforcement.
"Did they commit a wrongdoing? If they did, they must all be arrested," General Prayut was quoted as saying by Bangkok Post responding to the regime's detention of the netizens.
Police and the Ministry of Information and Communications Technology will look into the matter and the court will decide whether they are guilty.
The protests were organised by the New Democracy Group and the Resistant Citizen Group.
"If you do not break the law, nothing can be done to you," General Prayut said.
Officers had been keeping tabs on the social media activities of the 10 detained and are confident in proceeding with legal action against them,Colonel Winthai Suwaree, spokesman for the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) said.
The Southeast Asia director of Amnesty International, Josef Benedict, asked the government to"immediately release" those detained, unconditionally.
"If ordinary people cannot comment on a Facebook post without facing the threat of 10 years behind bars and a hefty fine, what hope is there for any open and honest debate on the military government's draft constitution?" Bangkok Post quoted the Amnesty representative.
