The Criminal Court yesterday sentenced Rawee Maschamadol, one of four leaders of the People's Army and Energy Reform Network (PAERN), to eight months in prison, suspended for two years, for the occupation of a PTT Plc building and causing damage to Energy Ministry offices during mass street protests in 2014.
Rawee: Avoids serving time
Dr Rawee, a physician, was found guilty of colluding in illegal assembly and causing public chaos on Jan 13, 2014.
The court also fined him 6,000 baht.
Of the 105 co-defendants in the case, two were handed prison terms of two months and 20 days, without suspension.
One defendant was acquitted. The remainder, including the three other co-leaders, were given two-month prison terms, suspended for two years, and fined 2,000 baht each.
All defendants had earlier denied the charges and were free on bail. Dr Rawee said he would not appeal the sentence.
He vowed to continue campaigning for national energy reform.
Earlier, the Civil Court ordered the four PAERN co-leaders to pay almost 10 million baht in compensation to PTT Plc for damages caused by its occupation of the company's property during the 2014 protests. The four are Dr Rawee, Thotsaphon Kaewthima, Itthabun Onwongsa and Somkiat Pongpaiboon.
The PAERN protest took place in conjunction with a larger demonstration led by the People's Democratic Reform Committee, which led months-long street protests that culminated in the overthrow of the Pheu Thai Party-led administration by the military. PAERN occupied the Energy Complex Building next to PTT headquarters on Jan 13, 2014, an action PTT said prevented staff from entering the facility, the court said in the ruling.
The firm demanded 15.9 billion baht, plus 123,160 baht and 280,000 baht a day for loss of revenue.
The defendants had argued they had a constitutional right to rally there. In similar cases, core members of the now-defunct People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) were sentenced to eight months in prison and ordered to pay the full 552 million baht demanded for protests by the group in 2008 that led to the temporary closure of the capital's two main airports.
The PAD laid siege to the airports from Nov 24 to Dec 3, 2008 in protest against the Somchai Wongsawat government.
Core leaders of the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship, meanwhile, were jailed for two years for storming an Asean Summit venue in Pattaya in 2009, and surrounding Privy Council President Prem Tinsulanonda's residence in 2010.
