Two young Italian men have been arrested and charged with desecrating Thailand’s national flag after they were caught on video pulling down flags hung from awnings in central Krabi while being drunk.
They were arrested at a guesthouse on Soi Maharaj 2 in Pak Nam subdistrict, just two sois from where the incident took place.
The men were caught on cctv and allegedly admitted to being the ones on the videos, saying the incident happened after they left a pub. They were very drunk and could not remember what they had done.
They have apologised to the police and the Krabi public and said they had no idea regarding laws about the Thai flag.
Police said the men were initially charged with colluding to damage other people’s property and desecrating the national flag.
he incident occurred in front of shophouses decorated with national flags on Soi Maharaj 4 at 3.30am on Saturday. One of the men was filmed pulling on a hanging flag and the other ripped down four more flags including the one grabbed by his friend who looked on, laughing. Two flower pots were also pushed over while they were walking away.
Under the Thai criminal law, anyone found guilty of desecrating flags or state symbols is subject to a jail term not exceeding two years and a fine up to 4,000 baht or both.
The Thai Flag Act also stipulates penalties — a six-month prison term and a 1,000-baht fine — for such actions.
It is not yet known whether they will be charged.
(Source: Bangkok Post)