Thai Lawyers for Human Rights honoured at Clooney’s Justice for Democracy Defenders gala

Become an insider for Justice recognised the efforts of Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) at The Albies, a gala held in New York City.
The TLHR was among six honorees from across the globe, celebrated for his or her work towards defending democracy activists and others who’ve been the goal of legal harassment and persecution. The award ceremony was named after Justice Albie Sachs for his monumentally very important role in abolishing apartheid in South Africa.
The award, Justice for Democracy Defenders, was bestowed upon TLHR for defending “thousands of scholars, activists and journalists who have been arrested under Thailand‘s laws criminalising peaceable protest and speech — together with insulting the monarchy.”

The co-founder of the organisation, Sirikan “June” Charoensiri, confronted a giant number of prosecutions herself as a outcome of her work defending 14 pro-democracy student protesters who had been arrested in June 2015. These students were charged with sedition by the navy regime, resulting in Charoensiri being charged with the same offence.
During her acceptance speech, Sirikan posed a rhetorical query to the viewers, asking if they knew that discussing the royal household or advocating for democratic reform could result in imprisonment.
“These implausible situations are all too real for us.”

As per TLHR information as of August 31, 1,925 people have been prosecuted for political participation and expression since the Free Youth protests took off in July 2020. Of these, 257 are facing lese-majeste charges under Section 112, and a hundred thirty have been charged with sedition under Section 116.
The gala, organised by human rights lawyer Amal Clooney and her actor husband George Clooney, drew a crowd of high-profile personalities from various fields together with human rights, business, leisure, fashion, and know-how.
In a joint statement, the Clooneys emphasised the dangers faced by justice defenders worldwide.
“Courageous justice defenders all over the world face grave risks that can’t be eradicated overnight. But what we can do, in addition to our foundation’s daily work, is shine a highlight on the danger that these people are going through, raising the stakes for his or her persecutors.”

Notably, actress Meryl Streep was seen at The Albies alongside TLHR co-founder Sirikan Charoensiri and Ann-Pawinee Chumsri, TLHR litigation manager, reports Bangkok Post.
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