Banned a social critic's book

Banned a social critic’s book

Sulak Sivaraksa to sue police commander and Gen Surayud for banning his book

Source : Prachatai

16 January 2008
News

Well-known social critic Sulak Sivaraksa, author of the banned book ‘Almost a Century of Thorn-filled Thai Democracy', will lodge a court case against the Special Branch Police Commander and the Interior Minister at the Central Administrative Court today (Jan 16).

Pol Maj Gen Sombat Suphajiva and Gen Surayud Chulanont in his capacity as Interior Minister will be the first and second defendants respectively.

Sulak wants the court to lift the Special Branch Commander's order prohibiting sales and distribution, and confiscating copies of his book that was published in April 2007.

On Oct 1, 2007, Pol Maj Gen Sombat Suphajiva acting as printing authority issued Order 5/2007 banning Sulak's book that criticizes Thailand's democracy, alleging that the material ‘may cause unrest and degrade good morals' in Thai society. Copies of the book have been confiscated by the police since.

Sulak appealed to Interior Minister Gen Surayud Chulanont on Oct 8, 2007, and never received a response. So he decided to ask the Administrative Court to lift the ban order and have the defendants pay him damages of 1,094,000 baht with an annual interest rate of 7.5% starting from the date of prosecution.

Sulak said that the Special Branch Police had illegitimately and unlawfully issued the order to ban and confiscate his book without presenting any reasons and facts to prove what part in the book ‘may cause unrest and degrade public good morals', and had failed to grant him a chance to defend his book.

The authority of the Special Branch under Article 9 of the 1941 Printing Act to ban and seize books is also outdated, infringing on the people's rights and freedoms, and goes against Article 45 of the 2007 Constitution. He also asks the Central Administrative Court to forward the case to the Constitution Court to rule on this point.