Charged academics ask prosecutors to order police interview witnesses
A noted social scientist and four other participants of a recent international academic forum held at Chiang Mai University petitioned prosecutors on Monday to order that police collect witness testimonies.
They want the police to interview witnesses to the event who they believe would support their contention that participants did not violate the junta’s ban on political gatherings as has been claimed.
Police have so far refused to interview the witnesses, the petitioners wrote.
Chayan Vaddhanaphuti co-organised the July 15-18 forum entitled International Conference on Thai Studies.
He and four conference participants were charged after the four participants, but not Chayan, displayed a banner at the event that read, “This was not a military camp but an academic forum”.
Those charged have met police twice with police to acknowledge the charges against them as well as submitting documents as their evidence against the charges.
Chayan is a respected academic and director of the university’s Regional Centre for Social Science and Sustainable Development,
In the petition, the accused insisted on their innocence and requested that prosecutors order the police to collect testimonies from their five witnesses.
The prosecutors responded that they would look into the petition before deciding whether they would indict the five.