Thaksin shrugs off frame-up allegation

Published on December 15, 2004

Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra yesterday brushed off allegations that a police search of a Phrae home belonging to the brother of an opposition lawmaker was politically motivated.

“I would personally despise any attempt at a frame-up, and my standing order is that police should avoid getting involved in politics,” he said.

Thaksin denied that the search was meant to coerce Democrat Party MP Siriwan Prasajaksattru to defect to his ruling Thai Rak Thai.

About 200 police commandos raided the home of Pongsawat Supasiri, Siriwan’s older brother, on Tuesday.

They cited the government’s war on influential figures as grounds for the search, but left empty-handed.

Ten of Siriwan’s supporters have had their homes searched in recent days.

Phrae police said the searches were meant to be a preventive measure against possible outbreaks of campaign violence.

Last week, Charoen Chanthanu, a Thai Rak Thai campaign director for Phrae’s Nong Nok Khai district, escaped an assassination attempt unharmed.

Thai Rak Thai MP Tossaporn Serirak claimed that all search targets had prior criminal records, and some were even ex-convicts.

“Siriwan said the 10 search targets were her supporters, tantamount to a confession that the Democrat Party condones influential figures,” he said.

Tossaporn said his party had endorsed Anuwat Wongwan to run against Siriwan.

Anuwat and Siriwan have been political rivals for years, defeating each another many times in Phrae Constituency 2, he said, adding that the ruling party therefore has no cause to woo Siriwan to its side.

Democrat leader Banyat Bantadtan said he suspected that Phrae police were discriminating against the Democrats.

“I questioned the police as to why the searches are happening only to Democrats,” he said.

Banyat said government politicians might be behind the searches.

The Nation

Post your comment to this story here