Sirikan “June” Charoensiri was only 29 when her country tried to paint her as an enemy of the state.

It was 2015, a year after the military staged a coup to take control of Thailand. The new government declared martial law. Authorities detained civilians for up to seven days without charges, set a curfew, banned public gatherings of more than five people, and tried anyone accused of breaking the law in military courts, by military judges, with no independent oversight.

June co-founded Thai Lawyers for Human Rights with her colleague and friend Arnon Nampa — who is currently imprisoned in Thailand for several charges relating to the country’s controversial Section 112 law, which makes it a crime to defame or insult the monarchy  — to support and empower activists who are targeted for exercising their basic human rights.

“It was a natural response to the decline of democracy,” June told Global Citizen. “Freedom of assembly and protest are ordinary tools for citizens to express their beliefs about their country. We had no choice but to respond.”

One night, June was heading home after defending a group of student activists arrested for participating in a peaceful protest. She discovered a group of police personnel and plainclothes agents surrounding her car, demanding she give them access to the activists’ personal items.

“It was late at night; there were no witnesses. I asked if they had a warrant, and they didn’t,” June said. “[My clients] had been detained directly from the protest and hadn’t been able to see their parents or loved ones. I was concerned that an illegal search would compromise their security.”

June refused the order and immediately filed a complaint against the officers who prevented her from accessing her car and its contents. That decision made her a target.

Over the next four years, June would face formal charges of propagating false accusations against investigating officers, disobeying police orders, and allegedly being an accomplice in the coup commemoration protest that led to her clients’ arrests. In addition, the government initiated a smear campaign to damage June’s character and turn others against her.

Read the full article about human rights defenders by Jaxx Artz at Global Citizen.