Thirty-nine former members of the now defunct People’s Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC), some of them ministers in the current government, were found guilty by the Bangkok Criminal Court on Wednesday for their participation in anti-government demonstrations in 2014 and sentenced to varying prison terms.
Three ministers, Natapol Teepsuwan (Minister of Education), Buddhipongse Punnakanta (Minister of Digital Economy), and Thaworn Senniam (Deputy Minister of Transport) were stripped of their post with immediate effect and sentenced to jail terms ranging from 5 years to 7 years.
The leader of the PDRC movement, Suthep Thaugsuban was sentenced to five years in prison.
The charges relate to the Bangkok shutdown protests between November 2013 and May 2014.
The protests resulted in the occupation of many government buildings under the administration of former prime minister, Yingluck Shinawatra, who was ousted by the coup that the PDRC were cheering for in 2014.
“I think the government feels under pressure from the opposition and civil society to maintain a semblance of fairness,” said Thai political analyst Arun Saronchai.
”After all you have the government prosecuting children and young adults for breaking the emergency decree currently. It would look bad for them to not apply the law to the other side, even if they were allies once.”
All 39 of the accused turned up, pointed out Suthep Thaugsuban, former leader of the now-dissolved PDRC.
“Our fight was for the country and it was based on responsible actions and we did not want to break the law, we respect the law and the justice system so none of us is running away,” he said.
“Our fight led to 24 deaths of our members and more than 900 people injured, some lost their limbs and some are in jail so whatever is going to happen will happen.”