Airport shutdowns case moves ahead, slowly

No, the yellow-shirt protesters who shut down Suvarnabhumi airport have not escaped punishment. Here is the latest on the slow-moving court process.

Please join us on our Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/bangkokpostlearning

Witness hearing date finally set in airport shutdowns case

Online Reporters

A foreign tourist looks dejected after being stranded at Suvarnabhumi in 2008. THITI WANNAMONTHA

After three years, the examination-of-evidence phase in the trial of 97 People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) members for their 2008 seizure of Bangkok’s airports finally ended Monday, but the next step won’t be taken for eight months.

The Criminal Court set Oct 20 for the hearing of a first batch of prosecution witnesses. Public prosecutors asked to present 963 witnesses, but the court agreed to hear only 565 of them. The PAD members will call 364 witnesses in their defence.

PAD lawyer Suwat Apaipak said the evidence examination had been completed and the court set prosecutors' witness examinations for Oct 20, Nov 14 and Dec 15, or once a month because some PAD members have to appear in the court every Tuesday and Wednesday in another case related to their siege of parliament the same year.

There were initially 114 defendants in this case and 98 have been indicted on terrorism and other charges related to the occupation of Don Mueang and Suvarnabhumi airports during the PAD demonstration against the Somchai Wongsawat government. There are now 97 defendants after one died in 2014.

Examination of evidence began on April 29, 2013 but was postponed six times for various reasons ranging from some defendants not having lawyers, to not appearing due to illness, to being detained or summoned by the National Council for Peace and Order.

At Monday's hearing, former PAD leader Sondhi Limthongkul and six other members did not appear, citing sickness or schedule conflicts. The court agreed they had reasonable grounds for not showing.

Riot police disperse the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) protesters during the crackdown in front of parliament on October 7, 2008. It led to a number of protesters suffering serious injuries. Many PAD members have also been indicted for their part in the siege. APICHIT JINAKUL

Mr Suwat said Maj Gen Chamlong Srimuang also went to the Supreme Court to contest the Appeal Court's ruling that ordered 13 core PAD leaders, including him and Mr Sondhi, to pay 522 million baht in compensation to the Airports Authority of Thailand for the protest that shut down the city's airports for more than a week. The compensation is subject to 7.5% in annual interest.

Maj Gen Chamlong also asked the court to waive the 7 million baht fee to appeal the case. The Supreme Court will rule on that request on March 21.

สามารถฝึกอ่านออกเสียงและดูคำแปลได้ที่ : http://www.bangkokpost.com/learning/learning-from-news/848812/airport-shutdowns-case-moves-ahead-slowly