BANGKOK: A Thai court will deliver its ruling in the criminal negligence case of toppled premier Yingluck Shinawatra on August 25, a verdict that could see her jailed for up to 10 years.
She is accused of failing to stop corruption in a rice subsidy policy that funnelled cash to her poor farming base but cost the Thai treasury billions of dollars.
Her supporters say the case is driven by the junta that overthrew her government in 2014 and is determined to expunge her super-rich clan from Thailand’s political scene.
Her brother Thaksin, who heads the Shinawatra family, was ousted as premier in a 2006 coup and fled the country over corruption convictions. After the final day of witness testimony in her 18-month trial, the Supreme Court said Yingluck could give a verbal statement in her defence on August 1. “Then, the court will deliver the verdict on August 25,” the court said in a statement. Currently it is not possible to appeal a Supreme Court ruling.
Yingluck’s case is the first time a Thai premier has faced charges for the outcome of an economic policy in a country where populist handouts are commonplace and military spending passes without serious scrutiny.
As she arrived at court she wiped away tears, embracing supporters and posing for pictures with the crowd of some 500 supporters, many holding roses and balloons.
“I want to thank all of the media and people who came here to support me,” she said in a brief comment to the press.
Thailand’s first female prime minister was impeached for abuse of power and banned from politics in the wake of the coup.
But she remains a galvanising force among her supporters, with the trial turning her into something of a martyr for a democracy movement that has withered under junta rule.
“People love the Shinawatra family because they helped small people get money and make a living,” said Wachiraporn Laongnual, who said she travels two hours to attend every court hearing. The farmers among the crowd outside the court defended Yingluck’s rice policy, which saw the government pay nearly twice the market price for the vital commodity.
“Under Yingluck’s rice scheme the rice was bought by the government and farmers could live very well. Now it’s a struggle,” said Nantha Phunen, adding that she was swamped by debt amid low rice prices. — AFP
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