Thai court acquits former PM Thaksin Shinawatra of royal defamation charges

Bangkok: Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra said on Friday that he had been acquitted of royal defamation by a court in a case that could have seen him imprisoned for up to 15 years.

The 76-year-old, smiling as he left the courtroom, replied to journalists with a single word: “Dismissal.”

His lawyer, Winyat Chatmontree, also confirmed the acquittal, though the Bangkok Criminal Court did not immediately release an official statement.

The lese majeste law, which prohibits defaming the monarchy, carries a prison sentence ranging from three to 15 years. It is one of the harshest laws of its kind worldwide and has increasingly been used in Thailand in recent years to target government critics.

According to the legal aid group Thai Lawyers for Human Rights, over 270 people—many of them student activists—have been charged under this law since early 2020.

Winyat told reporters the court dismissed the case against Thaksin on several grounds, finding the witnesses and evidence insufficient to secure a conviction.

Thaksin was initially charged in 2016 over remarks he made a year earlier to journalists in South Korea. However, the case was not pursued at the time as he was in exile and the legal process could not be completed.

Winyat said the court ruled that the prosecution’s account of the interview was incomplete and lacked context, with a key point not clearly referring to the monarchy.

He also said the court believed the complaint against Thaksin may have been politically motivated, leading to an unfair interpretation of his words.

Thaksin’s opponents, generally staunch royalists, have accused him of corruption, abuse of power, and disrespecting then-King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who died in 2016. Thaksin has consistently maintained that the cases against him are politically motivated.

When indicted last year, Thaksin was granted bail on the condition that he could not leave Thailand without court approval, and his passport was confiscated.

Despite facing numerous prosecutions since leaving office, Thaksin has never served time in prison. He was abroad when a military coup ousted him in 2006 and briefly returned in 2008 before quickly going back into exile to avoid potential imprisonment.

He returned to Thailand in 2023 after the Pheu Thai party, with which he is closely associated, came to power. Thaksin was sentenced to eight years in prison on corruption and abuse of power charges but was immediately transferred to hospital on medical grounds. After six months in hospital, he was pardoned, granted parole, and released.

The decision to hospitalise him instead of sending him to prison has been widely questioned, with many suggesting he was given special treatment. The Supreme Court’s Criminal Division for Political Office Holders is due to rule next month on another case that could result in imprisonment.

Since his return, Thaksin has maintained a high public profile, travelling the country and making political remarks that could unsettle the powerful conservative establishment responsible for his 2006 removal.

His daughter, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, who became prime minister last year, is also facing controversy. She is accused of ethical violations regarding a June 15 phone call with Cambodian Senate President Hun Sen, during which they discussed disputed territorial claims. The Constitutional Court suspended her duties on July 1 and will decide next week whether she should be removed from office for breaching ethics laws.

Thailand has long experienced sudden changes of government through military coups—more than a dozen since the 1930s. However, in the past 20 years, such changes have increasingly been enforced by the courts, which have removed four prime ministers and dissolved three election-winning parties, often on narrow technicalities.

Most of those targeted were seen as challengers to the traditional royalist establishment, whose strongest supporters are the military and judiciary.

AP