(6 August) Chairwoman of the official Redshirts leadership files lawsuits against group of anti-government activists who accused her of planning to overthrow the monarchy and install a Communist regime.
(6 August) Chairwoman of the official Redshirts leadership files lawsuits against group of anti-government activists who accused her of planning to overthrow the monarchy and install a Communist regime.
Ms. Thida Thawornseth of the National United Front of Democracy Against Dictatorship (UDD) was accompanied by her lawyers and her husband, Mr. Weng Tojirakarn who serves as an MP for the ruling Pheu Thai Party, when she met Pol.Maj.Gen. Pisit Pao-in, Chief of the Technology Crime Suppression Division on 5 August.
At the police station, Ms. Thida filed a formal complaint against the group calling itself ?People′s Army Overthrowing Thaksin Regime?, which has vowed to depose Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra because it saw her as a puppet controlled by her brother, the controversial former leader Thaksin Shinawatra.
Mr. Thaksin was ousted in a 2006 military coup, but he retains considerable influence over Pheu Thai Party and the Redshirts movements. The mostly urban and conservative Yellowshirts see him as a corrupt tyrant and have often painted Mr. Thaksin as an anti-monarchist – a charge Mr. Thaksin has repeatedly denied.
The monarchy is an extremely sensitive subject in Thailand. Insult of the Royal Family is punished by maximum of 15 years in jail per offence, and any attempt to overthrow the monarchy can result in life sentence or death penalty according Thai criminal laws.
The Yellowshirts and their affiliated groups, ever known for their overt royalist sentiment, often accuse Mr. Thaksin and his allies of secretly harbouring republican or even Communist ambition. The ?People′s Army?, the latest resurrection of the anti-Thaksin faction, has made statements in similar fashion directed at Ms. Thida, which led to the lawsuit she filed yesterday.
Ms. Thida told the police that the group had been posting false statements about the UDD members, herself included, causing much "defamation, insult, and hatred" toward the them.
The lawsuit names core leaders of the People′s Army as defendants. They are Mr. Thaikorn Polsuwan, the webmaster of the People’s Army website, Adm. Chai Suwannaphap, Gen. Chukiat Tansuwatna, Gen. Preecha Iaemsuphan, Am.Watchara Rittakhanee, Adm. Banwitya Kengrean, and Mr. Phichet Pattanachote.
Pol.Maj.Gen.Phisit told Ms. Thida that those individuals would be summoned for questioning. If they refused to show up on the appointed date, expected to be some time in August, the police will issue warrants of arrests against them, according to the officer.
