Thai Court Removes PM Shinawatra For Abusing Power
Thai Prime Minister, Yingluck Shinawatra, leaves the Constitutional Court on May 6, 2014 in Bangkok, Thailand.
By Sadho Ram — 08 May 2014, 06:08 PM — Updated over 10 years ago
On 7 May 2014, Thailand's Constitutional Court Ordered The Removal Of Caretaker PM Yingluck Shinawatra Out Of Office For "Abuse Of Power"
A Thai court on Wednesday ordered Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra removed from office, a highly divisive move and a victory for a powerful opposition movement that has sought to overthrow the government for six months. The Constitutional Court ruled that Yingluck abused her power when she transferred a civil servant to another post more than three years ago.
bostonglobe.com
Yingluck’s Party Called The Decision A "New Form Of Coup D’etat" As The Court Ordered Her To Step Down Immediately, Along With Nine Members Of Her Cabinet
The court admitted that Yingluck was within her rights to transfer Thawil, but asserted the decision was taken with a “hidden agenda” and not in accordance with “moral principle.”
aljazeera.comYingluck’s removal was denounced by legal experts. Ekachai Chainuvati, deputy dean of law at Siam University in Bangkok, told the New York Times the ruling was “total nonsense in a democratic society” and an example of “what I would call a juristocracy—a system of government governed by judges.”
wsws.org
It was the third time since 2006 that a prime minister representing the political movement founded by Yingluck’s brother, Thaksin Shinawatra, has been removed by court order. The movement, which has its power base in the provinces, has won every election since 2001 but has antagonized the Bangkok establishment, a struggle that is at the heart of Thailand’s eight years of political crisis.
bostonglobe.com
Leaders Of Yingluck’s Party Quickly Announced That Niwatthamrong Boonsongpaisan, Deputy Prime Minister, Would Become Acting Prime Minister
After the ruling, the cabinet said Commerce Minister Niwatthamrong Boonsongphaisan, who is also a deputy prime minister, would replace Yingluck, and the caretaker government would press ahead with plans for a July 20 election.
irishtimes.com
“The caretaker government’s responsibility now is to organise an election as soon as possible,” said Niwatthamrong, a former executive in a company owned by Thaksin Shinawatra, Yingluck’s brother and himself a former prime minister who was ousted by the military in 2006. “I hope the political situation will not heat up after this,” Niwatthamrong said of the court ruling.
bostonglobe.com
Meanwhile, Thailand's Anti-Corruption Agency May Decide Whether To Pursue Charges Against The Ousted PM That Could See Her Banned From Politics
The National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) was due to meet on Thursday to consider a separate case of negligence against Ms Yingluck over a rice subsidy scheme that incurred billions of dollars in losses. "Today, the NACC will decide whether former premier Yingluck is guilty or not in the rice case and how to proceed with the case," said an official at the National Anti-Corruption Commission, who declined to be identified as she was not authorised to speak to the media.
Following The Court Order, Police Say A Grenade Was Thrown Early Thursday At The Home Of One Of The Judges Of The Country's Constitutional Court
Supporters of Thailand's Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra react as she leaves the Permanent Secretary of Defense office in Bangkok, May 7, 2014.
Image via voanews.comPolice say no one was injured in the early morning attack, though the grenade did cause minor damage to a roof and a vehicle at the judge's Bangkok home. A bank and hospital were also damaged by grenades overnight.
voanews.com
Supporters of deposed Yingluck have called for a huge rally Saturday to protest the ruling by the constitutional Court, which exercised powers laid out in a constitution written by a military government after a coup in 2006.
lethbridgeherald.comSince Much Of Yingluck's Government Still Remains In Place, Protesters Are Not satisfied And Are Calling For A "Final Offensive" In The Form Of A Mass Protest Friday
Anti-government protesters marching in the city centre celebrate shortly after a Thai court delivered its verdict on Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, in Bangkok.
Image via interaksyon.comThai protesters who have massed on Bangkok's streets for six months said on Thursday they would appoint a new government, following the removal of Premier Yingluck Shinawatra by a court. “Tomorrow (Friday) we will take steps towards appointing a new government,” protest spokesman Akanat Promphan told AFP, adding the ruling party's new prime minister has no “legitimacy”.
voanews.com
It was not immediately clear what legal basis their vow draws on, but the Thai constitution has an article which may enable the appointment of a new executive body by the Senate. Protest leaders have vowed a “final fight” on Friday, without giving details of their plans.
iol.co.za