BANGKOK, Nov 18 – Former prime minister, Thaksin Shinawatra, was “hurt and saddened” upon learning that the Office of the Attorney-General (OAG) had decided to appeal the decision to acquit him of lese majeste charges stemming from his interview with a South Korean newspaper back in 2015, according to his daughter, Pingtongta Kunakornwong, the Bangkok Post reported.
Speaking after visiting the former PM at Klongprem Central Prison with her brother, Pantongtae, and his wife, Natthiya Puangkhum, Ms Pingtongta said the family will continue to fight unless justice is served.
“We must fight. We’ll continue to fight, but I worry about my father’s feelings, because he is alone inside. Today we were fortunate to be able to visit him and give him some encouragement,” she said.
“[The case] has affected us quite a lot, mentally,” Mr Pantongtae said.
The OAG decided to appeal Thaksin’s acquittal in the lese majeste case yesterday, reversing a decision to drop the case. The move follows weeks of speculation over whether prosecutors would file an appeal before the deadline expires on Friday.
Sources close to the matter said the decision was made after newly-appointed Attorney-General Ittiporn Kaewthip decided last week that the 2015 interview in Seoul — which prosecutors deemed to contain remarks referencing the monarchy — constituted a violation of Section 112 of the Criminal Code.
Mr Ittiporn’s stance contrasts with that of his predecessor, Pairat Pornsomboonsiri. In September, Mr Pairat referred the matter to the OAG’s Section 112 Review Committee, a special body tasked with examining lèse-majesté cases nationwide, which voted 8-2 against filing an appeal.
Mr Ittiporn — then deputy attorney-general — served as chair of the committee. He refrained from voting as a matter of protocol, according to the sources.
The committee referred the matter back to Mr Pairat, who left the position before making a decision on appealing Thaksin’s acquittal. As Mr Ittiporn was picked to become the new Attorney-General, the authority to decide on the matter passed to him.
Because the alleged wrongdoing occurred outside Thailand, the authority to decide on an appeal rests solely with the Attorney-General under the Criminal Code, said the sources.
“The Attorney-General’s order, considered final and binding, will now be forwarded to the Office of Criminal Litigation 8, which oversees the case, for formal submission to the Court of Appeal,” one of the sources said.
Separately, ex-massage-parlour-tycoon-turned-politician Chuwit Kamolvisit claimed that there is a deliberate plan to prevent Thaksin from leaving prison before the upcoming election.
In a post on Facebook, Mr Chuwit said that the decision to appeal Thaksin’s acquittal effectively bars him from applying for special parole.
Thaksin is currently serving a 12-month sentence for abuse of power. Under the Department of Corrections’ regulations, inmates over the age of 70 may apply for special parole after completing one-third of their sentence — in Thaksin’s case, after four months. Such applications must be reviewed by a parole committee and approved by the Justice Minister.
In a related development, the Supreme Court yesterday ordered Thaksin to pay 17.6 billion baht in personal income tax from the sale of Shin Corporation shares back in 2006.
The court overturned earlier decisions by the Central Tax Court and the Special Appeals Court, which had sided with Thaksin and annulled the Revenue Department’s tax assessment on grounds of illegality. The ruling paves the way for enforcement proceedings.
