Appeal Court upholds guilty verdict for 4 people promoting a Thai Federation

The Court of Appeal has found 4 people guilty of forming a secret society by distributing leaflets, and wearing and selling Federationist shirts, according to Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR).

The Thai Federation flag.

The trial was divided into 2 cases: distributing leaflets and selling black shirts with the Federation flag logo in June-September 2019, and appearing at The Mall Bangkapi shopping mall wearing black shirts on 5 December 2019. The 4 defendants are Kritsana, Thoetsak, Praphan, Wannapa and Jinda (surnames withheld). 3 were released on bail after the first trial while Praphan has been detained pending trial since 10 May 2019. Jinda was later found absent before the court. Thus, only 4 remained as defendants.

In the first case, the prosecutor told the judge that the defendants confessed during questioning conducted at a military camp. Kritsana confessed to being the administrator of the Facebook page “Thai Federation and the mystery of the tyrant” where messages and photos were posted that defamed the monarchy and to distributing leaflets regarding Federationism at universities. 

Thoetsak, Praphan and Jinda also admitted being Federation group members. The four had acted with collective determination to find more group members, inciting people to wear the black shirt and defame the monarchy, which may have caused unrest in the Kingdom if people were to have seen them.

The defendants had argued that their statements given at the military camp were made without any lawyers or relatives present. The defendants did not sign their name to the statements and no officers attested to the documents, which made the testimony unlawful. 

Also, the 4th defendant had never acknowledged being a Federation group member at all. She only received shirts from her mother, who resides in the Lao PDR, and passed them on to the address designated by her mother. There was no CCTV footage of the 2nd defendant distributing leaflets.

Against the secret society allegations, the defendants testified that there was no evidence to prove that they had contacted or collectively planned the activity with Federationist leading figures like Chucheep ‘Uncle Sanam Luang’ Cheewasut. Maj Gen Burin Thongprapai, a prosecution witness, testified that there were no documents that prove the alleged relationship.

The Appeal Court upheld the previous court’s ruling, saying that Kritsana, Thoetsak, Praphan and Jinda were guilty of forming a secret society under Section 209 of the Criminal Code and were each given a 3-year prison sentence. 

The sedition charge was dismissed, on the grounds that the messages on leaflets, stickers and black shirts were only ideas which are different and can be criticized with reason, although they are different from the current Thai system of government.

Thoetsak and Praphan had confessed during the investigation and also gave useful testimony. The court reduced their prison sentence to 2 years.

In the second case, Thoetsak and Praphan were charged with sedition and forming a secret society as they wore the black shirts with the message “Thai Federation” and a white-red ribbon logo to the Mall Bangkapi shopping mall on 5 December 2018, the birthday anniversary of the late King Rama IX. The prosecutor said that the act reflected the defendants’ association with the group, a failure to respect the monarchy and a willingness to change the system of government to a federation.

The court upheld the previous ruling, dismissing the sedition charge. The court also suspended the secret society charge as it repeats the first case.

After the trial, relatives requested bail for Kritsana, Thoetsak and Wannapa at the Supreme Court. Praphan, who has been detained for almost 2 years, had no relative seeking bail for her.. 

5 hours after the request, the Appeal Court submitted it to the Supreme Court. TLHR estimates that the court will consider the request in a couple of days. All of the defendants were then taken prison.

The case was filed on 24 October 2019. The public prosecutor filed charges against the four defendants, along with Wutthipong “Ko Tee” Kotthammakun, Chucheep “Uncle Sanam Luang” Cheewasut, Siam Theerawut, Kritsana Tupthai, and Wat Wanlayangkoon, for their alleged involvement in the republican Thai Federation movement.

Three of the four defendants were released on bail on 21 January 2020, while the fourth defendant was held in custody after making no bail request.

21 people have been prosecuted in 10 cases regarding the Thai Federation, a group that promotes a change of the system of government to a federation. The prosecution began while the military junta ruled the country. At that time, the movement called on people to raise banners and the red-white Federation flag in Bangkok and other provinces on 5 December. The rally resulted in wide-scale police arrests and harassment.

Thai security officers named 5 people as the movement leading figures: Wutthipong “Ko Tee” Kotthammakun, Chucheep “Uncle Sanam Luang” Cheewasut, Siam Theerawut, Kritsana Tupthai, and Wat Wanlayangkoon. All except Wat disappeared during their self-exile. Wat has now been granted refugee status and is living in a third country.

Source: 
Thai Federation, Sedition, Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR), Secret society

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