Tom Dundee was released from Bangkok Remand Prison on July 17, 2019. He served 5 years of a 10 year sentence.

Thanat Thanawatcharanon, popularly known as Tom Dundee, is a Thai country and blues singer arrested in July 2014 on charges of “insulting the monarchy” under Thailand’s lèse majesté law, as well as “computer crimes”. He was sentenced under two counts of lèse majesté in June and July 2016 to a total of 10 years, 10 months in prison.

Dundee was arrested at the urging of members of the royalist yellow shirt group in 2014 after first attracting their attention during a November 2013 speech at pro-democracy red shirt protest. The speech was determined by a military court to be insulting to Thailand’s King Bhumibol, who has been the country’s figurehead since 1946, through 11 coups d’état. The second charge of “computer crimes” along with another of “insulting the monarchy” relate to YouTube videos of the speeches which are no longer available online.

Dundee’s charges were brought before a military court following Thailand’s 2014 military coup, which saw the military—self-appointed representatives of the King—take full control of the country after a scandal surrounding the exiled prime minister.

Under the military government, lèse majesté trials have consistently led to guilty rulings in questionable trials. Dundee’s trial was delayed excessively as he was denied bail three times during his nearly two-year detention, a practice that has become commonplace for Thai military courts seeking to force guilty pleas from defendants. As a result of this practice, Dundee did indeed plead guilty to the charges against him during hearings on June 1 and 21, 2016. The hearings were only scheduled after Dundee made clear his intention to plead guilty.

The judge presiding over Dundee’s trial instructed him to write a song promoting national unity after serving his sentence, and to plant trees in honor of the king. Dundee has sought to reduce his 10 year, 10 month prison sentence by seeking a royal pardon—another common element of many military trials which some regard as the military government’s attempt to legitimize itself with royal acknowledgement. As yet, however, this attempt has been unsuccessful.

King Bhumibol, who was generally popular across party lines until his death in 2016, interestingly invited increased criticism of the government in 2005, but the Thailand under military rule has regardless seen a sharp increase in lèse majesté charges and fewer royal pardons under the as yet uncrowned King Vajiralongkorn.