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When the verdict came out, it was an acquittal for all. Nobody received a penalty or went to jail. Was it a surprise, amidst earlier speculation that some among the 44 defendants would be found guilty? It was, to a certain extent.

It was an arduous effort by the investigation commission, which compiled a huge stack of paper serving what it regarded as solid evidence to prove the defendants guilty. The commission will have to wait for the results of other cases. The defeat in this case might bode ill for the rest.

This is a landmark decision by the Supreme Court. The presiding judges read the verdict in detail, leaving no doubt whatsoever. However, the verdict also confirmed reports that some of the key defendants had celebrated in advance. A big party was also expected last night.

How will Thaksin and his cronies react to the verdict? His view should be known soon enough on Twitter. But he cannot say again that the judicial system has been biased against him and his people.

The good news for the defendants came after the end of the relatively peaceful rally by the red shirts on Saturday. However, politicians in the case remained under the ban for political activities imposed by the Constitution Court. Some will face other charges over allegations of wrongdoing during the Thaksin government.

As the court verdict unfolded, Prime Minister Abhisit was at the UN General Assembly. The trouble feared by many over the red-shirt rally turned out to be unfounded. The number of protesters was not as high as expected, reflecting a continued downward slide. This was either due to insufficient funding or disillusion over the role of the leaders, who have been enjoying a better living from campaign funds. The government deployed a large number of military and police personnel, though most were not visible.

Through publicity casting the red shirts and their leaders in a very bad light - that they possess formidable potential for creating disturbance and riots, as occurred during the bloody Songkran festival - the government was able to attract sympathy from the public. The red shirts were regarded as troublemakers trying to prevent the government from guiding the economy towards recovery.

The invocation of the Internal Security Act also contained the red shirts. They had earlier planned to march to the residence of General Prem Tinsulanonda, president of the Privy Council, but decided to stay put at the Royal Plaza because the supposed target for their harsh tirades was elsewhere.

At 2pm there was a heavy downpour for over an hour, causing difficulties for those at the rally. The leaders earlier suspected the rain was the product of artificial rain-making. What could not be created, however, was the lightning, thunder and strong winds.

The thinning crowd at the rally also measured the credibility of the leaders and their campaign. By now, they must know that what they are doing has just one single purpose - to help the paymaster Thaksin regain lost ground, which includes frozen assets, political power and freedom from all criminal charges and his jail sentence.

Thaksin phoned in to rouse the protest as usual. There was nothing new in what he said - the same hard-luck stories and tales of woe about injustice and being a victim of an abusive judicial process. He showed no progress and his credibility is close to zero because of his inability to travel freely due to the refusal of visas by the EU, the US and other major countries.

What will he do from now on? He is expected to spend more time writing complaints on Twitter and moaning via phone calls to whatever gatherings are willing to listen to his pleas. Without these activities, Thaksin fears he will be forgotten and be forced to accept the fact that he will remain abroad for good.

At the same time, the red-shirt leaders contemplate new plans for rallies, which will further boost their income from the funding. They will continue to feed false hope to Thaksin, who must keep his chequebook ready or find other channels for funding. His status as a gold mine for political freeloaders remains intact, and it has never occurred to him that their loyalty is based on the prospect of transferring wealth from him to their own pockets.

Their next rally could be at the Asean meeting in Hua Hin next month. The government is likely to invoke the national security law again to ward off potential trouble and prevent a repeat of the fiasco in Pattaya. The red shirts have become a political tool, ready at all times for anyone who has strong ambition and deep pockets.