By
WARANGKANA CHOMCHUEN And
WILAWAN WATCHARASAKWET Updated Dec. 12, 2013
BANGKOK—Thailand's former Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva was formally indicted Thursday on murder charges over a military crackdown on street protests in 2010 that left scores dead.
The indictment comes amid the biggest political upheaval in the country since the 2010 protests and risks further inflaming tensions. Antigovernment protest leader Suthep Thaugsuban, who served as Mr. Abhisit's deputy at the time, faces similar charges.
Mr. Suthep was due to appear for the indictment session Thursday, but he didn't show up. A public prosecutor told reporters that Mr. Suthep's lawyer had asked the court to postpone Mr. Suthep's appearance to mid-January, which prosecutors were considering. Both men deny the charges against them.
Protest Leader Suthep Seeks to Delay His Court Appearance
Former Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva gestures as he arrives at the court in Bangkok on Thursday.Agence France-Presse/Getty Images
After the indictment, Thailand's Criminal Court granted bail to Mr. Abhisit, leader of the main opposition Democrat Party, and scheduled an inquest on March 24 next year. Mr. Abhisit left the court without offering comment. His lawyer reiterated that Mr. Abhisit denies the charges.
A group of relatives of the fallen protesters were in court to object to Mr. Abhisit's request for bail.
"I want them both in jail," said Sunanta Preechawet, 62 years old, whose younger brother was killed in a clash in April 2010. "The vengeance and the pain have been eating my heart."
The Office of the Attorney General had charged Messrs. Abhisit and Suthep with murder in October, alleging that the two men authorized the use of live ammunition and weapons in dispersing "Red Shirt" protesters, mostly grass-roots supporters of former leader Thaksin Shinawatra, who himself was ousted by a military coup in 2006. The Thai Parliament granted Messrs. Abhisit and Suthep immunity from court proceedings while it was in session, but the parliamentary session ended in late November. Thursday was the first time the men had to appear in court since the charges were filed.
Key Players
Read more about some key Thai political figures.
Photos: Protests Escalate
European Pressphoto Agency
Timeline: Legacy of Turmoil
A decade and a half after Thaksin Shinawatra founded his 'Thais Love Thais' party, antagonism prevails.
The Red Shirt protesters demonstrated in Bangkok in 2010 for nine weeks and demanded that Mr. Abhisit call a fresh election. Named for their red attire, the protesters accused Mr. Abhisit of gaining power by colluding with the military to negotiate with smaller parties to form a parliamentary coalition.
About 90 people, mostly protesters, were killed in clashes with security forces across Bangkok. Scores more were injured.
The Criminal Court on Thursday was under tight security in anticipation of demonstrations by Mr. Abhisit's supporters and opponents. As Mr. Abhisit arrived, relatives of the Red Shirts shouted "murderer" at him.
The indictment in October was seen by many as a political tactic to pressure the Democrat Party to support an amnesty bill, proposed by the ruling Pheu Thai Party of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra. The bill would have exonerated various people—including Messrs. Abhisit and Suthep and Mr. Thaksin—for a wide range of offenses. A spokesman for the attorney general office denied the accusation.
Mr. Thaksin was convicted of corruption in 2008 and has lived in self-exile. He has long maintained that the charges against him were trumped up. The amnesty bill could have paved the way for his return to Thailand, but the bill sparked an outcry and widespread opposition in Bangkok, prompting the Senate to reject the bill. The anti-amnesty movement has morphed, under Mr. Suthep's helm, into the continuing mass demonstrations to remove Ms. Yingluck and the Shinawatra family from Thai politics.
Ms. Yingluck dissolved the lower House on Monday and called a fresh election on Feb. 2, but her decision has done little to calm the tension. On Thursday, antigovernment protesters cut off electricity to the compound of Ms. Yingluck's main offices and demanded that police abandon the premises.
Ms. Yingluck, who on Thursday attended a meeting in Chiang Mai, her hometown in northern Thailand, has so far resisted resigning and urged every party to participate in the elections. It is expected that her Pheu Thai Party will win. On Thursday, Ms. Yingluck also invited the public and all groups to join an open forum on Sunday to seek solutions to current conflicts and political reform after the elections.
Mr. Abhisit's Democrat Party has been vague if it will participate in the vote after all 152 Democrat MPs resigned from Parliament in protest, saying they refused to participate in what they called the "illegitimate" Parliament.
In the meantime, Mr. Suthep has also set up his own governing body in parallel and requested a meeting with the military and police chiefs, as well as civic groups, to gain their supports.
The Red Shirt protesters, Ms. Yingluck's major ally, have been keeping a low profile after some of them got into street fights with anti-Thaksin crowds in November, leaving four people dead and many injured. But Red Shirt leaders vowed to mobilize support for Ms. Yingluck if there are signs of any political intervention that may scrap the coming elections.
The court's decision to grant bail to Mr. Abhisit could anger some of the Red Shirt protesters and escalate political tensions, said Janjira Sombatpoonsiri, a political scientist at Thammasat University in Bangkok.
At least a thousand Red Shirt protesters faced charges and prosecution related to arsons, violation of the emergency decree, among others, under Mr. Abhisit's administration. Dozens remain in jail.
Red Shirt "protesters could feel they haven't been treated fairly," Ms. Janjira said. "That will possibly drive a wedge into the sense of divisiveness."
Core Red Shirt leaders were charged with terrorism shortly after the crackdown in 2010. In an appearance at the same court on Thursday, Natthawut Saikua, a Red Shirt leader and deputy commerce minister, commended the country's justice system for bringing Mr. Abhisit to court, but added that the prosecution on the Red Shirts was at a faster pace.
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