CrazyExpat Posted January 24, 2015 Report Share Posted January 24, 2015 In Targeting Ex-Premier, Thai Junta Takes a Risk BANGKOK — After months of claiming to be an honest broker in this deeply divided country, Thailand’s military junta swung decisively to the side of the conservative Bangkok establishment on Friday, imposing a five-year ban from politics on a former prime minister who is detested by the elites but loved in the provinces. The junta also announced that the former prime minister, Yingluck Shinawatra, who was overthrown by the military in May, would be indicted on a charge of criminal negligence, which could lead to a 10-year prison sentence. The decision to aggressively pursue Ms. Yingluck risks prolonging what has already been a lost decade of street protests, two military coups and bloodshed on the streets of Bangkok. It also revives a power struggle that has reduced Thai economic growth to near zero. Bitter recriminations and cynicism about the military’s intentions that had been muted since the coup quickly resurfaced Friday after the junta’s legislative assembly voted 190 to 18 to impeach Ms. Yingluck. The impeachment carries a five-year ban from politics. http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/24/world/asia/in-impeaching-ex-premier-junta-revives-thailands-divisions.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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