Thailand
Yellow shirt leader has prison sentence reduced
Article published on the 2009-09-11 Latest update 2009-09-11 11:23 TU
Sondhi Limthongkul speaking a mass rally in February 2006
(Photo: exceedcharge)
Thai protest leader Sondhi Limthongkul had his two year prison sentence reduced to six months by Thailand’s court of appeal on Friday. Sondhi led last year's yellow shirt protests against Thaksin Shinawattra at Bangkok’s airports.
Sondhi, who founded the Asia Satellite television channel, crippled Bangkok’s airports last year in a protest movement against supporters of ex-Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. The protesters adopted the colour yellow because if its association with the Thai monarchy.
The sentence was given to Sondhi by a lower court in March 2008 for comments he made about former Deputy Transport Minister Phumtham Vechayachai.
“I am ready to be jailed to protect the monarchy,” said Sondhi after he was granted bail.
He had accused Phumtham of being a communist, having no faith in Thailand’s monarchy and supporting an internet site which attacked the royal family.
The court ruled that although the verdict was correct, the sentencing was too harsh. Sondhi will now prepare an appeal.
Sondhi was sentenced to another two years in jail on Thursday for a similar offence, having been found guilty of libelling former Central Bank governor and deputy Prime Minister Pridiyathorn Devakula - another ally of exiled Thaksin.
He founded the People’s Alliance for Democracy, which held demonstrations before the September 2006 coup which toppled Thaksin.
But Sondhi had been a vocal Thaksin supporter and in a book released by a anonymous source in December 2005 he was quoted as saying, “Thaksin is no saint, please do not be mistaken, but he is the best Prime Minister our country has ever had.”
His opinion of Thaksin changed after his banker, Viroj Nualkhair, was dismissed as President of the state-owned Krung Thai Bank, which had helped him survive bankruptcy.
Thaksin’s supporters, the red shirt movement, plan to hold a protest in Bangkok on 19 September, the third anniversary of the coup.
