US says it is alarmed by American academic's arrest in Thailand

By Kanishka Singh

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. State Department said on Tuesday it was alarmed by the arrest in Thailand of American academic and U.S. citizen Paul Chambers who was charged with insulting the monarchy, in a rare prosecution of a foreigner under one of the world's strictest lese-majeste laws.

Local police said Chambers, a lecturer at Thailand's Naresuan University, reported to a precinct in the northern province of Phitsanulok after a warrant for his arrest was issued last week following a complaint filed by the army.

Thailand's monarchy is protected by Section 112 of the country's penal code, which says anyone found guilty of defaming, insulting or threatening the king, queen, heir apparent or regent shall be punished with imprisonment of three to 15 years.

Chambers was also charged with a computer crime violation.

"As a treaty ally of Thailand, we will closely monitor this issue and advocate for the fair treatment of Paul Chambers," the State Department said in a statement.

"This case reinforces our longstanding concerns about the use of lese majeste laws in Thailand. We continue to urge Thai authorities to respect freedom of expression and to ensure that laws are not used to stifle permitted expression," it added.

Thai royalists consider the monarchy sacrosanct. Public discussion of the law has for decades been a taboo issue, with dozens of people jailed for perceived insults of the crown.

A lawyer for Chambers denied the charges and said the accusations stemmed from a blurb for an online academic seminar last year at which he was a speaker. The blurb was posted on a website of a research institute based outside of Thailand, the lawyer said.

(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Sandra Maler)