Prem sought answers from Sonthi about coup: general
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A retired general stepped forward yesterday to confirm that chief royal adviser General Prem Tinsulanonda had urged General Sonthi Boonyaratglin to explain his motives behind the 2006 coup.
Prem instructed his former aide General Mongkol Ampornpisit to tell Sonthi to outline the truth behind the coup, General Banchorn Chawalsilp said, adding that he arranged the telephone call between Mongkol and Sonthi.
“Prem was concerned that he was being perceived as the mastermind behind the coup,” Banchorn said.
Mongkol told his military classmate Sonthi that he should reveal the truth, but his advice went unheeded, he said.
The Mongkol-Sonthi talk coincided with red-shirt rallies in 2007, during which Prem was being blamed for the coup and protesters even surrounded his house for several hours.
After taking over as junta leader, Sonthi projected himself as a royalist and tried to justify the coup as a move to safeguard the monarchy.
The issue resurfaced on Wednesday after Chart Thai Pattana MP Sanan Kachornprasart bluntly asked Sonthi whether Mongkol had spoken to him. Sonthi initially refused to shed any light on the issue, though he subsequently conceded that Prem was not involved in the coup.
Banchorn said he sympathised with Sonthi because he was caught off guard by Sanan’s question, and by the time he had collected himself and explained Prem’s role, the public had already seen him as a bad guy for withholding secrets.
Sonthi reportedly completed writing six books, including his biography, before he entered politics as leader of the Matubhum Party last year. It is believed that these books will be published after his death to avoid unintended repercussions on leading figures.
Sanan said he had no ill intentions towards Sonthi, but wanted the public to learn the truth about the coup. Over the past five years, Sonthi has been deflecting the blame on others and the coup remains a mystery, he said, arguing that fences could not be mended if people were misled to believe that Prem was behind it all.
“If all the facts are laid out, then the country can move forward,” he said, adding that he also wanted to know more about the royal audience that Sonthi received on September 19, 2006 – the night of the coup.
He said many believed that Prem summoned Sonthi to see the King, hence Sonthi should clarify this meeting because Prem was seen arriving at the Palace after arrangements for the royal audience had been completed.
Meanwhile, both Sanan and Sonthi have denied being paid by fugitive former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra. Sonthi said he wanted to rectify the damage caused by the coup, not rescue Thaksin, while Sanan said he wanted to clear up any misunderstandings and was not acting on Thaksin’s behalf to take revenge on Sonthi.
