Glyn Davies, the U.S. Ambassador to Thailand, gave a speech on Nov. 24 at the Foreign Correspondents' Club Thailand (FCCT), in which he spoke out against Thailand's lèse-majesté laws. The lèse-majesté laws state that any defamation, threat or insult to the royal family is punishable by long prison sentences, reported CNN. Davies is now being investigated by Thai police on a suspicion of having violated the law that he was criticizing.
The king, 88-year-old Bhumibol Adulyadej, was born in the U.S. and was a key player in the close alliance between Thailand and the U.S. However, he has fallen ill, and as a result, the country has seen an increase in militarization and the monarchy has become highly politicized. Since May 2014, absolute loyalty to the monarchy has been demanded of all citizens, and Thai-American relations have become tense, according to The New York Times.
