Thai nationals jailed for lese majeste charges.

Bangkok, February 23rd 2015

King Bhumibol Adulyadej

Two Thai nationals accused of insulting the country's monarchy in a satirical play performed at a university, were jailed today for two years and six months.

The prison sentence comes in the wake of an intensifying its crackdown on criticism against the Royal family.

Student Patiwat Saraiyaem, 23, and activist Porntip Munkong, 26, pleaded guilty to lese majeste charges (defamation of royal family) for performing the play "The Wolf Bride", a satire set in a fictional kingdom, at Thammasat University in 2013.

The play marked the 40th anniversary of a pro-democracy student protest at the in October 1973.

Saraiyaem and Munkong were charged with one count of lese majeste, the crime of defaming the Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej, or the royal family.

Criminal code s. 112 is the feared section of the Thai criminal code which carries up to 15 years in jail for each count of "insulting the king, queen, heir or the regent."

The two were initially sentenced to five years in prison, but the sentence was reduced to two years and six months after they pleaded guilty.