Royal pardon frees Thai woman serving a 43-year sentence

A Thai woman who received one of the kingdom’s longest royal insult sentences was freed from prison yesterday under a mass pardon marking the king’s birthday. Anchan Preelert, 69, was jailed for 43 years in 2021 after sharing online audio clips on YouTube of an underground podcast host known as “DJ Banpodj,” a fierce critic of the monarchy. She was initially sentenced to 87 years — three for each of the 29 counts of lese-majeste she faced — but the court halved it because she confessed.

Read more