112WATCH kicks off a new column, The Big Interview, bringing you a fresh perspective from around the world on the pertinent issue of Article 112 of Thailand. We talk to scholars, policy practitioners, members of the NGOs and civil society organisations and most importantly the victims of the lese-majeste law themselves. We present our first interview with Mark S. Cogan from the Kansai Gaidai University in Japan. Cogan opines that the law has been used as a political weapons against different groups of people and this has become a worrying sign not only among the Thai people but also friends of Thailand overseas. He believes that the old approach of naming and shaming the Thai government on the excessive use of lese-majeste law has proven ineffective, A way forward is to find moderate partners and established political actors to lead political discussions on the lese-majeste citation in Thailand. He also speaks from a comparative perspective as he looks at the human rights situation in Thailand and Myanmar. It is important that we must not allow victims of human rights abuses in the two countries to jockey for international attention.

Read/download the interview with Mark S. Cogan below –