[ad_1]
BANGKOK: Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra said on Saturday (June 8) that he is ready Faces charges of insulting the monarchy This is a setback for a heavyweight politician currently serving in the government.
The charge, brought by the royalist military that overthrew the government of Ms. Shinawatra’s sister, stems from an interview the influential tycoon gave to foreign media in 2015. Other charges include violating computer crime laws.
Thaksin said he would meet with prosecutors on June 18 but that he was not concerned about the case and was prepared to defend it.
“It’s nothing. There is no basis for this allegation,” he told reporters.
Thaksin, 74, has denied any wrongdoing and has repeatedly sworn allegiance to the monarchy, of which criticism is illegal under Thailand’s controversial lèse-majesté law, one of the strictest of its kind in the world.
His case is the most high-profile of more than 270 prosecuted in recent years under the law, which carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison for each deemed insult to the monarchy.
Thaksin founded the populist Pheu Thai Party, and his family’s party has won all but one election since 2001, while his three Shinawatra governments have all been overthrown by coups or court rulings.
In 2023, the billionaire returned to Thailand from 15 years of self-imposed exile, where he has been a central figure in several outbreaks of political unrest.
He was sentenced to eight years in prison for abuse of power and conflict of interest, which was later commuted to one year by the king. He was released on parole in February after six months in detention.
The Pheu Thai Party leads the current government, with Thaksin’s business ally Sreeta Dawisin as prime minister and Thaksin’s daughter Padangdan Shinawatra as party president.
[ad_2]
Source link
