Thanathorn baffled by sedition warrant

[webfact]

Thanathorn baffled by sedition warrant

By The Nation

 

Thanathorn enjoys a selfie moment with a fan in Rayong during his thank-you tour.

 

Future Forward Party leader Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit claims he has no idea why he’s being accused of sedition, a crime punishable by up to seven years in jail.
 

A summons warrant from the Phathumwan police station was waiting for the billionaire politician at his Bangkok home when he returned from a caravan tour thanking voters for their support in the election.

 

The warrant, which carried no details about the reason for the charge, ordered Thanathorn to report to police on April 6.

 

“I wonder when I committed such a provocative act that could be deemed a national threat,” Thanathorn wrote on Facebook, posting a photo of the warrant.

 

“What I did over the past year was simply meeting people for the election campaign.”

 

He speculated that the legal action, which he characterised as “just an old political game”, comes because Future Forward did far better at the polls than most people expected.

 

“They fear the fact that our policies drew the attention of 6.3 million voters,” he said. “The people supported us without any money incentive or other influence.”

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/politics/30367065

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2019-04-03

[seajae]

interesting they waited till after the elections, maybe they need to wittle down the size of their win

 

[Just1Voice]

Because the generals see him as a threat is why he is being charged on bogus accusations.

 

[Chang_paarp]

Looks like the dinosaurs are getting worried, so out come the old dirty trick campaign. It will be interesting as Thanathorn has more money than they do (well most of them)

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

When you can't win on your own, I guess the alternative is to aim at taking out the opposition...

 

[sammieuk1]

In fairness his share of the vote was probably more than 10m but has been rounded down to 6.3m due to the abacus running out of beads????

[baboon]

How many TV members didn't envisage the junta pulling out all the stops in order to get rid of him, by hook or by crook? So obvious from the outset...

Edited April 3, 2019 by baboon

[champers]

The aim is to kill off Pheu Thai's main coalition partner, prosecuting FFP's leader and dissolving his party. The current regime is defining them as communists. How will this pan out amongst those who voted FFP? Not well, I fear.

The head of the army, General Apirat, has got a twitchy trigger finger and fancies his tanks and guns against student protesters. How this would be viewed by the international community is another matter.

[Thailand]

I am surprised he is surprised most people are not, the Junta running scared.

[Hayduke]

1 hour ago, webfact said:

Thanathorn baffled by sedition warrant

 

How much more of this loathsome arrogance and sickening criminality are the Thai people willing to take?

 

 

 

 

Edited April 3, 2019 by Hayduke

[rkidlad]

Well, the number 1 hashtag on Thai twitter is currently #savethanathorn. This guy is certainly no signature-collecting activist. 

[sammieuk1]

33 minutes ago, baboon said:

How many TV members didn't envisage the junta pulling out all the stops in order to get rid of him, by hook or by crook? So obvious from the outset...

Are you implying some form of underhanded skulduggery or the common and customary rampant blatant cheating that's all over the net????

[Golden Triangle]

And so the persecution of the 3rd largest vote catching party continues, does the junta/ Apirat believe for one minute that they can get away with this ?

 

Apart from the goon in charge of the junta & NCPO the most dangerous man in Thailand at the moment is Apirat.

[Grossman]

20 minutes ago, rkidlad said:

Well, the number 1 hashtag on Thai twitter is currently #savethanathorn. This guy is certainly no signature-collecting activist.

Considering the undeniable popularity, I'm seeing a bit of a Yingluckesque -dilemma for the junta brewing here. Considering FFP's Piyabutr has also been slapped with a charge, maybe they'll use him to set an example with a ridiculous sentence and then offer Thanathorn the choice of a safe passage out the country or facing Prayut's music (and we all know how horrendous that is). Then again, the arrogance of the "good people" doesn't seem to have limits..

 

Interesting to see how this pans out. Extremely shoddy, yet obvious, move from the junta again. Hope this gets blasted all over the place in-and-outside the borders...

[Just1Voice]

The junta is seriously doing all they can to cause civil war and riots. Then they can bring in the troops and tanks and tell everyone "See, you need us to keep order."

 

[webfact]

Thai police summon anti-junta politician on sedition charge after disputed election

By Panu Wongcha-um and Patpicha Tanakasempipat

 

Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit, leader of the Future Forward Party during a news conference to form a "democratic front" in Bangkok, Thailand, March 27, 2019. REUTERS/Soe Zeya Tun/File Photo

 

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thai police summoned a prominent anti-junta politician on Wednesday to answer a sedition complaint, a police document showed, a charge rising star Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit called politically motivated after a disputed election.

 

The sedition complaint - the second criminal case opened against Thanathorn since he formed the Future Forward Party last year - dates back to 2015 and was filed by the army, a police official told Reuters.

 

The progressive, youth-oriented Future Forward Party made a surprisingly strong showing in the March 24 election, coming in third with 6.2 million votes.

 

It was still unclear which party could form government after the election, the first since a 2014 army coup. Final results may not be clear for weeks.

 

Future Forward has joined an opposition "democratic front" alliance that will try to form a government and block junta chief Prayuth Chan-ocha from staying in power.

 

Thanathorn, 40, is accused of breaking article 116 of the Thai criminal code, the equivalent of sedition, and article 189, for assisting others who committed a serious crime, the police summons showed.

 

He could face up to nine years in prison if found guilty.

 

Thanathorn will have to report to the Pathumwan police station in central Bangkok on Saturday.

 

"I don't know what the charges are yet but it is obviously politically motivated," Thanathorn told Reuters.

 

The complaint against Thanathorn was filed by the army in 2015 over his involvement in helping anti-junta protesters that year, a police officer told Reuters on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak to the media.

 

"The emergence of Thanathorn ... isn't a threat to the nation. It is a threat to the army that is hostile towards democracy and the people," Thanathorn told reporters.

 

The hashtag "#SaveThanathorn" was a top Thai trend on Twitter on Wednesday, resurfacing from February when he met prosecutors about a cybercrime charge over a speech he made on Facebook criticising the junta in July.

 

Prosecutors will decide on April 26 whether to put him on trial for the cybercrime charge.

 

The Thai military government dismissed the idea that the police action on Wednesday was politically motivated, saying that the summons related to a national security matter.

 

"There will be an investigation," Thai deputy prime minister Prawit Wongsuwan told reporters

 

(Additional reporting by Panarat Thepgumpanat; Editing by Paul Tait)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2019-04-03

 

[jayboy]

30 minutes ago, Golden Triangle said:

And so the persecution of the 3rd largest vote catching party continues, does the junta/ Apirat believe for one minute that they can get away with this ?

 

1

Yes

[robblok]

Idiots, if there is one clean politician so far its this guy. 

 

I hope it all explodes in their faces. Just stupid that they are trying that. 

 

But not surprising they are worried they cant rule the country.

 

 

[nikmar]

so obviously motivated by fear and paranoia.

[sammieuk1]

There will be an investigation," Thai deputy prime minister Prawit Wongsuwan told reporters

 

Look forward to the case where someone still living offers a defence when they know what the charges are????

[Lacessit]

Carbon copy of what happened in Malaysia.

Keep denying the aspirations of younger voters, who are on the increase while the older ones are in power. Don't think it has ever ended well.

[Grossman]

At least Thanathorn's FB post alone on the matter hit 200K+ reactions, 35K+ comments and 43K+ shares in a course of 8 or so hours. Not too shabby, topped with the buzz on Twitter. A "few" eyes on this at least.

 

Hopefully Apirat's earlier mulling about social media being more powerful than military hardware will prove to be correct and this will not only explode in their faces, but also gets a proper and thorough public rub-in afterwards.

[Fred white]

1 hour ago, Golden Triangle said:

And so the persecution of the 3rd largest vote catching party continues, does the junta/ Apirat believe for one minute that they can get away with this ?

 

Apart from the goon in charge of the junta & NCPO the most dangerous man in Thailand at the moment is Apirat.

Yes ????

[Lacessit]

1 minute ago, Grossman said:

At least Thanathorn's FB post alone on the matter hit 200K+ reactions, 35K+ comments and 43K+ shares in a course of 8 or so hours. Not too shabby, topped with the buzz on Twitter. A "few" eyes on this at least.

 

Hopefully Apirat's earlier mulling about social media being more powerful than military hardware will prove to be correct and this will not only explode in their faces, but also gets a proper and thorough public rub-in afterwards.

Social media is powerful. My Thai GF is far from sophisticated politically. However, when she is openly saying Prayut is a criminal, I wonder how many other Thais are saying the same.

[Fred white]

12 minutes ago, sammieuk1 said:

There will be an investigation," Thai deputy prime minister Prawit Wongsuwan told reporters

 

Look forward to the case where someone still living offers a defence when they know what the charges are????

Like the investigation about the gold watches and rings ????

[GarryP]

It is obvious that the military do not want Future Forward to form part of the government because of its anti-military stance so they will do whatever they can to get the party banned and Thanathorn and Piyabutr barred from politics for as long as possible. The military, however,  is creating more enemies. Many voters did not vote for FFP because they hate the military, but because it was a breath of fresh air, something new and not the same old faces, who it is becoming increasingly difficult to trust. However, many of those voters who were indifferent to the military, will start to look at the military with disdain for its attempt to take away their new representatives and start voicing their discontent. Unfortunately, this could be the very thing that Apirat and his cohorts want so taking to the streets could be playing into the military's hands.  

 

Very interesting but potentially disturbing times ahead.     

[Denim]

2 hours ago, Thailand said:

I am surprised he is surprised most people are not, the Junta running scared.

Yea....all the way to the arsenal.

 

 

[Denim]

1 hour ago, Just1Voice said:

The junta is seriously doing all they can to cause civil war and riots. Then they can bring in the troops and tanks and tell everyone "See, you need us to keep order."

 

 

It's a pity that those mostly conscript troops don't understand that they are the ones with the loaded guns and therefore the power .  With social networking , it is going to get increasingly difficult for the top brass to use conscripted troops to gun down those that stand against them.

 

Anyway, having been listening to the new charge that is being laid on Thanathorn  by a well know female singer from the yellow camp this thread will probably be closed since it concerns that which must not be talked about.

[champers]

58 minutes ago, Lacessit said:

Carbon copy of what happened in Malaysia.

Keep denying the aspirations of younger voters, who are on the increase while the older ones are in power. Don't think it has ever ended well.

In Malaysia it has ended up with a 91 year old heading the government.

[harada]

Back to the future for Thailand once again, so sad. ☹️