The Courts Listen in

Former Prime Minister, Thaksin Shinawatra, is expected to call from London at 8pm tonight. He will be addressing his supporters who will gather under the banner of the United Front of Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) to hear the live broadcasting. The Office of the Judiciary will be closely monitoring his every word for any signs of contempt. They will be looking to see if he criticizes the court over his conviction in the Ratchadaphisek case. There’s also scare that this talk will lead to violent riots between the UDD’s pro-government supporters and the anti-government supporters led by the People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD).

The penalty for contempt of court is a fine between 2,000 and 4,000 baht or up to seven years in jail. The case has just recently been posted on the internet for public view so that people can see the courts decision and the reasoning behind it. It was a split decision but the verdict found Thaksin Shinawatra guilty of breaching anti-corruption law. The law prohibits political office holders from doing business with state agencies. The media was also warned about quoting the Prime Minister so that they don’t get charged with contempt of court as well. It will be interesting to see what happens after this broadcasting and in the days to come as the media reports what happened.

By: Ronda Sundstrom

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