Thailand's Supreme Court issued arrest warrants Monday for deposed Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and his wife after they skipped a court appearance and fled to the United Kingdom, court officials said. The couple was to appear in court Monday in a corruption case. Instead, Thaksin released a three-page handwritten statement saying he opted to go to England because he did not expect fair treatment in Thai courts, the Thai News Agency said.
Thaksin could not immediately be reached for comment. Thaksin and his wife, Pojaman Shinawatra, were scheduled to testify in a Supreme Court case about the unlawful purchase of real estate. The real-estate scandal case is one of several corruption claims that Thaksin and his family face in court. Their lawyer had said the pair would "definitely appear" in court Monday to fight the corruption charges, the News Agency (TNA) said. But the couple did not return to Bangkok on Sunday night from a trip to the opening ceremonies of the Summer Olympic Games in Beijing, China. In the real-estate case, Pojaman is accused of using her husband's political influence to buy undeveloped land from a government agency for about a third of its estimated value. The former prime minister has consistently denied that he or his family was involved in any wrongdoing. Last month, Pojaman was found guilty of evading millions of dollars in taxes and sentenced to three years in prison, state media reported. She was released pending appeal on bail of five million baht ($149,000).
Pojaman, her step-brother and her secretary were convicted on charges alleging that they intentionally avoided paying taxes worth 546 million baht ($16.4 million) in a 1997 transfer of shares in the family's telecommunications business. Thaksin, who served two terms as prime minister, was deposed in a bloodless military coup in September 2006. The billionaire leader -- a telecommunications tycoon who owns the Manchester City Football Club of the English Premier League -- is accused of abusing the country's system of checks and balances and bending government policy to benefit his family business. He lived abroad until his allies, the People Power Party, won nearly half the seats in the lower house in December's parliamentary elections.
In his statement, Thaksin said he returned home only to find the political atmosphere did not permit him to prove his innocence because of "intervention in the judicial system." [End of report]
Im a big fan of Thaksin and I can understand why he decided not to go back to Thailand to attend the hearing in the court. First of all, I have always believe that Thaksin is a good guy and he was doing a good job as the Prime Minister. I dont think that he has been involved in any wrongdoings before and I was very disappointed to see him forced out of the government especially when he is being accused of doing things that Im sure he is not guilty of. That is why there is absolutely no use if he had decided to go back to Thailand to face the charges, because he would still be found guilty of those corruption charges, irregardless of what the truth is. I was also disappointed when I heard that his wife was found guilty of evading millions of dollars in taxes. I dont know whether it is actually true or not but I really doubt that is the case. I mean her husband is the Prime Minister of the country and a billionaire as well, Im sure she can afford to pay her taxes. I believe it is all a plot to ensure that Thaksin doesnt get back into power again, I know that he has said he has no intention whatsoever to do that, so I think it is probably just for a good measure.
Thaksin's enemies was successful in putting him out of power but even with the new elected government, some of the people are still unhappy. In elections that brought an end to military rule in December last year, a new outfit called the People Power Party emerged, made up of former members of Thaksin's by-then disbanded Thai Rak Thai party. It was led by veteran politician Samak Sundaravej and they scored a comfortable win in the polls, further infuriating the middle class and elite. Just months after Samak formed his coalition government in February, Thakin's old foes in the royalist People's Alliance for Democracy were back on the streets. They want Samak to resign despite his mandate from the electorate as they claim he is running the country on behalf of Thaksin. Come on, who are you trying to joke? The party was voted by the Thai people and it had nothing to do with Thaksin. So why blame him and Samak for the result? That completely doesnt make any sense at all. Just because there are some links with Thaksin's party in the past, it doesnt mean they are running for him. What it does is that it only shows how much Thaksin's opponents despise him and how low they are willing to go to blame Thaksin for the country's current predicament, even when he is gone.
Since the arrest warrants has been issued, I think we will see him going back to Thailand soon. He has no other choice. I dont think the reason he decided not to go back to the country was because he knows he is guilty, but I think its because he knows that he will be fairly treated once he is back. Whatever the outcome is, I will continue to support him because I know he is a good man and that he has not done any wrongdoings during his time as the Prime Minister.
*The report was taken from CNN.
No comments:
Post a Comment