DSI Thailand To Grant Bail To All Red Shirts Who Surrender

[webfact]

DSI to grant bail to all those who surrender

By Kornchanok Raksaseri,

Somroutai Sapsomboon,

Piyanuch Tamnukasetchai

The Nation

Tarit Pengdith, director-general of the Department of Special Investigation (DSI), says he is confident that all fugitive red-shirt leaders, including Arisman Pongruangrong and Suporn Attawong, will give themselves up by next week.

He also promised that all suspects who surrender would be given temporary release under the condition that they do not provoke the authorities. He added that the bail would be revoked if anybody violated the conditions.

"It's the DSI's principle. If they surrender, they will be given bail. If they run away and get arrested, they can't get bail," Tarit said.

"It would be better if they submitted to the legal process. Once they get bail, under the law they become defendants and must be ruled by court. Then we won't have to blame each other about who did what."

Three more red-shirt fugitives, Aree Krainara, Wisa Kanthap and Paijit Aksornnarong, yesterday surrendered to the DSI to face charges in connection with last year's riots. After being booked, the three were given temporary release under the same conditions as Adisorn Piengket and the recently released seven red-shirt leaders - that they do not leave the country and not incite unrest.

The three fugitives did not have to post bail because there were no arrest warrants against them. They were only charged for violating the emergency decree last year.

Adisorn, meanwhile, has been allowed to go free on Bt600,000 bail. "If Adisorn goes on the stage during the red-shirt rally on Saturday, his bail will be revoked," Tarit warned.

Aree, the chief of the red-shirt guards, will face terrorism and other charges in relation to the riots. Wisa and Paijit will be charged for offences related to the blockade and raid of Parliament.

Tarit said the red-shirt movement had contacted him to say that many of the leaders on the run would surrender within next week.

"Next week, I believe that at least five or six of them [the red-shirt leaders] will surrender as I've been told," Tarit said.

A DSI source who asked not to be named said Suporn and Waipot Arpornrat would surrender on Monday.

-- The Nation 2011-03-12

[asiawatcher]

It's an olive branch at the directive of the Government - but to have these people on the streets during this protests plague is not sensible or logical. Maybe DSI knows they will hit the stage and can be arrested thus solve the issue of incarceration without cause? But bet the B.i.B. don't do it!

[Deez]

What a joke. They reward the cowards who fled the charges for the last 9 months with instant bail. . What about the many who have been imprisoned for the last 9+ months? Great logic.

[hammered]

These things dont happen in isolation. Something is going on or being sorted out likely in the context of the election. Us mere mortals though will not get to hear

[Emptyset]

These things dont happen in isolation. Something is going on or being sorted out likely in the context of the election. Us mere mortals though will not get to hear

Many red shirts suspect some sort of deal was done between the UDD leadership and the government (though it might not necessarily have been with the government itself, I guess), in exchange for the freedom of the leaders:

]I must emphasize, as I wrote there, that I don't think the deal involve a 'swap', as suspected by quite a number Red Shirt supporters, between arresting Surachai and freeing the seven leaders. (Thida conveyed this to me, and I believe her on this point.) But it does involve a somewhat lowering of mass rallies in Bangkok (including the prolonged, stay-over-night one as Jatuporn threatened to do at the last rally) and the re-emphasis on the "Democracy with the King as head of state", and all the other things as Jim very well describes above. [/b](One "small" point that I must disagree with Jim's description is the "freeing her husband" factor. I don't think this accounted for the deal.)

The lowering of mass rallies and the "switch" to so-called "election mode" of the UDD also involve something quite troubling, apart from what Jim already says. I can confirm from unquestionable source that the UDD's on-line TV, the Asia Update, has ordered its staff NOT to put reports of Red Siam rallies to demand Surachai's release and the abolition of LM law these past few days on air. I also heard that there are other actions to exclude Red Siam activities in the provinces from the UDD there too. Jakkrapob Penkae had a "phone-in" to a Red Siam rally at a Bangkok outskirt location last night, appealing to the UDD not to "ขัดขา" (obstruct) Red Siam activities.

Edit: Deleted link because some content also on linked page might be somewhat controversial - the comment above was from the New Mandala website and written by Thammasat professor and red shirt supporter Somsak Jeamteerasakul.

Edited March 12, 2011 by Emptyset

[kevc]

What a joke. They reward the cowards who fled the charges for the last 9 months with instant bail. . What about the many who have been imprisoned for the last 9+ months? Great logic.

But do you not think it makes them look even bigger cowards to come out from under their stone and accept bail while their comrades are still inside.

[dominique355]

Amazing! And I always thought release or bail is granted by a court or a judge, not the police.

And then, usually bail is denied if there is a real risk that the suspect will run away. (among other reasons, such a collusion).

One more time, the RedShirts have a separate standard?

[scorecard]

Amazing! And I always thought release or bail is granted by a court or a judge, not the police.

And then, usually bail is denied if there is a real risk that the suspect will run away. (among other reasons, such a collusion).

One more time, the RedShirts have a separate standard?

"Amazing! And I always thought release or bail is granted by a court or a judge, not the police". I agree.

On the other hand is this more sloppy translations from the original Thai language, perhaps he said that 'the police would not oppose bail'?

[AleG]

What a joke. They reward the cowards who fled the charges for the last 9 months with instant bail. . What about the many who have been imprisoned for the last 9+ months? Great logic.

But do you not think it makes them look even bigger cowards to come out from under their stone and accept bail while their comrades are still inside.

May help in placing a wedge between this leaders and the more hardcore elements of the Red Shirt movement.

Lest we forget, last year, after months of brainwashing the mob with "we will fight until our last drop of blood!" and similar rhetoric, when the leaders saw things were getting serious and they may get hurt they surrendered or fled. The ones that stayed around the rally area were in real risk of being lynched by the red mob and were all too willing to be taken away.

[rubl]

Our dear TRT MP and UDD co-leader jatuporn has said this evening that run-away red shirt leader Arisman will surrender himself before March 26.

( in Thai: http://bit.ly/eBPjQB ).

[Nisa]

I wonder how Arisman will be viewed by many in the red brigade considering he was so vocal in his talk of fighting and doing things like burning down BKK but repeatedly acts like a coward when faced with any personal sacrifice. Obviously there are a lot of sheep in the movement who allow themselves to be led blindly by morons but you would think many have had time to wake up and reflect that their red leadership has got them nothing and actually likely screwed them out of a chance to see more representation in the government when leaders refused Abhisit's offer to hold elections last year only to then move forward with promises of violence against Thailand and its people.

Arisman is clearly a coward who has no problem asking others to do what he will not. I will not be the least bit surprised if he doesn't surrender. Other Red leaders at least showed some honor and hint at wanting to see the violence end last year and cannot see them being too thrilled with Arisman coming back in some leadership role given the time they spent in jail while Arisman was free.

[Nisa]

What a joke. They reward the cowards who fled the charges for the last 9 months with instant bail. . What about the many who have been imprisoned for the last 9+ months? Great logic.

True but what other options do they have in terms of reconciliation and putting this in the past as quickly as possible. Keep in mind too that Thailand grants great leniency towards those who turn themselves in, admit their guilt and/or show remorse. So, unless they are acquitted you can be fairly sure Arisman (especially) and other who fled will end up making up the time they missed in jail while being fugitives. Likely there will be an acceptable plea deal involving all those who no longer pose a threat and you can bet that as a group none of these people who sat in jail while Arisman lived freely will be fighting too hard for no jail time for him as part of the deal.

Again, I really question if he will turn himself in. At least Thaksin still tries to be a leader while on the run. Arisman for the last year only seems to have been thinking of himself unless I missed the news about him sending any kind of messages to the Reds. Bottom line is I don't think he has many friends left on either side of the divide and the Reds as a group have got to distance themselves from him to have any hope of being seen in any good light. Remember, this is the guy who told people from the stage that they intended to burn down bangkok.