Thai court acquits activist

Hall cleared of defaming fruit firm

BANGKOK: A Thai appeals court vindicated a British labour rights activist entangled in a yearslong legal confrontation with a fruit-packing company after he publicised alleged human rights violations at its factory.

The legal victory for Andy Hall (pic) yesterday was welcomed by Amnesty International but is not necessarily the end of protracted court battles.

A criminal defamation and other cases against Hall stemmed from a 2013 report he researched for Finnish consumer organisation Finnwatch that alleged labour abuses at Natural Fruit’s pineapple canning operation. It employed migrant workers from Myanmar who said the company abused them and broke labour regulations.

Sunya Joongdee, a lawyer for Hall, said the court ruling dismissed the criminal defamation case, which also resulted in the collapse of a case under Thailand’s computer crimes law. It outlaws publishing what is deemed false information online.

He said the court accepted that Hall’s interviews with migrant workers revealed allegations of rights violations that should be made public. Hall was found guilty of criminal defamation in 2016, fined and given a suspended prison sentence.

Natural Fruit, owned by Wirat Piyapornpaiboon, can appeal to the Supreme Court. Other cases brought by both sides as the legal battle escalated are still before the courts.

On Twitter, Hall said he had previously lost hope of justice but now a “flame was reignited in my heart”.

“There is still the possibility that today’s verdict could lead in some way to peace and reconciliation,” he said.

Amnesty International’s Thailand campaigner, Katherine Gerson, said the ruling should be followed with repeal of the criminal defamation law to prevent companies using the courts to harass activists who campaign against abusive corporate practices. — AP