Amidst the bustling streets of Bangkok, it has been proclaimed by Thai prosecutors, on this very Wednesday, that the erstwhile Prime Minister, Thaksin Shinawatra, shall face indictment for besmirching the sanctity of the monarchy, an occurrence transpiring three months subsequent to his liberation on parole for other transgressions. Notwithstanding, Thaksin’s indictment is presently deferred as he has petitioned to postpone the initial hearing, citing his affliction with COVID-19. As enunciated by Prayuth Bejraguna, an emissary for the Office of the Attorney General, during a press briefing.
A novel rendezvous for Thaksin’s arraignment has been arranged for June 18, as disclosed by Prayuth, with the additional charge of contravening the Computer Crime Act looming over him. Evading the clutches of justice since 2008 through self-imposed exile, Thaksin re-emerged on Thai soil in August of the preceding year, embarking upon an eight-year sentence. His respite from incarceration was conferred in February, following a stint at a Bangkok infirmary where he served six months for transgressions related to corruption.
Post-reintegration, Thaksin was expeditiously relocated from penitentiary to infirmary premises, ostensibly due to his ailing constitution, and shortly thereafter, King Maha Vajiralongkorn commuted his sentence to a solitary year. Bestowed with parole earlier this month due to advanced age, being 74, and declining health, he is now unshackled for the remaining duration of his one-year confinement.
In the wake of his return, the attorney general’s office has resurrected an inquiry into allegations that Thaksin transgressed laws against regal defamation almost a decade prior—a grave offense liable to a maximum of 15 years’ incarceration. Originally accused in 2016 for utterances made to the press during his sojourn in Seoul, South Korea, approximately a year prior to that, the inquiry lay dormant until January, when Thaksin was formally served the charges in person at the infirmary, as delineated by officials.
Thaksin vehemently refuted the allegations and submitted a comprehensive rebuttal. Prayuth, spokesperson for the prosecution, attested to the sufficiency of evidence warranting Thaksin’s indictment by the attorney general. Affirming that the prosecutors have diligently readied their dossier, poised to present it before the judiciary in the ensuing month.
