A Thai court on Thursday postponed till next month the start of the terrorism trial of 24 leaders of the “red shirt” protests that rocked Bangkok in 2010, because one of the defendants was ill.
The accused, who include five current lawmakers, could in theory face the death penalty for their roles in the rallies. At their height they drew around 100,000 people, mostly supporters of ousted ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra.
About 90 people were killed and nearly 1,900 wounded in a series of street clashes between demonstrators and security forces, which culminated in a bloody military crackdown and the arrest of the movement’s leaders.
The Reds were demanding immediate elections, accusing the government at the time of being undemocratic because it took office in 2008 through a parliamentary vote after a court stripped Thaksin’s allies of power.
The judge postponed the first hearing until December 13 because a lawyer for Red Shirt militant leader Arisman Pongreungrong said his client could not attend the trial due to food poisoning.
“The court will only allow this one postponement,” the judge said, as hundreds of police stood guard outside the court.
Arisman drew international attention when he narrowly avoided capture by police commandos in April 2010 by climbing out of the third-floor window of a Bangkok hotel in front of the media.