Aussie faces jail for insulting Thai monarch

19 January 2009 | 01:54:58 PM | Source: AAP

The family of a Melbourne author accused of criticising the Thai monarchy says he's failing physically and psychologically as he awaits trial in a Bangkok prison.

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Forty-one-year-old Harry Nicolaides will appear in court today where he'll issue a plea.

The charges, which could bring 15 years jail, arose from a book he wrote that included a fictional account of the infidelities of the Royal Prince of Thailand.

His brother Forde Nicolaides says Harry has continuous flu-like symptoms and has lost lots of weight.

His Australian-based lawyer Mark Dean says Nicolaides is unwell and under psychological pressure.

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20 Jan 2009 5:57 AEST

Hilary Smith

From: USA

The Offending Passage - In Part

“From King Rama to the Crown Prince, the nobility was renowned for their romantic entanglements and intrigues. The Crown Prince had many wives “major and minor “with a coterie of concubines for entertainment. One of his recent wives was exiled with her entire family, including a son they conceived together, for an undisclosed indiscretion. He subsequently remarried with another woman and fathered another child. It was rumoured that if the prince fell in love with one of his minor wives and..."

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19 Jan 2009 15:45 AEST

tezza

From: Bangkok

Should have known better

This guy lived in Thailand, knew how the Thais revere their royal family and the consequences of any disparaging remarks or writings but still chose to write this fiction. Sorry but if you consider yourself untouchable as a lot of foreigners do in Thailand and choose to defy the laws and beliefs of these kind people then you should be prepared to accept the consequences.

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19 Jan 2009 14:47 AEST

John Hutchinson

From: Sunshine Coast

Mr

Imagine if we had the same laws here... every media agency in the country would be facing the same time for criticising Prince Harry.

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