Anchana Heemmina, a prominent human rights defender specializing in peacebuilding and gender justice in Thailand’s Deep South, is currently facing intensified judicial harassment by the Thai state.
Overview
In July 2024, the Thai Navy initiated charges against Anchana Heemmina regarding a Facebook post she made in May 2024 in which she raised a question regarding a state agency not paying a local mosque for use of its water. On June 17th, after requiring Anchana to travel to meet with officials at the Prosecutors office for the 5th time, the police added a charge under the Computer Crime Act and the Prosecutors Office began the official indictment process. This is a rapid escalation in the targeting and harassment of the prominent human rights defender Anchana Heemmina.
Background
Anchana Heemmina is part of the Malay-Muslim minority community located in the three southern border provinces of Pattani, Yala, and Narathiwat in Thailand. This group has long faced violence, persecution and discrimination by the Thai state.1https://www.hrw.org/report/2007/08/27/no-one-safe/insurgent-attacks-civilians-thailands-southern-border-provinces#:~:text=He%20told%20me,history%20of%20oppression The region has been marked by an ongoing armed conflict between the state and various armed groups for decades, leaving more than 7,700 dead and 15,000 injured since 2004.2https://deepsouthwatch.org/th
Being born and raised in Songkhla Province, Anchana has experienced the toll of the conflict and violence firsthand in Thailand’s Deep South. After one of her close family members was detained and tortured by the Thai military, she started the non-profit Duay Jai Group to support survivors and their family members who have experienced violence at the hands of the state. Understanding more deeply the structural injustices and systemic abuse perpetrated against her community, Anchana began advocating for the protection and guarantee of human rights in the Deep South. Throughout the years she has played a leading role in advocating for peace, hosting workshops and training sessions on issues of human rights, peace and reconciliation, and gender justice. Anchana has continuously spoken out against the systemic detention and torture of Malay Muslims and continues to call for an end to the conflict. Anchana’s outspoken defense of human rights has made her a target of the Thai state.
Anchana’s Case
On May 8, 2024, Anchana posted on Facebook, “What should I do? The mosque in Ba Cho District, Narathiwat Province, is demanding a water bill of 20,000 baht from the military camp that uses the mosque’s water. Who should I complain to?” After realizing she had mentioned the wrong location, Anchana corrected the information, clarifying that the mosque in question was located in Bue Re Subdistrict, Sai Buri District, Pattani Province.
Although the official Facebook page of the 44th Army Ranger Regiment—the party involved in the water bill dispute—issued a statement explaining the reason for the delayed payment, and Anchana publicly thanked the agency for clarifying the issue, the Thai Navy stationed in Ba Cho District nonetheless sent a representative to filed a complaint with the investigative officers at Ba Cho Police Station, claiming that Anchana’s actions had caused reputational harm to the Navy’s military units operating in the Ba Cho District.
Later, on October 14th, Anchana met with the investigative officers to acknowledge the charge, which was formally presented as defamation by means of publication, under Section 328 of the Thai Criminal Code. Since the case was filed with the Narathiwat Provincial Prosecutor’s Office in January 2025, Anchana has been required to report to the prosecutor monthly.
On June 17th, Anchana was informed that she would be facing an additional charge under the Computer Crime Act of 2007, and that the Narathiwat Provincial Prosecutor had officially decided to indict her for violation of this Act. In response, Anchana submitted a request to the Narathiwat Provincial Prosecutor to postpone the indictment to the next month, based on the fact that she received the additional charges from the investigating officer that same day. As a result, she was unprepared to arrange bail and had prior commitment to attend a parliamentary meeting in Bangkok in her capacity as a committee member of a parliamentary ad-hoc committee tasked with exploring ways to enhance the southern Thailand peace process.
On July 3rd, Anchana traveled to the Office of the Attorney General in Bangkok to submit a letter of appeal for justice regarding her case. The letter emphasized that her social media post—raising concerns about unpaid mosque water bills by state agencies—was made in good faith, based on available information, and intended to amplify the voices of local communities facing hardship. Therefore, the post constituted a legitimate and necessary exercise of the right to freedom of expression, serving the public interest. In contrast, the charge brought against her does not serve the public interest, and the Attorney General has the authority to dismiss the case.
This is not the first time Anchana has faced judicial harassment. In 2016, Anchana, alongside two other human rights defenders, were charged by the Thai military for defamation regarding the release of a report that detailed allegations of torture by security forces in the Deep South. These charges were eventually withdrawn by the military in 2017 after significant external pressure from activists and supporters.3https://www.frontlinedefenders.org/en/case/case-history-anchana-heemmina
The additional charge and indictment of Anchana come at a critical time during the conflict. In 2023, Anchana was appointed to the parliamentary ad-hoc committee on peacebuilding in the southern border provinces and has been an active member involved in drafting research and guidelines to promote peacebuilding in the Deep South. The committee has been meeting routinely for almost two years and is set to release its recommendation to the parliament in the coming months.
SLAPP Cases
There has been substantial documentation and research into the use of SLAPP (Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation) cases against women human rights defenders in Thailand, who disproportionately make up SLAPP charges in the country.4https://www.protectioninternational.org/news/slapp-attacks-in-thailand/ SLAPP cases are used as a method to target and intimidate women activists who speak out against abuses occurring in their community. Oftentimes, these cases are brought forward under defamation charges. The impact of these cases of multifaceted, resulting in significant economic and emotional distress, and directly impede human rights actors from continuing their critical work.
The new charges and impending indictment of Anchana Heemmina represent a deeply troubling escalation in state-led efforts to target human rights defenders in Thailand.
“I want to be an example for others and for everyone to see that cases like this can happen to anyone — if you express an opinion that may be seen as opposing the security forces, state agencies, or the government. I believe that the state should not use the law as a tool to justly suppress the people,” Anchana said.
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