Thai court acquits Thaksin in royal defamation case
Criminal Court rules evidence insufficient to convict former PM over 2015 interview with Korean media
Former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra has been acquitted of lèse majesté (royal defamation) and computer crime charges stemming from a 2015 interview with South Korea’s Chosun Media.
Today, August 22, the Criminal Court delivered its verdict on the case filed by the Office of Criminal Litigation 8. Prosecutors had accused Thaksin of violating Section 112 of the Criminal Code (Thailand’s royal defamation law) and the Computer Crimes Act.
The charges centred around Thaksin’s remarks in a video interview with a South Korean journalist, where he allegedly made comments interpreted as defamatory to the monarchy.
SiamRath reported that Thaksin, now 75 years of age, appeared in court with a smile and spoke briefly to the press, simply stating “Acquitted” before quickly leaving the premises.
The court found that the video clips used as evidence were incomplete excerpts and lacked the full context of the interview. While witnesses confirmed that the man in the videos was Thaksin, the prosecution could not present the original, unedited version.
Furthermore, forensic evidence confirming whether the clips had been doctored was inconclusive.
The court stressed that the use of third-person pronouns such as “he” or general terms like “Privy Council,” “military,” “Palace Circle,” and “people in the palace” was too vague to specifically implicate the king.
The sole linguistic expert brought in by prosecutors was found to have participated in anti-Thaksin protests, casting doubt on the neutrality of their testimony in the eyes of the court.
Police witnesses also admitted under cross-examination that there was insufficient evidence to confidently proceed with the charges, particularly since the original source of the video clip and the individual who posted it online could not be identified.
Witnesses who initially uploaded and circulated the clips on Facebook and YouTube reportedly understood the interview as a critique of the 2014 coup, targeting Suthep Thaugsuban, senior military figures, and the Privy Council, not the monarchy.
The Standard reported that because the prosecution failed to prove that the comments were intended as defamation, insult, or incitement of hatred toward the monarch, and offered no evidence for the charge of expressing malicious intent toward the King, the court dismissed all charges under Section 112.
As for the Computer Crimes Act, the court ruled that since the content itself was not criminal, its publication online did not violate national security laws, and Thaksin cannot be held liable under that statute either.
Latest Thailand News
Follow The Thaiger on Google News:
