Thai journalist charged

BANGKOK: A prominent Thai columnist who has chronicled the erosion of human rights under junta rule was charged with sedition on Tuesday over Facebook posts that criticised the regime.

Pravit Rojanaphruk, a senior writer for the local news outlet Khaosod English, told AFP he faces up to 14 years in prison over two cases filed by police. The first is linked to his Facebook posts from February 2016 that criticised a junta-drafted constitution.

The second case concerns Facebook posts from last month that criticised junta leader Prayut Chan-O-Cha’s handling of floods and the trial of ousted premier Yingluck Shinawatra, whose elected government was toppled in a 2014 military coup.

"I have seen the content and I insist this an abuse of the sedition law," Pravit told AFP after meeting police to hear the charges. The writer also faces charges under the Computer Crime Act -- another tough law used by the junta to stamp out online dissent.