17/07/2025

THURSDAY | JULY 17, 2025

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Thaksin testifies in royal defamation case

Frenchman freed after 20 years on death row in Jakarta PARIS: A Frenchman who spent almost two decades on death row in Indonesia over drug offences before being returned to France, has been granted a conditional release, prosecutors said on Tuesday. Serge Atlaoui, a 61-year-old welder from Metz, was flown back to France in February after being on death row in Indonesia since 2007. The father of four, incarcerated near Paris, had his sentence adapted by the French courts to 30 years imprisonment. Atlaoui has been approved for conditional release tomorrow, the prosecutor’s office in Meaux said in a statement, adding that it is subject to follow-up obligations. “It has been a very long battle, there was no question of me giving up. This is a very great moment for me, and it will be for him as soon as he is released,” said defence lawyer Richard Sedillot. Atlaoui was arrested in 2005 at a factory in Jakarta where drugs were discovered and accused of being a “chemist”. He has always denied being a drug trafficker, saying that he was installing machinery in what he thought was an acrylic factory. Initially sentenced to life in prison, his sentence was reviewed by Indonesia’s supreme court and changed to death on appeal. He was due to be executed alongside eight others in 2015, but was granted a reprieve after Paris applied pressure and the Indonesian authorities allowed an outstanding appeal to proceed. Indonesia has recently released several high-profile detainees, including a Filipina mother on death row and the last five members of the “Bali Nine” drug ring. – AFP COLOMBO: Sri Lankan police arrested a Thai trans woman for walking topless at a surfing resort and causing a “public nuisance”. The 26-year-old, whose Thai passport says she is male but who identifies as a woman, pleaded guilty on Tuesday to two charges of indecent exposure and causing distress to others at Arugam Bay. A court handed her a suspended six-week sentence after social media posts showed her walking on a beach on Monday. The magistrate had suspended the sentence for five years, meaning there will be no immediate imprisonment. Any repeat offence, however, would result in her having to serve the six-week term. Arugam Bay, nearly 400km from the capital Colombo, is a popular surfing destination. The local community, largely made up of minority Muslims, had complained to authorities in recent weeks about scantily clad foreigners. – AFP CHINA JAILS JAPANESE MAN IN SPYING CASE BEIJING: A court in China yesterday sentenced a Japanese businessman to three and a half years in prison for spying, Tokyo’s ambassador in Beijing said. The man, an employee of the Japanese pharmaceutical company Astellas, was held in March 2023 and placed under formal arrest in October. He was “sentenced to three years and six months in prison for espionage activities,” said Japanese ambassador to China Kenji Kanasugi. Five Japanese nationals, including the Astellas official, are in custody or serving prison terms in China. Tokyo had repeatedly called on Beijing to release them and yesterday’s sentence deals a blow to ties, long frayed over territorial disputes, Japan’s colonial history and other flashpoints. – AFP TOPLESS THAI WOMAN ARRESTED IN SRI LANKA

BANGKOK: Former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra testified in court yesterday, seeking to defend himself against royal defamation charges in a watershed case for his faltering political dynasty. Thaksin faces up to 15 years in prison if he is convicted in the closed-door trial in Bangkok, where he stands accused of breaching strict lese-majeste laws that shield Thailand’s royal family from abuse and criticism. For the past quarter century, the 75-year old telecoms magnate has been a defining figure of Thai politics, founding a political clan which has jousted with the traditional pro royal, pro-military elite. But his prosecution – combined with the suspension of his daughter, prime minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, this month – represents a dramatic waning of the family’s political fortune, analysts say. The prosecution’s case revolves around o Court scheduled to deliver verdict on Aug 22

pardon from King Maha Vajiralongkorn. But political analyst Yuttaporn Issarachai said: “There is always someone within the establishment who sees him as a threat.” In recent interviews, Thaksin affirmed his loyalty to the monarchy and expressed gratitude for the king’s pardon. Speaking outside the court on the trial’s opening day on July 1, Thaksin’s lawyer Winyat said his client appeared “chill” despite the seriousness of the case. On the same day, Thaksin’s daughter Paetongtarn was suspended by the Constitutional Court pending an ethics probe into her conduct during a leaked diplomatic phone call discussing a border clash between Thailand and Cambodia. In the call, Paetongtarn referred to Cambodian ex-leader Hun Sen as “uncle” and described a Thai military commander as an “opponent” – sparking backlash for seeming to kowtow to a foreign statesman and undermine her own country’s military. Thailand’s parliament threw out yesterday a draft amnesty Bill in its first reading that would have released more than 30 people in prison for royal defamation. – AFP

remarks Thaksin made to South Korean media a decade ago. Thaksin’s lawyer Winyat Chatmontri said he testified in the morning “and will continue throughout the rest of the day”. The court has scheduled the verdict for Aug 22, he told reporters. Around 50 Thaksin supporters gathered at the courthouse wearing red shirts the colour of his political movement and emblazoned with a portrait of his face. “He is a very talented guy. But from past experience, bad people just want to get rid of him,” said 79-year-old retired accountant Vaew Wilailak. Thaksin returned to Thailand in August 2023 after 15 years in exile, following a military coup which ousted him from the premiership he won in two elections. He returned the day his family’s Pheu Thai party took office at the head of a coalition government backed by their conservative former enemies, fuelling suspicions a backroom deal had been struck. Thaksin was immediately sentenced to eight years in prison on graft and abuse of power charges – later reduced to one year by a

BR I E F S

DEFENDING NATURE ... Indonesian activists from the Ecological Observation and Wetlands Conservation and students protesting in Surabaya against single-use plastics yesterday. – AFPPIC

Woman held in monastic sex scandal case BANGKOK: Thai police have arrested a woman at the centre of a sex and extortion scandal involving several senior Buddhist monks, on charges including misappropriation of property and conspiracy to commit money laundering. Deputy Commissioner of the Central Investigation Bureau, Major General Jaroonkiet Pankaew said the investigation began following a case on June 18 involving a senior monk and former abbot of Wat Tri Thotsathep in Bangkok, who was allegedly blackmailed. temple bank account to her personal account. “This woman is considered a dangerous individual who needs to be apprehended without delay. The evidence led directly to her arrest today,” he told a press conference on Tuesday. He said that preliminary investigations had revealed that the woman had a personal relationship with the monk, which began in May last year.

Buddhist institution, but the operation was necessary to curb misconduct and maintain the sanctity of the religion. “We will take firm and impartial action against all individuals found to be involved.” He further revealed that nine out of 13 monks implicated in the scandal had already disrobed. The investigation continues, with more individuals expected to be named. The scandal surfaced publicly late last month after the sudden disappearance of the abbot of Wat Tri Thotsathep. It was later confirmed that he had left the monkhood. Police believe his disappearance was prompted by an attempt to extort him. – Bernama

Jaroonkiet said a financial probe also uncovered links to multiple temples, as well as video footage and other materials suggesting acts of extortion and blackmail. He emphasised that the authorities had no intention of tarnishing the reputation of the

According to Jaroonkiet, the suspect, a 35 year-old woman, was arrested at her residence in a luxury estate in Nonthaburi, after police uncovered evidence of a 380,000 baht (RM49,738) transfer from another senior monk’s