Coming after such a severe sentence, it is hard to judge the significance of Bundit’s acquittal. Tyrell Haberkorn, a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison who studies Thai protest movements, said it was unusual for a lese-majeste case to be acquitted. “They are rarely, but sometimes, dismissed,” she noted on Twitter of Bundit’s case. “What makes it particularly significant is the 43.5 year sentence (down from 87 years) handed down to Anchan, a 65-year-old former civil servant last week, and the over 50 Article 112 cases filed against democracy activists recently.”
University Communications