Thailand was among the first countries to sign the United Nations' (UN's) Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948, and the country seemed committed to upholding the declaration's stipulations. However, the rights of Thai people within the country have historically been infringed, with offenders committing crimes with impunity. From 1977 to 1988, Amnesty International reported widespread human rights violations in the country; these included arbitrary detentions, forced disappearances, torture, and extrajudicial killings that were systematically investigated and covered up by the authorities. In the years since, Amnesty has demonstrated that this situation has changed little, and Thailand's overall human rights record remains problematic. A 2019 report by the NGO Human Rights Watch (HRW) expanded on Amnesty's overview by focusing specifically on Thailand. When the newly formed government of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha assumed power in mid-2019, Thailand's human rights record showed no signs of changing.
History
In the Ayutthaya period (14th–18th centuries), slaves occupied the lowest rank in the social hierarchy known as sakdina. They were bound under servitude to a master who, according to the law, "had absolute power over their slaves other than the right to take their lives." People could become slaves through various means, including being taken as war captives, through debt, and being born into slavery. Masters' employment of their slaves varied, as was recorded by Simon de la Loubère, who visited Ayutthaya in 1687. The abolition of slavery in Thailand occurred during the reign of King Chulalongkorn through reforms implemented gradually over several decades; these reforms began in 1874, with a royal act stipulating that those born into slavery after 1868 were to be freed upon reaching the age of 21. A final act, issued in 1905, introduced progressively decreasing freedom-price caps and age limits, eventually ending the practice within the next few years. Slavery was explicitly criminalised by Section 269 of the 1908 penal code, which prohibited the sale and acquisition of slaves. Royal acts from 1911 to 1913 expanded the coverage of previous laws, and slavery legally ceased in Thailand in 1915.
The Siamese revolution of 1932 increased awareness of human rights; this reflected the influence of social democrat Pridi Banomyong, who introduced democracy and the first constitution of Thailand. The first article of this constitution stated that sovereign power belonged to the people of Siam, leading to the country's first election in 1937, with half of the parliament appointed by the nine-year-old King Ananda Mahidol's regent, Aditya Dibabha. Women also had the right to vote and stand for elections, and the first woman was elected to parliament in 1947.
From 1977 to 1988, as Amnesty reported, there "were at least 1,436 alleged cases of arbitrary detention, 58 forced disappearances, 148 torture [sic], and 345 extrajudicial killings in Thailand.... Thai authorities investigated and whitewashed each case."
Many new rights were introduced in the 1997 constitution. These included the right to free education; the protection of traditional communities; the right to peaceful protest; protections for children, the elderly, and the disabled; and the right to gender equality. Freedom of information, the right to public health and education, and consumer rights were also recognised. This constitution brought the total number of recognised rights up to 40, compared to the nine rights in the constitution of 1932. The 2007 constitution reinstated much of the extensive catalogue of rights explicitly recognised in the People's Constitution of 1997. That constitution outlined the rights to freedom of speech, freedom of the press, peaceful assembly, freedom of association, freedom of religion, and freedom of movement both within the country and abroad.
Legal framework International treaties In 1948, Thailand was among the first nations to sign the UN's Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Thailand has been a party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights since 1997, committing to protect domestic civil liberties and political rights.
Structure of domestic legal protection The 2017 constitution, drafted by a body appointed by the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) – the military junta that came to power by coup in 2014 – states in Section 4: "The human dignity, rights, liberty and equality of the people shall be protected". This was unchanged from the 2007 constitution. 2007 Constitution (unofficial translation) Sections 25 to 63 of the 2017 constitution set out an extensive range of specific rights in such areas as criminal justice, education, non-discrimination, religion, and freedom of expression. Additionally, this constitution introduced the right to a healthy environment.
Rights and liberties ratings by NGOs In 2020, the annual survey and report Freedom in the World, by US-based Freedom House – which attempts to measure the degree of democracy and political freedom in every country – improved the rating of Thailand from Not Free to Partly Free. This improvement was due to a small decrease in limitations on assembly and strictly controlled elections that, despite significant shortcomings, ended a period of direct military junta. However, the country was downgraded again from Partly Free to Not Free for two reasons: the dissolution of a popular opposition party, the Future Forward Party, that had performed favourably in the 2019 Thai general election; and the military-dominated Prayut Chan-o-cha government's crackdown on the 2020–2021 Thai protests calling for democratic reforms. By 2021, the Monarchy and the authoritarian government worsened civil liberty by using a harsh lèse-majesté law against activists, in combination with an untrustful justice system, the constraining of freedom of expression, and a lack of freedom of association. The corruption index was also downgraded from 36 to 35, ranking Thailand 110th out of 180 countries.
+Ratings of Thailand – by Freedom House, The Economist Intelligence Unit, and Transparency International Year Freedom House The Economist Intelligence Unit Transparency International Report Ranking Freedom in the World Democracy Index Corruption Perceptions Index Freedom ratingFree, Partly Free, Not Free Political rights Civil liberties Democracy ratingFull democracy, Flawed democracy, Hybrid regime, Authoritarian regime Overall score Political corruption perceptions 2019 Partly Free 6 / 40 26 / 60 Flawed democracy 6.32 36 2020 Not Free 5 / 40 25 / 60 Flawed democracy 6.04 36 2021 Not Free 5 / 40 24 / 60 Flawed democracy 6.04 35
Equality Racial
Racial discrimination is a prevalent problem in Thailand, but it is rarely discussed publicly. Thailand has made two submissions to the UN International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, with ongoing issues including government policy towards ethnic groups – especially the Thai Malays – and a lack of racial discrimination legislation.
Sex
To mark International Women's Day on 8 March 2020, Protection International and a network of Thai grassroots organisations handed the government its "Women's Report Card". The government failed in all major areas of rights protection. The assessment indicates that the government's promise to protect women's rights is not only perceived as empty, but that the state itself is believed to be the perpetrator of violence against grassroots efforts by Thai women. Thailand is obligated under the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) to safeguard women's rights and to follow policy recommendations from the CEDAW committee to right wrongs. On 30 September 2020, 110 chief executives of Thailand-based companies signed the Women's Empowerment Principles by the UN, committing to gender equality, equal pay, and a safer workplace for women. The document was signed on the 10th anniversary of the Women's Empowerment Principles (WEP). The event was hosted by the WeEmpowerAsia programme.
Privacy
In late 2016, the Thai Hacktivist group accused the Thai military of buying decryption technology for monitoring messaging software and social network sites. In 2020, the security forces began using a facial recognition system linked to cellphones in southern Thailand; people who failed to register their phones were shut off from the system. Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan announced that the 8,200 security cameras operating in southern Thailand could be fitted with a facial recognition system and could be run with artificial intelligence (AI) in the future. In October 2020, a UN report accused the Thai military of spying on people using an AI-enabled CCTV system, collecting biometric information. The Thai military later denied this accusation.
In September 2021, Nattacha Boonchaiinsawat, an MP with the Move Forward Party, released videos, voice clips, and documents about military operations creating fake social media accounts to conduct information warfare against the people. The Internal Security Operations Command was also involved in deep monitoring of opposition politicians – seen as Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha's political enemies – and Thai activists.
In late 2021, at least 17 activists in Thailand who were using Apple devices were warned by the company that they had been targeted by "state-sponsored" attackers. These activists included the following people:
Panusaya Sithijirawattanakul and Arnon Nampa, who have called for reform of the monarchy Prajak Kongkirati, an academic at Thammasat University Puangthong Pawakapan, an academic at Chulalongkorn University Piyabutr Saengkanokkul, a prominent opposition politician Yingcheep Atchanont, of the legal rights non-profit iLaw
LGBTQ
Same-sex sexual activity is legal in Thailand for both men and women, but same-sex couples and households headed by them were historically ineligible for equal legal recognition. Since 2011, same-sex marriage laws have been proposed by LGBTQ groups. In 2021, the Constitutional Court ruled that the definition of marriage as solely between a man and a woman was constitutional. The verdict stated that members of the LGBTQ community cannot reproduce because it is against nature, and they are unlike other animals with unusual behaviours or physical characteristics. The ruling was deemed by some to be sexist and politically incorrect, and it enraged the LGBTQ community and rights defenders.
In June 2022, a group of bills that could legalise same-sex unions was passed by the lower house of the National Assembly. The most liberal of these bills, proposed by the Move Forward Party, would fully legalise same-sex marriage.
Same-sex marriage has been legal in Thailand since 23 January 2025.
Economic & social In 2021, Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha gave a definition of equality: the rich use an elevated toll road, and the poor use a road under it. He tried to build both ways, so that people could live in dispersion.
Craft breweries and microbreweries are illegal in Thailand, because Thai alcohol law has one of the strictest advertisement controls and large fines, which prevent small businesses from competing with large companies. In June 2022, craft breweries and microbreweries were unofficially decriminalised because the bill of Taopiphop Limjittrakorn – an MP in the Move Forward Party – passed the lower house.
Freedoms Freedom of expression