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Agence France-Presse

Thailand’s most prominent opposition Red Shirt leader was back behind bars on Tuesday after a court ruled that he had breached bail conditions by criticising the junta during a television show.
The grassroots Red Shirt movement is loyal to the ousted government of Yingluck Shinawatra and her brother Thaksin whose administrations were both toppled by military coups, the latest in May 2014.
Since then both Yingluck and Red Shirt leaders have been slapped with a slew of legal cases that have kept them bound up in the courts and facing lengthy jail spells.
On Tuesday morning Bangkok’s Criminal Court jailed Jatuporn Prompan, the most outspoken of the Red Shirt leaders.
In a statement the court said Jatuporn had breached bail conditions by being “sarcastic” about the work of the junta.
Thai junta airs propaganda videos to show detainees treated well
“The suspect went on a television programme and implicated other people and caused damage to their dignity and reputation with harsh words,” the statement said.
The bail conditions stem from a separate ongoing terrorism prosecution Jatuporn faces over his role in large, sometimes violent pro-democracy demonstrations in 2010 that were eventually quashed by soldiers resulting in dozens of protester deaths.

Speaking to reporters before the hearing Jatuporn greeted the prospect of jail with dark humour.
“I have been imprisoned twice so if today the court revokes my bail and sends me to prison I have prepared my personal stuff, although I have only brought my sneakers, not socks,” he said.
The remark was a reference to the recent death in custody of a suspect who police said hung himself using a sock.
Thai police warn of Bangkok bomb attacks, but don’t reveal who the plotters are
The military says it was forced to seize power to curb political corruption and bring much-needed stability after a decade of political turmoil between Shinawatra supporters and their opponents.
But critics say the putsch is an attempt to ensure the Shinawatras are never in power again.

The Shinawatras are adored by rural supporters in Thailand’s northeast but loathed by a military-allied elite based in Bangkok who accuse them of corruption and nepotism.
Shinawatra parties have won every poll in the past decade.
Thailand’s generals have clamped down on politics and severely curbed free expression since their 2014 power grab, jailing scores of critics of the government and monarchy - often for comments posted on social media.
Convictions under the country’s draconian royal defamation law have also surged.
Analysts say anxiety over 88-year-old King Bhumibol Adulyadej’s ailing health has exacerbated the past decade of political conflict, as competing elites wrestle for influence.


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Thailand's Junta

Thai 'Red Shirt' leader back behind bars after TV show appearance

(160115) -- BANGKOK, Jan. 15, 2016 (Xinhua) -- Former Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra arrives for her hearing at the Supreme Court in Bangkok, Thailand, Jan. 15, 2016. Yingluck has been alleged of failing to stop corruption in the rice program and incurring up to 17 billion U.S. dollars in operational losses. (Xinhua)

epa02156606 Thai army troops scramble as a tear gas grenade is thrown back at them during clashes with anti government protesters in Bangkok, Thailand, on 14 May 2010. Tear gas and rubber bullets were fired on protesters as troops moved on so-called red shirts at several checkpoints set up near their main encampment in the central Rajprasong business district, after a series of violent clashes left at least one person dead and nine injured overnight. EPA/RUNGROJ YONGRIT

Jatuporn Prompan, the leader of the Thai opposition ‘Red Shirt’, is back in jail. File photo: AFP

Thai police warn of Bangkok bomb attacks, but don’t reveal who the plotters are

Experts investigate the Erawan shrine at the site of a deadly blast in central Bangkok in 2015. Police in Thailand on Tuesday said they have increased security at major landmarks in the capital Bangkok, at airports and in surrounding provinces following reports of bomb plots. File photo: Reuters

epa05476253 A Thai forensic police officer wearing a protective suit arrives to inspect a blast scene next to a portrait of Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej and Queen Sirikit after bombs exploded at the clock tower in the center of Hua Hin city, Thailand, 12 August 2016. A series of bomb attacks in the resort city of Hua Hin killed at least two people and injured more than 20 people including foreign tourists. EPA/RUNGROJ YONGRIT

A member of military personnel stops the media from taking pictures at the Erawan shrine, the site of a deadly blast, in central Bangkok, Thailand, August 18, 2015. Thai authorities said on Tuesday they were looking for a suspect seen on closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage near the renowned shrine where a bomb blast killed 22 people, including nine foreigners from several Asian countries. REUTERS/Athit Perawongmetha

Ailing Thai king's health 'not stable' after haemodialysis treatment, palace says

Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej in 2012. Doctors placed the ailing monarch on a ventilator on the weekend, the palace said adding that the 88-year-old’s health was ‘not stable’. File photo: AP

epa04501781 A Royal Household Bureau handout photo made available on 24 November 2014 shows Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej (R) talks to Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha (L) during the two new deputy ministers sworn in ceremony at Siriraj Hospital in Bangkok, Thailand, 24 November 2014. King Bhumibol, 86-year-old, the world's longest-reigning monarch has been residing in Siriraj Hospital as he is suffering from a variety of ailments. The king is revered in Thailand, where he is seen as a unifying figure and above political conflict. EPA/ROYAL HOUSEHOLD BUREAU / HANDOUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY/NO SALES

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