Thaksin arraigned on lese majeste case

Thaksin Shinawatra is swamped by supporters as he enters the Pheu Thai Party headquarters in March 2024. (Photo: Varuth Hirunyatheb)
Thaksin Shinawatra is swamped by supporters as he enters the Pheu Thai Party headquarters in March 2024. (Photo: Varuth Hirunyatheb)

Former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra reported to public prosecutors on Tuesday morning and was taken to the Criminal Court for arraignment on his lese-majeste case.

The Office of the Attorney-General said the court accepted the case at 8.56am on Tuesday, officially making Thaksin a defendant.

Thaksin, 74, is accused of defaming the monarchy during an interview with a South Korean newspaper on May 21, 2015. In the interview, he claimed privy councillors supported the 2014 coup that ousted the government of his younger sister Yingluck Shinawatra.

Police alleged that the comments made during the interview violated Section 112 of the Criminal Code, also known as the lese-majeste law, as well as the Computer Crimes Act.

The computer crime charge is related to Thaksin inputting information into a computer system that was deemed a threat to national security.

Thaksin, who denies any wrongdoing, could face pre-trial detention if he is denied bail by the Criminal Court.

The lese-majeste law carries a maximum jail sentence of up to 15 years.

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Vocabulary

  • arraign (verb): to bring somebody to court in order to formally accuse them of a crime - ฟ้องกล่าวโทษ,นำตัวขึ้นศาล
  • arraignment (noun): bringing somebody to court in order to formally accuse them of a crime - การฟ้องกล่าวโทษ, การนำตัวขึ้นศาล
  • bail: money that is given to a court when someone is allowed to stay out of prison until their trial. If they do not return for the trial, the court keeps the money  - เงินประกัน; การประกันตัว
  • case: a matter that is being officially investigated or heard by a court - คดี
  • coup: the seizure of power in a country by a group of people, usually members of the armed forces - รัฐประหาร
  • defaming: saying or writing something bad about someone that is not true and makes other people have a bad opinion of them - ใส่ร้ายป้ายสี
  • defendant: someone who has been accused of a crime and is on trial - จำเลย
  • detention (noun): the condition of being forced officially to stay in a place - การกักตัว
  • lese-majeste (adj): the crime of offending, threatening or showing disrespect for a member of the royal family - หมิ่นพระบรมเดชานุภาพ
  • monarchy (noun): the king or queen of a country and their family - ราชวงศ์, พระบรมวงศานุวงศ์
  • ousted: forced out of a position of power - ขับออกจากอำนาจ
  • privy councillor: a member of the group of appointed advisors to the King of Thailand - องคมนตรี
  • threat: a danger - อันตราย
  • wrongdoing: breaking the law or doing something "wrong" - กระทำผิดศีลธรรม, ละเมิดกฎหมาย

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