Ex-Thai PM Thaksin’s Wife Guilty of Tax Fraud
Created: July 31, 2008
Last Updated: July 31, 2008
Related articles: World » South Asia
Pojamarn Shinawatra, wife of ousted Prime
Minister Thanksin Shinawatra (R) and her husband leave Bangkok Criminal
Court. (Chumsak Kanoknan/Getty Images)
BANGKOK—A Thai court found Potjaman Shinawatra,
the wife of ousted Prime Minister Thaksin and a major force in his
political and business empire, guilty of tax fraud on Thursday and
sentenced her to three years in jail.
"The Mistress", as she is frequently referred to in
Bangkok political circles, stood emotionless as the verdict was
delivered. Thaksin appeared to be fighting back tears as Potjaman walked
over to pat him on the back seconds after the ruling.
"The second defendant was not only supposed to
behave herself as a good citizen, she was also meant to be a good role
model as the wife of the prime minister," the judge said, reading out
the verdict in a televised ruling.
Potjaman, her brother Bannapot Damapong and her
secretary were charged with colluding to evade tax worth 546 million
baht ($16.3 million) in the transfer of shares in a telecoms firm
Thaksin founded.
The trio were freed on bail of 5 million baht each immediately after the verdict, and a family spokesman said they would appeal.
Around 1,000 pro-Thaksin supporters massed outside
the courtroom carrying roses and banners, although they were prevented
from getting too close to the entrance by 300 riot police. There was no
trouble.
Although widely expected, the verdict is a blow to
Thaksin in his fight to clear his name and return to mainstream
political life after his removal from office in 2006 by the military on
the pretext of "rampant corruption".
Army-appointed graft investigators have filed
several cases, and the guilty verdict is a sign of the legal tide
turning against the telecoms billionaire, whose unofficial influence
over the current government, packed with his close aides and associates,
is not disputed.
On Wednesday, the Supreme Court said it would hear a
case against Thaksin over allegations he arranged soft loans to
military-ruled Myanmar while in office to benefit his family's telecoms
business.
Two days earlier, the same court agreed to
investigate Thaksin's entire cabinet, including three ministers in the
current administration, for allegedly breaking gambling laws in a push
to launch a state lottery in 2003.
The various legal cases have added to the worries
about political stability that have caused the stock market to fall 22
percent since the end of May, when Thaksin's enemies kicked off a street
campaign to oust the current, elected government.
Most of the concerns centre on the government's
preoccupation with fighting off political attacks rather than
concentrating on the economy, which is suffering from decade-high
inflation and stuttering growth.
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