BANGKOK (AP) – A court in Thailand yesterday acquitted a student activist and four other people of impeding the motorcade of the country’s queen during pro-democracy demonstrations in 2020, an offense that could have seen them sentenced to 16 years in prison or even the death penalty.
The Bangkok Criminal Court verdict was rendered in a case brought under a little-used law that targets actions intended “to harm the liberty of the queen, the heir apparent and the regent”. Legal experts were unable to recall any previous prosecutions under the law.
The verdict represented a rare legal victory for Thailand’s pro-democracy movement, which has often faced an uphill battle in the conservative courts, which are widely seen as representing a bulwark against political and social change.
After the verdict was read, people in the courtroom clapped and cheered, as the smiling defendants hugged each other, and the judge had to call for order.
The defendants thanked the court, with one, Ekachai Hongkangwan, saying he always had confidence the courts would be just, and that the judges showed that people can still rely on the justice system.
The case stemmed from an incident on October 14, 2020, on the fringes of a rally in Bangkok that was calling for democratic reforms, including over the privileges of the country’s powerful monarchy.
One of the defendants, 23-year-old international relations student Bunkueanun Paothong – widely known by his nickname Francis – had insisted all along the case was misguided.
He had denied knowing a royal motorcade was due to pass by, and said that when he saw it he urged people to move away.
Prosecutors had alleged that he knew the royal motorcade, with a limousine carrying Queen Suthida, wife of King Maha Vajiralongkorn, and his son, Prince Dipangkorn Rasmijoti, then 15, was due to pass the area and that he and his fellow defendants had broken away to block its route.
They also charged that they tussled with police officers who were securing the path, then urged other protestors to sit in the road to stop its passage.
