BANGKOK — Former Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva was confronted by a student protester during a university lecture, reviving scrutiny over the 2010 political violence that killed nearly 100 people during his time in office.
Abhisit, now leader of the Democrat Party, was guest lecturing at a Chulalongkorn University doctoral seminar on November 2 when a student held up a sign reading: “Dispersal of the 2010 protest, the one who ordered the killing is here.”
The former prime minister defended his record, saying courts had dismissed murder charges against him at three judicial levels. He also cited his successful counter-suit against Tharit Pengdit, former director-general of the Department of Special Investigation, who was imprisoned for malicious prosecution.
Abhisit then turned the question back on the student, asking whether they had demanded accountability from governments responsible for deaths among other protest groups, including the People’s Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC) and People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD).
“The people who died, simply because their political beliefs weren’t the same as yours, do they have no meaning?” he asked. The student said they would pursue accountability as they chose, and told PDRC supporters who backed Abhisit to seek their own justice. Abhisit responded by denying alignment with the PDRC.
That claim quickly drew online mockery as photos resurfaced showing Abhisit at PDRC rallies in 2013-2014, blowing whistles—the group’s signature symbol. The PDRC’s protests against Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra’s government set the stage for the May 2014 military coup.
Red Shirts Challenge Account
Former Red Shirt co-leader Nattawut Saikuar thanked the students in a Monday Facebook post while disputing Abhisit’s version of events.
All civilian deaths in 2010 involved unarmed people with no gunpowder residue, Nattawut wrote. Those accused of being armed “men in black” were acquitted by the Supreme Court after years in detention—some imprisoned nearly a decade before being cleared.
Abhisit’s government formed a fact-finding committee that made no progress, Nattawut said. The subsequent Yingluck government secured bail for detainees, approved compensation for victims across all sides, and conducted inquests finding 17 of 31 examined deaths resulted from state weapons.
“The remaining 68 deaths have yet to have court-ordered inquests,” he wrote. Recent requests to the DSI have gone nowhere.
Nattawut explained that while the DSI prosecuted Abhisit and former Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban for intentional murder, both successfully argued the Criminal Court lacked jurisdiction. They claimed only the Supreme Court’s Criminal Division for Political Office Holders could hear the case—requiring a National Anti-Corruption Commission investigation first.
“No Evidence Heard”
Political activist Sombat Boonngam-anong called Abhisit’s claims of court victory misleading. “The Criminal Court never heard a single witness testimony,” Sombat wrote. “Abhisit merely disputed the court’s jurisdiction on technical grounds.”
He noted that Abhisit had previously said political responsibility matters more than legal responsibility after resuming party leadership.
“Help prove whether Abhisit truly believes this, or if he’s just using his language skills to deceive listeners,” Sombat wrote.
The confrontation reopens wounds from April-May 2010, when military forces dispersed Red Shirt protesters occupying central Bangkok for weeks, leaving 90 civilians and security personnel dead in Thailand’s worst political violence in decades. No officials have been held accountable for the deaths.
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