ABSTRACT
Thailand is unique in the seamless conjoining of the state of exception with the principles of the defamation regime codified in its lèse-majesté law. In this marriage both are perfected, for the product combines the suspension of all normal juridical theory, structures, and procedures while adopting the most fundamental and ancient axiom of defamation: “the greater the truth, the greater the crime.” Thailand’s use of the lèse-majesté law has become unique in the world and its elaboration and justifications have become an art. The law’s defenders claim that Thailand’s love and reverence for its king is incomparable. Its critics say the law has become the foremost threat to the freedom of expression. Barely hidden beneath the surface of growing debate around the law and its use are the most basic issues defining the relationship between those in power and the governed: equality before the law, rights and liberties, the source of sovereign power, and even the system of government of the polity-– whether Thailand is to be primarily a constitutional monarchy, a democratic system of governance with the king as head of state, or a democracy.
