The court found Hall guilty of criminal defamation and computer crimes and sentenced him to four years in prison, but reduced the sentence by one year “due to his history of doing public good and his record as a rights defender”, a judge said.
Advertisement
He has been placed in custody but will be released when he pays the fine, Finnwatch said.
The court said in its ruling that Hall in his report for Finnwatch did not interview a large enough sample size.
Bangkok South Criminal Court found Andy Hall guilty Tuesday of criminal defamation against Natural Fruit Company Ltd.in connection with a report he researched for the Finnish consumer agency Finnwatch that alleged labor abuses at the company’s facilities.
Wirat Piyapornpaiboon, the chairman of Natural Fruit, told reporters that the court “returned me my rights today”.
He is also supporting the defence of two Burmese migrant workers accused of murdering two Britons on the Thai island of Koh Tao past year as well as other cases involving expatriate workers in Thailand. “The report was authored and published by Finnwatch; we take full responsibility for it. Andy has been made a scapegoat in order to stifle other voices that speak out legitimately in support of migrant worker rights”. She said Thailand’s use of criminal defamation was “in clear breach” of its worldwide human rights obligations.
Sonja Vartiala, Finnwatch’s Executive Director added: “This is a sad day for freedom of expression in Thailand”.
“We are shocked by today’s verdict”. The company, whose workforce at that factory consists mostly of migrant workers from Burma, asserted that Hall defamed and damaged the company by “broadcasting false statements to public media”.
“There’s a huge problem with human trafficking in Thailand”. “Prosecuting Andy Hall for his association with independent efforts to document rights abuses raises serious questions about Thailand’s readiness to protect workers’ rights”.
Two civil suits by the company against him are pending, as is an appeal against his acquittal on a previous criminal defamation charge. These cases have been but on hold until the corresponding criminal cases have been concluded.
Advertisement
Hall’s suspended sentence means he is unlikely to serve any time in jail but the ruling in Bangkok will set a precedent for Thai firms accused of worker’s rights issues being able to go after activists with defamation cases, a criminal charge in Thailand. Appeals in this case, submitted by both Natural Fruit and Thailand’s Attorney General, are being considered by Thailand’s Supreme Court after the Appeals Court threw out an initial appeal in September 2015.
