FILE - Leader of Move Forward Party Pita Limjaroenrat arrives before the signing of a memorandum of understanding on attempt to form a coalition government between Move Forward Party and other parties during a news conference in Bangkok, Thailand on May 22, 2023. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit, File)
By JINATAMAS SAKSORNCHAI and GRANT PECK
BANGKOK (AP) — Thailand’s state Election Commission said Wednesday it concluded there is evidence that the top candidate to become the country’s next prime minister, Move Forward Party leader Pita Limjaroenrat, violated election law and referred his case to the Constitutional Court for a ruling.
The commission’s decision, announced in a press release, means the court could order Pita to be suspended from his duties as a Member of Parliament until the ruling is issued. In theory it does not rule out him being nominated to become prime minister by Parliament on Thursday, because the post does not have to be held by a lawmaker. But it makes his confirmation by a vote in Parliament, which was already uncertain, even less likely.
The Move Forward Party swept to a surprise first-place finish in May’s general election, capturing 151 seats in the 500-member House of Representatives and the most popular votes. Move Forward has assembled an eight-party, 312-seat coalition it had planned to take power. But the unlikely approval from members in the conservative 250-seat unelected Senate, which participates in the vote for prime minister, makes Pita’s path to power a difficult one.
FILE – Pita Limjaroenrat, center, wearing white shirt at right, leader of Move Forward Party, waves to his supporters, in Bangkok, Thailand on May 15, 2023. (AP Photo/Wason Wanichakorn, File)
The case against Pita hinges on his alleged ownership of shares in a media company, which would bar him from running for office. The complaint against him, lodged by a member of a rival political party, applied to the period of the 2019 general election. Pita had challenged the basis for the claim, which extended to his failure to include the shares on a mandatory assets declaration.
The case the commission referred to the court goes beyond a technical election law violation and accuses Pita of running for office with awareness that he was ineligible, a criminal violation punishable by maximum imprisonment of three years and/or a fine of up to 60,000 baht ($1,720). The party faces a fine of up to 100,000 baht ($2,865).
Caretaker Deputy Prime Minister Wissanu Krea-ngam, the government’s top legal advisor, has been quoted as saying that if party leader Pita was ruled unqualified to endorse his party’s candidates for the May election, the polls could be nullified and a new election called.
There have been fears since the election that Thailand’s conservative ruling establishment would use what its political opponents consider to be dirty tricks to hold on to power. For a decade-and-a-half, it has repeatedly used the courts and so-called independent state agencies such as the Election Commission to issue controversial rulings to cripple or sink political opponents.
The dissolution in 2019 of the Future Forward party, a forerunner of Move Forward, triggered vigorous street protests by pro-democracy activists that trailed off only when the coronavirus pandemic took hold.
The Bangkok Metropolitan Police announced a ban on gatherings around the Parliament Building within a radius of no more than 50 meters from 06:00 am on July 12 until 00:00 midnight on July 15 in an attempt to keep protesters at bay during the bicameral vote for the new prime minister.
It also set up an operations center to gather information, control, coordinate and plan with news agencies and relevant units.
FILE – Police deploy tear gas and water cannons on demonstrators seeking monarchy reforms and charter amendments in front of the Parliament on Nov. 17, 2020.
The police are also asking for help from the Crowd Protection and Control Department, with a total of 15 companies, to secure the parliament grounds.
According to news sources, it is estimated that between 100 and 1,000 people will come to show their support on July 13. However, if there is conflict during the vote, an assessment will be made to decide whether or not to escalate the gathering.
Flash mob-like protests may occur at various locations, such as the Democracy Monument or the Arts and Culture Center. Most of these protest groups are supporters of the Move Forward Party.
The investigative police detained Olaf Thorsten Brinkmann, a 52-year-old German, on Tuesday evening in Bangna, Bangkok, as he was a suspect in the kidnapping and murder of a German businessman, Hans Peter Ralter Mack, in Chonburi Province.
Mrs. Petra Christl Grundgreif, a 47-year-old German, and Mr. Sahruk Kareem Uddin, 27, a Pakistani with Thai citizenship, are two more suspects. The German suspect turned herself in to police earlier in the day,
Police found the dismembered body of Mack, 62, who had gone missing since July 4, inside a large freezer on Monday night in Nong Prue District, Chonburi.
Olaf Thorsten Brinkmann was arrested in Bangkok on Tuesday night.
Gen. Surachate Hakparn, Deputy National Police Chief disclosed the suspect’s timeline that the gang had been planning for more than a month and was well prepared. A target was pointed out by the German woman who deceived Mack into the house for property purposes, because they knew that Mack was a rich man.
For the financial route from Mack’s account, the amount of 3 million baht was transferred to about ten of the destination accounts. Even if they could not steal all his money because the authorities seized 3 million baht, it is believed that there will definitely be more participants in this gang.
Mr. Mack’s body was found shredded inside a freezer.
The police therefore are still waiting for more reports from the bank. After there will be more arrest warrants for all mule accounts who are still in Thailand The police will arrest all involved.
In addition, Pol. Gen. Surachet stated that a case of this nature must be dealt with rapidly because these criminals are familiar with narcotic gangs and transnational criminal organisations in Thailand. Locals are aware that these types of groups have existed in the past.
Mrs. Petra Christl Grundgreif was detained to be question at Nong Prue police station.
People were fed up with these criminal gangs, so they needed to find a solution. He would attend a meeting with Superintendents of Police Muang Pattaya and Nong Prue to discuss combating organised crime in the area. Immigration officers are also responsible for issuing visas to foreigners residing in Thailand.
“Foreigners using a retirement visa or a Business Visa must be verified its accuracy. Money is not the only thing that can make and maintain life, but it must be monitored. Immigration officers must eradicate all of these criminal gangs in Pattaya and Nong Prue, a location where tourists stay when returning from Pattaya. Police commanders in both areas must be resolute; do not permit the Chinese or Germans to kidnap citizens,” said Pol. Gen. Surachate.
Approaching the July 13 Prime Minister Vote, Caretaker PM Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha announced on Tuesday that he’s ending his “political career” and resigning from the United Thai Nation Party.
“Throughout the nine years as PM I have done my best to protect the nation, religions and the monarchy as well as well as for the benefit of the beloved people,” said Prayut who first became PM after he staged the 2014 coup in a statement.
Caretaker PM Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha announces his retirement from politics on Tuesday, July 11, 2023.
He made major references to his government’s work and remarked, “I sincerely hope that the next government will continue to develop our country,” without naming Pita Limcharoenrat, who is the leader of the Move Forward Party (MFP) and the PM candidate of the eight parties.
Gen.Prayut has never congratulated Pita and the MFP in the May 14 general election. It could be interpreted that Prayut not only lacked political spirit but also disbelieved that Pita would succeed him as prime minister, despite the fact that the MFP won 152 seats in the House of Representatives compared to his party’s 36 seats.
With this obvious election outcome, Pita should unquestionably become the prime minister. However, Thai politics are not normal like this.
Pita meets his supporters in Samut Prakan on July 11.
Entering the final stages of forming new government, it remains uncertain whether Pita will receive enough votes from qualified members to reach the threshold of 376 votes out of the 750 members of the bicameral parliament.
Pita had tweeted Tuesday, less than 48 hours before the bicameral election, that Thailand should be given a chance to form a government that meets the will of voters and “bring normalcy back to politics”.
The meeting of eight coalition parties at Parliament House on July 11, they could only explicitly confirmed their support for Pita as prime minister by assigning Phue Thai Party leader Chonlanan Srikaew to propose the name. But the support will be enough or not, could not be confirmed.
Chonlanan Srikaew (center) will propose the name of Pita Limcharoenrat as PM.
When asked about the recent Senate support for Mr. Pita, Mr. Chaithawat Tulathon, a party-listed MP and secretary general of the MFP, did not specify the exact number of supporters. He only mentioned that there are efforts to coordinate and gather as much support as possible.
Now, not only the far-right senators but also the Palang Pracharat Party, which has 40 MPs, and the Bhumjaithai Party, which has 71 MPs, have both stated that they will not support a party that would amend Section 112 of the law.
During the joint session in Parliament on July 13, members of both Houses are allowed to ask questions of the candidates for prime minister. However, when it comes to voting, the eight coalition parties will let 500 MPs cast their votes first in alphabetical order, followed by the remaining 250 senators, to avoid creating a controversial atmosphere or arousing distrust.
A vehicle is stuck on a street flooded due to a heavy rain in Kurume, Fukuoka prefecture, southern Japan Monday, July 10, 2023. (Kyodo News via AP)
KYODO – Heavy rain pounded parts of Japan’s southwestern region Monday, leaving one woman dead and prompting the weather agency to issue its highest level of alert.
The Japan Meteorological Agency warned of landslides and floods in Fukuoka Prefecture and neighboring Oita, calling on residents to immediately take measures to secure their safety.
An elderly woman was confirmed dead after she and her husband were found trapped in a house engulfed in mud due to a landslide in Soeda, Fukuoka, local authorities said. The husband survived.
This shows a house damaged by a landslide in Karatsu, Saga prefecture, southern Japan Monday, July 10, 2023. Torrential rain has been pounding southwestern Japan, triggering floods and mudslides. (Kyodo News via AP)
In the prefecture, three others were also confirmed dead, including one apparently washed away by a flooded river while riding in a car in Kurume, they said.
One of the deceased was a man found after mud inundated at least seven houses in the city. He was among six people rescuers initially could not contact but have since been accounted for.
In Karatsu, Saga Prefecture, a landslide hit two houses, according to local authorities. A woman found by rescuers showed no vital signs and was confirmed dead later, while two men remain unaccounted for.
In Oita, a woman in her 50s was missing after reportedly being swept into a river in Nakatsu, local authorities said.
Houses are damaged by a landslide in Karatsu, Saga prefecture, southern Japan Monday, July 10, 2023. Torrential rain has been pounding southwestern Japan, triggering floods and mudslides. (Kyodo News via AP)
Due to the heavy rain, bullet train services between Hiroshima and Hakata stations on the Sanyo Shinkansen line, as well as Hakata and Kumamoto stations on the Kyushu Shinkansen line, were temporarily halted, their operators said.
Kurume logged 24-hour precipitation of 402.5 millimeters as of 4 p.m., the highest ever recorded there, according to the weather agency.
A man clears the mud from his house damaged by torrential rain in Kurume, Fukuoka prefecture, southern Japan Tuesday, July 11, 2023. (Kyodo News via AP)
An active seasonal rain front is expected to stay over the Japanese archipelago through Tuesday, and an unstable atmosphere will likely affect wide areas in western to northern Japan, it said.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida met with Koichi Tani, his disaster management minister, at the premier’s office to be briefed on the extent of damage due to the rain.
Kishida, who is scheduled to visit Lithuania and Belgium this week, told reporters that he will decide early Tuesday whether to make the tour later that same day as planned.
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XINHUA – Two person has been confirmed dead while seven others are still missing after a landslide hit a highway construction site in central China’s Hubei Province on Saturday, local authorities said Monday.
The landslide struck a construction site in Yueshan Village, which is located in the Tujia Autonomous County of Wufeng in Yichang City, at approximately 4 p.m. Saturday. Nine people — all construction workers — were initially reported missing, and five were reported injured.
Rescuers conduct a search and rescue operation at a highway construction site hit by a landslide in Yueshan Village under Tujia Autonomous County of Wufeng in central China’s Hubei Province Sunday, July 9, 2023.(Wu Zhizun/Xinhua via AP)
According to the rescue headquarters, one missing person was retrieved at 5:05 p.m. Monday, but showed no vital signs. The first death was reported on Sunday.
Hundreds of rescue workers are using more than 500 rescue devices and heavy machinery to continue search operations for the seven people who are still missing.
A search and rescue operation at a landslide area at a highway construction site in Yueshan Village under Tujia Autonomous County of Wufeng in central China’s Hubei Province Sunday, July 9, 2023. (Wu Zhizun/Xinhua via AP)
Rescue official Wang Mougang said the rescue efforts are complicated as more than 500,000 cubic meters of rock and earth have buried the site, and there remains a risk of further geological disasters.
The Ministry of Emergency Management has activated a level-four emergency response to geological disasters and sent a working group to the site to guide emergency handling.
The buyers showed the press fake watches that they had bought from the Thai Customs Department.
The Customs Department issued a statement saying that the internal investigation will reach a conclusion within 15 days after the agency opened a watch auction offering at least 4 counterfeit watches of luxury brands such as Rolex, Richard Mille and Patek Phillips with a total value of 9.1 million baht.
Panthong Loikulnan, spokesman for the Customs Department, apologised after a recent auction of 13 seized luxury watches found that at least 4 of the watches were counterfeit. The auction winners’ money was refunded after there were complaints about the July 6 auction.
The customs authority has already set up a committee, which will also look into the public’s suspicions as to whether these watches were already counterfeited when they were seized or whether they were subsequently falsified.
Panthong Loikulnan, spokesman for the Customs Department, apologised at the press conference.
These watches were seized during a Customs operation at the Siam Square One department store. It was found that out of 14 watches, one was a counterfeit watch, while the rest were legal. As a result, Customs announced on June 28 that the authority would hold a product showcase on July 5, and announce the result on July 6. There were 18 participants in total.
“We sincerely want to take responsibility and apologize for the mistake. We are sincerely sorry for putting fake products in the auction. Customs previously verified the authenticity of the products before proceeding with the auction,” Panthong said.
The luxurious watches turned out to be fake.
Panthong added that he consulted with Customs Director General Pachara Anantasilp on adjusting the auction process to avoid similar mistakes in the future. The department is considering consulting the verification expert for inspection and will reduce the requirements in case an auction participant brings the product for external verification: Previously, the participant must turn in 25 percent of the total auction value. The department added that it will suspend the upcoming auction until it adjusts internal processes.
Kittanachai Chimsutti, one of the bidders who received the fake watch, said he trusted the organization and was disappointed. When he sent the picture of the watch for verification, he was immediately replied that it was fake. He will ask for compensation because he considers this action a missed opportunity and it hurts him to receive a fake watch.
Police found the lifeless body of German man Hans Peter Ralter Mack, 62, shredded and stuffed inside a large freezer, 1.5 metres long, Monday night. The freezer was plugged in the bedroom of house number 22/96, Chokchai Garden Home Village 1, Moo 5, Nong Prue Subdistrict, Chonburi Province, 400 metres from where his Mercedes Benz was parked.
Mack has been missing since July 4, after informing his wife he was meeting with a realtor. His family filed a report at Nong Prue police station on July 5.
CCTV footage showed foreigners bring a freezer into the suspect’s home.
Police investigated CCTV footage and discovered that a group of foreigners brought a freezer into the suspect’s home in Pool Villa House, No. 59/49, Moo 9, Soi Nong Hin 5, Nong Prue Subdistrict, Bang Lamung District, Chonburi Province. The freezer was then secured with plastic sheets and transported by pickup truck to a townhouse in Chokchai Garden Home Village, 5.3 kilometres away.
As a result, police requested a search warrant in the middle of the night on July 10, and many people came to the house to wait for the search to determine whether or not Mr. Mack’s body was found.
After 11 p.m., the Evidence Division, District 2, Chonburi, examined the house and discovered a white freezer wrapped in black tape, plugged in, and tightly sealed. When the cops opened the freezer, they discovered human parts in a black bag. All 13 organs were dismembered, including the head, which had been hit with a harsh tool.
When a preliminary identity check confirmed that it was Mr. Mack’s body. Three foreign nationals are now wanted in relation to Mack’s killing.
Gen. Surachate Hakparn, Deputy National Police Chief, stated that the person involved is a woman, serves as a decoy, and was the last person on the surveillance camera. The main suspect is a man named Olaf, while others are in the process of being investigated. All of them are foreigners.
The footage showed the Mercedez-Benz car of Hans Peter Ralter Mack following the suspect’s car on July 4, 2023.
Pol. Gen. Surachet later disclosed that after the police collected traces of evidence, such as fingerprints, DNA, and palm prints, they requested the Criminal Court issue arrest warrants for 3 suspects, consisting of 1. Mrs. Petra Christl Grundgreif, German; 2. Mr. Olaf Thorsten Brinkmann, German; and 3. Mr. Sahruk Kareem Uddin, Pakistani, for joint murder, premeditated, and together hiding the corpse.
More than eight people were injured and two were killed in a shocking incident in Bangkok on July 10 at 6:08 p.m., when an elevated road under construction collapsed 400 metres on the road in front of Lotus, Lat Krabang, Luang Phaeng Road, Tab Yao Subdistrict, Lat Krabang District.
Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt visited the construction site. He stated that the actual cause of this accident is unknown yet, but it was not due to force majeure.
Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt
“This should not have happened during the construction process; anomalies may occur after the foundation is built deep into the sand layer. It is assumed that this was caused by construction instability. We guess the section where the pole is broken to be overweight,” Chadchart added.
He also remarked that someone needs to be held accountable for this situation. There are several structures like this in Bangkok that do not obstruct the surrounding area, and we have never had a problem like this. Contractors of high quality must be selected.
The governor was concerned that there would be other injuries; he advised residents in the surrounding area that if they had a missing relative, they should notify the authorities at number 199 because the accident occurred on a public route and may result in individuals remaining stuck inside. This area may have to be closed for 3–4 days at first.
The Bangkok administration has now set up a functioning command centre, with the Director of the Lat Krabang District Office as the commander. Unrelated people must leave the area, and volunteers who will join the mission must report to the command centre because the accident site remains unstable and there may be other collapses.
A motorist rides past a sign of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) foreign ministers' meeting in Jakarta, Indonesia, Monday, July 10, 2023. Myanmar's prolonged civil strife, tensions in the disputed South China Sea and concern over arms buildups in the region are expected to dominate the agenda when Southeast Asia's top diplomats gather for talks this week in Indonesia. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Myanmar’s prolonged civil strife, tensions in the disputed South China Sea and concern over arms buildups in the region are expected to dominate the agenda when Southeast Asia’s top diplomats gather for talks this week in Indonesia.
Russia’s year-old invasion of Ukraine and the U.S.-China rivalry will also be under the spotlight as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang participate as dialogue partners of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations foreign ministers in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta.
North Korea has yet to say whether its foreign minister, Choe Son Hui, will attend the ASEAN Regional Forum, an annual regional security meeting.
It’s also unclear who among the key figures in the world’s most intractable conflicts will meet on the sidelines of the group’s ministerial meetings.
Indonesian workers prepare flags of the member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Jakarta, Indonesia, Monday, July 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)
The top diplomats of ASEAN, which includes Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, will meet Tuesday and Wednesday before their Asian and Western counterparts join them in discussions on Thursday and Friday.
Founded in 1967, the often-unwieldy collective of democracies, autocracies and monarchies has been held together for decades by bedrock principles of non-interference in each other’s domestic affairs and consensus-based decision-making. But that approach has also prevented the 10-nation bloc from dealing swiftly with crises that spill across borders.
ASEAN’s principles have been tested since Myanmar’s army seized power from the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in February 2021 and plunged the country into deadly chaos.
More than 3,750 civilians, including pro-democracy activists, have been killed by security forces and nearly 24,000 arrested since the military takeover, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, a rights group that keeps tallies of such arrests and casualties.
People walk past a banner for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) foreign ministers’ meeting in Jakarta, Indonesia, Monday, July 10, 2023.(AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)
Myanmar’s military government has largely ignored a five-point plan by ASEAN heads of state that includes an immediate end to the violence and dialogue among all contending parties. That prompted the regional group to take an unprecedented punitive step by barring Myanmar’s military leaders from its top-level gatherings, including the ministerial meetings, that Indonesia will host.
Since assuming ASEAN’s rotating chairmanship this year, Indonesia has initiated some 110 meetings with groups in Myanmar and provided humanitarian aid to build trust, Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi said, adding that continuing violence would hurt efforts to return the nation to normalcy within ASEAN.
“ASEAN is still very concerned about the increasing use of violence in Myanmar which has resulted in civilian casualties and the destruction of public facilities,” Retno told a news conference on Friday. “This must stop immediately.”
Two months ago, an aid convoy with Indonesian and Singaporean embassy representatives on an ASEAN mission to provide help to displaced people came under fire from unknown attackers in a road ambush in Myanmar’s eastern Shan State. A security team returned fire and a security vehicle was damaged, but no one in the convoy was injured, state-run television MRTV reported.
ASEAN is under international pressure to effectively address the crisis in Myanmar. But ASEAN members appear divided over how to proceed, with some recommending to ease punitive actions aimed at isolating Myanmar’s generals and invite its top diplomat and officials back to the high-profile summit meetings.
Retno stressed the group would continue to focus on enforcing the ASEAN leaders’ five-point plan.
A draft of a post-meeting communique to be issued by the ASEAN foreign ministers remained blank on Myanmar, reflecting the difficulty of reaching agreement on the issue. Their concerns over other contentious issues, such as the South China Sea disputes, were included in the draft, a copy of which was obtained by The Associated Press.
Indonesian security officers with their dogs stand guard ahead of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) foreign ministers’ meeting in Jakarta, Indonesia, Monday, July 10, 2023. Southeast Asia’s top diplomats gather for talks this week in Indonesia. (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana)
Dewi Fortuna Anwar, director of the Jakarta-based think tank Habibie Center, said the situation in Myanmar could become a long-term problem like the South China Sea disputes given ASEAN’s limited capacity to solve it. The bloc, however, should try to convince Myanmar’s military government that it has better options, she said.
“It’s recalcitrant. Its determination to hang on to power is not going to be sustainable because it’s only going to incite conflicts,” Anwar told the AP.
Myanmar is scheduled next year to assume the role of coordinating ASEAN’s engagements with the European Union. But the E.U., which has imposed sanctions on the military government, has opposed such a role for Myanmar, two Southeast Asian diplomats told the AP on condition of anonymity because they lack authority to discuss the issue publicly.
On the South China Sea conflicts, ASEAN foreign ministers are expected to renew a call for self-restraint “in the conduct of activities that would complicate or escalate disputes and affect peace and stability,” according to the draft communique, repeating language used in previous statements that does not name China.
Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam have been embroiled in long-simmering territorial conflicts with China and Taiwan for decades. ASEAN and China have been negotiating a non-aggression pact that aims to prevent an escalation of the disputes, but the talks have faced years of delay.
The disputed waters have emerged as a delicate front in the rivalry between China and the United States.
Washington has challenged Beijing’s expansive territorial claims and regularly deploys warships and fighter jets in what it calls freedom of navigation and overflight patrols that have incensed China.
Other Western and European nations have deployed navy ships on occasional patrols in the busy waterway, where a bulk of the world’s trade transits, with similar calls for unimpeded commerce and mobility.
China’s increasingly aggressive actions have prompted other countries to boost their territorial defenses.
“We expressed concern about the growing arms race and naval power projection in the region, which could lead to miscalculation, increased tensions, and may undermine regional peace, security, and stability,” the ASEAN foreign ministers said without elaborating in their draft communique, whose wording is still subject to negotiations and could change.
Anwar said there’s no solution in sight for the South China Sea disputes and ASEAN could only take steps to help prevent full-blown conflict.
“We hope that China will give up this claim, but don’t hold your breath on that,” she said.
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NINIEK KARMINI and JIM GOMEZ reported from Jakarta. Edna Tarigan in Jakarta contributed to this report.
The Supreme Court on Monday, July 20, 2023, sentenced former DSI Chief Tarit Pengdit to two years in prison for dishonestly trying to frame then PM Abhisit Vejjajiva and his deputy Suthep Thuaghsubhan over the deaths of 99 people, mostly redshirt protesters, back in 2010.
As Tarit stated at a press conference on Saturday, such verdict would not be surprising. After the Criminal Court, which was the lower court, had dismissed the charges against him, the Court of Appeal ruled that it was an offence. Tarit attempted to ask for a new panel of judges of the Supreme Court on Monday morning, but failed.
The Supreme Court on Monday, July 20, 2023, sentenced former DSI Chief Tarit Pengdit to two years in prison.
Tarit himself was convicted of framing Abhisit and Suthep for political reasons during the Yingluck Shinawatra administration in 2011–2014. The other three defendants were acquitted because they investigated the cases according to the direction of Tarit, the first defendant.
However, the outcome of this judicial process has raised serious questions about the 2010 political crackdown: who will take responsibility for the 99 deaths, mostly of civilians calling for an election, and who will investigate whether the May 2014 coup was staged in order to avoid prosecution for the military crackdown?
The families of the Redshirts who died in the military crackdown also came to hear the verdict.
“At the time, I was summoned to an army barrack on Ratchadamnoen Avenue, where a high-ranking military officer told me, ‘Tarit, you should not prosecute the deaths of 99 people, if you don’t believe it, You will be relieved first.’ This was a threat to me. As a result, I was transferred less than 24 hours after the coup,” Tarit explained on Saturday.
Caretaker PM Gen. Prayut Chan-o-cha on Monday denied he had staged the May 2014 coup in order to avoid being prosecuted for the deaths of 99 people as he was a commanding officer on the ground handling the protesters in the 2010 military crackdown.
“Anyone can just say anything. Let them talk,” Prayut replied with an irritable temper.
