Thailand: Drop charges against Conscientious Objector Netiwit Chotiphatphaisal
We, the undersigned organisations, express our strong support for Netiwit Chotiphatphaisal, Thailand’s first public conscientious objector, who faces trial at the Provincial Court of Samut Prakan on 10–11 September 2025. He has been charged under Section 27 of the Military Service Act B.E. 2497 (1954) with “fleeing military service.” If convicted, he faces up to three years in prison.
Netiwit’s refusal to serve, first declared as a teenager after the Thai military seized power in 2014, is a matter of conscience. In his own words:
I reject the idea that peace must come through violence, that obedience is more important than conscience. Militaristic values permeate Thai society—not only in the barracks, but in our classrooms, in our politics, in how young people are taught to think and express themselves. These values make true education, democracy, and freedom of expression difficult to achieve. To object is to resist that mindset. It is to say: our lives should not be tools of war, our minds not moulded by fear.
His refusal is not only a deeply personal act of conscience, but also a stance that international law recognises and protects. Article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), to which Thailand is a party, guarantees the right to freedom of thought, conscience, and belief. The United Nations Human Rights Committee has affirmed that the right to conscientious objection is inherent in Article 18, and that individuals must not be coerced into military service in violation of their beliefs.
Prosecuting Netiwit for exercising this right not only violates Thailand’s international obligations but undermines the fundamental principle that freedom of conscience must be respected.
We therefore:
- Urge Thai authorities to immediately drop the charges against Netiwit Chotiphatphaisal and ensure he is not prosecuted for his conscientious objection in the future.
- Call on Thailand to take the necessary legislative steps to recognise the right to conscientious objection to military service in its laws and practices, in line with international human rights standards.
Netiwit’s stance reflects a universal principle: no one should be punished for refusing to take up arms on grounds of conscience. His words remind us that conscientious objection is both a human right and a powerful act of resistance to militarism. We stand in solidarity with him, and with all those in Thailand and beyond who refuse to kill.
Signatory organisations (in alphabetical order):
Stay up to date with our international antimilitarist activism.