Harry Nicolaides is a mystery for me, if I had not glanced old Bangkok post today I would not have seen the article.
According to Bangkok Post Harry Nicolaides is denied bail for offending His Royal Higher the King of Thailand and his family. Arrested on the 31 of August this year at the airport in Bangkok and has been held in prison since then.
There are not many foreigners arrested for lese majeste and the most recent was a Swiss man an Oliver Jufer that spray painted the kinds posters after he lost most of his money. He spent a few months in Jail and was pardoned and duly deported.
In Harry Nicolaides book “Verisimilitude†criticizes the monarchy in Thailand and that can give you 15 years in prison. Even if the book only has a few sentences of “attacks†it is no way close to the banned book “The King Never Smilesâ€.
In his own press statement he says that he is a famous writer in Thailand and but still when he ask for pardon he says his book only sold 7 copies and it was self printed in 50. In Harry Nicolaides press statement he names Asia Book but from what I see it he printed the book himself 2005.
From what I understand he worked as a lecture and traveled around Thailand to get information for his new book. He looks like a smart guy but how he missed the law about the monarchy is a mystery.
It says that he sends a copy to the Thai Nation Library and I do not know many books written by foreigners are kept there. It is also said he sent a copy to the Royal House hold but he did not get an answer. That’s really naïve you can not expect them to answer you, you need to go to a lawyer or a police and ask for advice. It is like poor Harry was planning to use it as a back up plan when he got arrested.
If you do a Google search you will find page up and page down of Australian, Greek and even Macedonian websites asking for his quick release. It also tells about the horrible prison condition we have in Thailand. But should also been no news to Harry.
In October this year the government approved a multi million dollar firewall program that probably will block all websites about this subject. According to the CAT of Thailand the firewall will used only to block website that breaks the lese majeste law.
Herald Sun and Andrew Bolt said it pretty well and also gives you advice how to ask for a pardon for Harry Nicolaides if you think he deserves it.
Letters requesting mercy, or at least bail, and expressing concern may be sent here:
Royal Thai Embassy
111 Empire CCT
Yarralumla, ACT 2600, Australia
PLEASE NOTE: Keep any letter extremely polite. Abuse and anger will be utterly counter-productive. Bear in mind also that anyone who has lived in Thailand, as I have, would know damn well how foolish it is to sling off at the Royal Family – which, I should add, has been a force for moderation and stability in a country needing exactly that
Press Statement from Harry Nicolaides 2005
MEDIA RELEASE – 12 June 2005
Exclusively for Phuket-Info.com
Harry Nicolaides is a famous tourism-award winning Australian and best selling Australian author. His first book – Concierge Confidential – published in 2002, generated unprecedented national publicity and attracted reviews from Australian political leaders and world famous sporting and entertainment figures. An iconic figure in the hospitality industry as magazine publisher, radio commentator and service professional, Harry was immortalised in Michael Heppell’s international best seller – Be Brilliant – as an individual who achieved brilliance with raw talent and tenacity.
In 2003 Harry Nicolaides relocated to live in Thailand for two years. He worked as lecturer in Social Psychology at The Prince Of Songkla University in Phuket, where he taught for over a year. He drove across Thailand from south to north and gathered material for his new book. He is currently a lecturer in Tourism and Hospitality at Mae Fah Luang University in Northern Thailand and living in the heart of the Golden Triangle – Chiang Rai.
His new novel – VERISIMILITUDE – is a trenchant commentary on the political and social life of contemporary Thailand. It is an uncompromising assault on the patrician values of the monarchy, the insidious infiltration of religious missionaries in the education system and the intimate relationship between American foreign policy and Thailand’s battle against Muslim insurrections in the south.
Savage, ruthless and unforgiving, VERISIMILITUDE pulls away the mask of benign congeniality that Thailand has disguised itself with for decades and reveals a people who are obsessed with Western affluence and materialism and who trade their cultural integrity and personal honour for the baubles of Babylonian America.
