A Taiwanese businessman was found guilty of operating a pirate radio station in Chiang Mai yesterday, Sept. 26 and was given a suspended sentence.
Mr. Chiang Yung-hsin was arrested earlier this year after he was found to be broadcasting the Sound of Hope radio station in Chiang Mai without appropriate licenses. The station itself broadcasts Falun Gong propaganda into China from multiple locations across the globe.
Mr. Yung-hsin denied the allegations, claiming that the broadcasting facility was set up by his tenants.
The Chiang Mai Provincial Court disagreed, finding him guilty on the charges of “possession and use of an unlicensed transmitter” and “setting up an unlicensed radio station.”
While facing a potential sentence of up to five years in jail, the court instead brought down a sentence of eight months in jail but suspended the penalty for two years. Mr. Yung-hsin was also fined 60,000 baht.
Radio Free Asia reports that Mr. Yung-hsin claims that the Chinese government pressured Thai authorities to shut the station down but there is no evidence of that having actually occurred.
Photo: Sound of Hope
