Thai national Siwarak Chothipong is escorted by Cambodian police at the Phnom Penh municipal court. He has been convicted and sentenced to seven years in prison for spying on fugitive former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra during his visit to Cambodia. (AFP/Tang Chhin Sothy)By Heng Reaksmey, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
08 December 2009
Phnom Penh Municipal Court on Tuesday sentenced a Thai engineer to seven years in prison and a fine of 10 million riel, or $2,500, on charges related to spying.
In a hearing held under tight security, Siwarak Chothipong, 31, was found guilty under the country’s national archives law, which prohibits the distribution of documents related to national security, as his mother, who was present, wept at the verdict.
Siwarak was arrested on Nov. 11 after allegedly passing flight information on Prime Minister Hun Sen and ousted Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra to Thai Embassy officials in Phnom Penh.
He is at the center of an ongoing diplomatic row between Cambodian and Thailand, following the hiring of Thaksin as Hun Sen’s economic adviser. He worked for the Thai-owned Cambodian Air Traffic Service, which is in charge of air traffic control.
Cambodian government lawyer Phal Chandara called the decision “fair.” Siwarak’s lawyer, Khieu Sambor, declined to comment.
A Thai Embassy official said there was no plan to appeal the decision, but Thai government officials will later seek Siwarak’s pardon through official channels.
In a hearing held under tight security, Siwarak Chothipong, 31, was found guilty under the country’s national archives law, which prohibits the distribution of documents related to national security, as his mother, who was present, wept at the verdict.
Siwarak was arrested on Nov. 11 after allegedly passing flight information on Prime Minister Hun Sen and ousted Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra to Thai Embassy officials in Phnom Penh.
He is at the center of an ongoing diplomatic row between Cambodian and Thailand, following the hiring of Thaksin as Hun Sen’s economic adviser. He worked for the Thai-owned Cambodian Air Traffic Service, which is in charge of air traffic control.
Cambodian government lawyer Phal Chandara called the decision “fair.” Siwarak’s lawyer, Khieu Sambor, declined to comment.
A Thai Embassy official said there was no plan to appeal the decision, but Thai government officials will later seek Siwarak’s pardon through official channels.
11 comments:
Thailand, running out of patience, will soon retaliate by taking full control over Preah Vihea. The two armies will clash. Hun Sen will be looking for a peaceful end. But it will be too late.
Thailand will never have peace if they want to take over Preah Vihear. The only way for Thais to avoid misery is to draw their troops out of Preah Vihear.
Thailand will never dear try to take over Preah Vihear. Their soldiers tried to test the rack tag Khmer soldiers twice already but with no luck. Cambodian people will never allow that to happen.
idiot KI media, you got nothing to do but just talk about on thai guy over and over. If you are thinking about Cambodian, you should talk about thai brutal our peopls. Stop do it idiot
I agree that Thai brutal our people from time to time, but if look at how much Hun Xen has brutal our own people and destruction of our country, corruption, landgrabbing, giving eastern part of Cambodia and our natural resource to Viet thief, stealing votes, oppress journalists, silence opposition party and the list go on, we Cambodain have biggest threat not from Thai but our own government. Laie and gentlement we Khmer must wake-up Hun Xen use this opportunity to propagand all us to support him of going into war with Thai, so he can gain popularity in order to avoid from going answer the khmer rough tribunal prosecutions, this mad man has use many dirty tricks on khmer people in the past, we must stop support him or our country will be ruine.
AH SIEM WILL NEVER TAKE,OR THEY CAN TRY ,BUT THEY WILL NEVER HAVE PREAH VIHEAR..........PRASAT PREAH VIHEAR BELOINGS TO THE KINGDOM OF CAMBODIA............THE WORLD KNOWS IT........THAILAND IS JUAT A FUCKING BUNCH OF STUPID FUCKING BITCHES RUNNING AROUND WITH THERE DICKS IN THERE MOUTH...............THAILAND BELONGS TO THE KINGDOM OF CAMBODIA................FUCK AH SIEM
Ah Chor Siam niss nov te Chhleuy teat..?
Cambodian authority must track down and catch those who kept asking khmer people to go up and cutting down the trees for them...1> they must start with border patrol police chief..!
Corruptions only weaken the country, cambodia lost so much lands because of these things...!
Thai spy should be sent to death penalty so his Thai Mom can understand the Khmer boy's Mom feeling when her son got shot and burned alive by the Thai junta.
Cambodian authority must crackdown and catch those people who lure khmer people to go up"Dangrek Mt." and cutting down Trees for them...
Post a Comment