Curtailing Free Expression, Opinion and Information Online in Southeast Asia Case of Manager Online In February 2018, the editor of ‘Manager Online’ news website faced charges under section 328 of the Criminal Code and section 14(2) of the CCA, after a Director of Thailand’s ISOC authorized the filing of a criminal defamation complaint against him. This followed the publication of a story on the website on 5 February 2018 which had alleged torture and ill-treatment of a suspect in military camps. The military further sought 10 mil. Baht (approx. USD 320,000) in damages from the news website for its report.160 In February 2019, the ICJ was informed that complaints against the editor and a second editor of the same website had been withdrawn, following a settlement obliging ‘Manager Online’ to publish a “clarification statement” drafted by ISOC Region 4 Forward division, which had brought the criminal defamation charges against them. The statement indicated that “after examining all facts”, the editors had found “it is not true” and expressed “remorse about (our) wrongdoing by publishing an article that defamed officers of the ISOC 4 Forward, and damaged their reputation.” The statement urged all groups “to stop bringing security problems in the region to defame the officers for their own benefit or their political interests and to stop deceiving the public with distorted information.”161 In a submission to the UN Human Rights Committee in April 2019, the ICJ highlighted that this settlement had done nothing to allay concerns that criminal defamation charges had been used to legally harass and threaten the news website in the first place.162 160 ICJ, ‘Thailand: immediately stop criminal defamation complaint against torture victim’, 15 February 2018, Available at: https://www.icj.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/Thailand-Isma-ae-Taedefamation-case-News-Press-releases-2018-ENG.pdf 161 Manager Online, “Clarification Statement,” 14 February 2019, Available at: https://mgronline.com/ south/detail/9620000015540 162 ICJ, TLHR, CrCF, ‘Supplementary Submission by the International Commission of Jurists, Thai Lawyers For Human Rights and Cross-Cultural Foundation on Thailand’s Implementation of the Human Rights Committee’s Prioritized Recommendations following its Review of Thailand’s Second Periodic Report at its 119th Session’, April 2019, para 20. 53