Thai ex-PM Thaksin could face 15 years in prison in royal defamation case

Just 2 weeks earlier, his girl Paetongtarn was suspended arsenic premier curate by the country’s Constitutional Court.

Former Thai person Thaksin Shinawatra has testified successful court, seeking to support himself against royal defamation charges that could onshore him 15 years successful prison, conscionable weeks aft his girl Paetongtarn Shinawatra was suspended arsenic premier minister.

Thaksin stands accused of breaching strict lese-majeste laws shielding Thailand’s royal household from maltreatment and disapproval successful a closed-door proceedings successful the capital, Bangkok, that began earlier this month and continued connected Wednesday.

The prosecution’s lawsuit revolves astir remarks Thaksin made to South Korean media a decennary ago, with the suspect owed to springiness astatine slightest 3 days of testimony. A verdict is not expected for respective weeks.

Recent events for some begetter and girl are a superior stroke to the almighty Shinawatra governmental dynasty. For the past quarter-century, the 75-year-old telecoms magnate has been a defining fig of Thai politics, founding a question which has competed with the accepted pro-royal, pro-military elite.

His prosecution, combined with Paetongtarn’s suspension 2 weeks ago, represents a melodramatic waning of their family’s governmental fortune, analysts say.

Thaksin’s lawyer Winyat Chatmontri told the AFP quality bureau his lawsuit testified connected Wednesday greeting “and volition proceed passim the remainder of the day”.

About 50 Thaksin supporters gathered astatine the court, wearing reddish shirts, the colour of his governmental movement, emblazoned with a representation of his face.

“He is simply a precise talented guy,” 79-year-old retired accountant Vaew Wilailak told AFP. “But from past experience, atrocious radical conscionable privation to get escaped of him.”

Thaksin returned to Thailand successful August 2023 aft 15 years successful exile, pursuing a subject coup which removed him from the premier minister’s bureau that helium won successful 2 elections.

He returned the time his family’s Pheu Thai enactment took office, astatine the caput of a conjugation authorities backed by their blimpish erstwhile enemies, prompting suspicions a backroom woody had been struck.

Thaksin was instantly sentenced to 8 years successful situation connected corruption and maltreatment of powerfulness charges – aboriginal reduced to 1 twelvemonth by a pardon from King Maha Vajiralongkorn successful different evident motion of reconciliation.

In caller interviews, Thaksin affirmed his loyalty to the monarchy and expressed gratitude for the king’s pardon.

Speaking to AFP extracurricular the tribunal connected the trial’s opening time connected July 1, Winyat said his lawsuit appeared “chill” contempt the seriousness of the case.

On the aforesaid day, Paetongtarn was suspended by the Constitutional Court, pending an morals probe into her behaviour during a leaked diplomatic telephone telephone discussing a deadly borderline clash betwixt Thai and Cambodian troops connected May 28, which resulted successful the decease of a Cambodian worker and reignited longstanding tensions successful the region.

The ungraded “became a full-blown crisis” aft the leaked telephone suggested that Paetongtarn had “compromised her presumption by kowtowing” to erstwhile Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, prof of governmental subject and planetary relations astatine Chulalongkorn University, told the Turkish quality bureau Anadolu.

In the call, Paetongtarn referred to Hun Sen arsenic “uncle” and described a Thai subject commandant arsenic an “opponent”.

Pheu Thai’s conjugation has been abandoned by cardinal blimpish backers implicit the call, leaving it with a razor-thin parliamentary bulk steered by a caretaker premier minister.