Arrest warrant issued for former Thai PM
Thursday, 16 August 2007
Amy Kazmin
THAILAND'S Supreme Court has issued a warrant for the arrest of Thaksin Shinawatra, the exiled former prime minister, and his wife Pojamarn, after the two failed to appear in court to stand trial on corruption charges.
Judge Tonglor Choam-ngam declared Tuesday that the court "has reason to believe that they are evading prosecution" in the case, which centres on Ms Pojamarn's acquisition of a piece of prime Bangkok real estate from a central bank-supervised fund in 2003.
Earlier in the day, Patchara Yuthithamdamrong, a government prosecutor, said the warrant would be the first step towards seeking Mr Thaksin's extradition from the UK to face the charges against him.
However, Thailand has a poor track record at securing the extradition of suspects in past high profile criminal corruption cases, partly due to Western court concerns about the politicisation of the judicial process.
Mr Thaksin, a billionaire telecommunications tycoon before becoming premier in 2001, has been living in exile, mainly in the UK, since he was driven from power in a bloodless military coup in September.
The coup followed months of mass protests by Bangkok residents deeply resentful at the $1.9bn tax-free sale of Mr Thaksin's family's stake in Shin Corp, the telecommunications group. Anti-graft investigators have since seized the money the family earned from the sale, though they have yet to file any formal charges of wrong-doing in connection with the transaction.
In an exclusive interview with the Financial Times last month, Mr Thaksin expressed concerns that he could be assassinated if he returned to Thailand, especially after Gen. Sonthi Boonyaratkalin, the army chief, warned repeatedly that he could not guarantee the ousted leader's safety, should he try to return.
Mr Thaksin, who remains highly popular among the rural poor, expressed scepticism at his prospects for a fair trial as long as the country remains under military rule. "Our concern is about whether I can have enough justice," he said. "The witnesses on our side… are still government officials. In the military regime, they may not testify because a lot of threats are going on there."
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— FT Syndication Service
THAILAND'S Supreme Court has issued a warrant for the arrest of Thaksin Shinawatra, the exiled former prime minister, and his wife Pojamarn, after the two failed to appear in court to stand trial on corruption charges.
Judge Tonglor Choam-ngam declared Tuesday that the court "has reason to believe that they are evading prosecution" in the case, which centres on Ms Pojamarn's acquisition of a piece of prime Bangkok real estate from a central bank-supervised fund in 2003.
Earlier in the day, Patchara Yuthithamdamrong, a government prosecutor, said the warrant would be the first step towards seeking Mr Thaksin's extradition from the UK to face the charges against him.
However, Thailand has a poor track record at securing the extradition of suspects in past high profile criminal corruption cases, partly due to Western court concerns about the politicisation of the judicial process.
Mr Thaksin, a billionaire telecommunications tycoon before becoming premier in 2001, has been living in exile, mainly in the UK, since he was driven from power in a bloodless military coup in September.
The coup followed months of mass protests by Bangkok residents deeply resentful at the $1.9bn tax-free sale of Mr Thaksin's family's stake in Shin Corp, the telecommunications group. Anti-graft investigators have since seized the money the family earned from the sale, though they have yet to file any formal charges of wrong-doing in connection with the transaction.
In an exclusive interview with the Financial Times last month, Mr Thaksin expressed concerns that he could be assassinated if he returned to Thailand, especially after Gen. Sonthi Boonyaratkalin, the army chief, warned repeatedly that he could not guarantee the ousted leader's safety, should he try to return.
Mr Thaksin, who remains highly popular among the rural poor, expressed scepticism at his prospects for a fair trial as long as the country remains under military rule. "Our concern is about whether I can have enough justice," he said. "The witnesses on our side… are still government officials. In the military regime, they may not testify because a lot of threats are going on there."
.............................................
— FT Syndication Service