Court gets lenient with Sondhi
Play
Sondhi Limthongkul, leader of the yellow-shirt People's Alliance for Democracy, got his three-year jail term reduced to a two-year suspended sentence yesterday following an appellate review of his libel offence against former prime minister Thaksin Shinaw
“The defendant [Sondhi] has committed one count of defamation because whether or not the plaintiff [Thaksin] believes in black magic is not in the public’s interest,” the Court of Appeals said in its ruling.
The litigation focused on speeches made by Sondhi at PAD rallies in March 2006, which portrayed then-PM Thaksin as being a vote buyer and a crazy leader obsessed with black magic.
In the speeches, Sondhi outlined a series of black magic ceremonies involving Thaksin that were performed at Government House and the Erawan shrine.
The Criminal Court initially found Sondhi guilty of libel, sentencing him to three years in jail.
However, the appellate review said the speeches questioning Thaksin’s leadership, his lavish campaign spending and his crazy behaviour were an honest critique of a public figure and could not be considered a defamation offence.
Only Sondhi’s remarks attacking Thaksin for believing in the power of black magic could be considered a smear because personal faith had no bearing on public interest, the appellate ruling said.
The sentencing was readjusted to reflect the offence, and the high court handed down a lenient one.
Khunthong Lawseriwanit, who is the co-defendant and editor of the Phujadkarn newspaper, was acquitted of all charges for publishing Sondhi’s speeches.
