Lobbyist quits Thaksin for solo mission

“Following a military coup last May which toppled the elected government, conditions for human rights have sharply deteriorated, and the engagement between Robert Amsterdam and former prime minister Thaksin has concluded,” Amsterdam & Partners said in a statement yesterday.
Amsterdam was first retained in 2010 by Thaksin to defend the rights of the red-shirt movement, including an application before the International Criminal Court.
“We are grateful to Khun Thaksin for the opportunity to become involved in these issues, and wish him the best in his endeavours,” he said.
The focus now will be a new independent campaign to hold Thai officials accountable in a foreign jurisdiction, he said.
Among the objectives of the new movement will be to bring criminal charges against the coup leadership and those responsible for the 2010 Bangkok massacre, as well as to pursue targeted sanctions to deliver accountability and justice for the victims.
“The campaign will be conducted on a pro bono basis, completely independently from any active political figure or party in Thailand,” he said.
“In the face of horrific repression under the current coup government, we must not abandon the effort to apply consequences to those who violate human rights and those who have torn apart Thailand’s fragile democracy,” he said.
“We view this as a matter of historical importance. Only when we see these elites charged and sanctioned for their crimes can there be any hope of restoring rule of law and representative government in Thailand.”