BANGKOK (THAILAND) – Facebook blocked its access within Thailand to a group that has 1 million members which had gone on to criticise the country’s king.
The move comes after youth-led protests against the government which had the former military junta chief leading them.
The “Royalist Marketplace” group was created in April by Pavin Chachavalpongpun, an academic who is self-exiled and a critic of the monarchy.
The group’s page brought up a message: “Access to this group has been restricted within Thailand pursuant to a legal request from the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society.”
“Our group is part of a democratisation process, it is a space for freedom of expression,” Pavin said.
“By doing this, Facebook is cooperating with the authoritarian regime to obstruct democracy and cultivating authoritarianism in Thailand.”
Pavin’s new group of the same name boasts of over 455,000 members on Tuesday.
Facebook said on Tuesday a legal challenge is aimed at the Thai government by them after being “compelled” to block access to the group.
A Facebook spokesperson said, “Requests like this are severe, contravene international human rights law, and have a chilling effect on people’s ability to express themselves.”
“We work to protect and defend the rights of all internet users and are preparing to legally challenge this request.”
(Photos syndicated via Reuters)
This story has been edited by BH staff and is published from a syndicated field.