Thaksin, a Thai criminal, is a Cambodian citizen
Thaksin is a Cambodian citizen: Cambodian prosecutor
December 8, 2009
The Nation
A Cambodian prosecutor told a Cambodia court Tuesday that former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra is a Cambodian citizen so his flight schedule could not be made public.
The prosecutor was showing to the court that it was illegal for a Thai engineer, Siwarak Chutipong, to ask for information of Thaksin's flight schedule from air controller staff.
The prosecutor said Thaksin is an advisor to the Cambodian government, he is regarded as a Cambodian citizen and his flight schedule information could not be disclosed although it is public information.
The prosecutor said the information was also related to the Cambodian security.
The prosecutor was showing to the court that it was illegal for a Thai engineer, Siwarak Chutipong, to ask for information of Thaksin's flight schedule from air controller staff.
The prosecutor said Thaksin is an advisor to the Cambodian government, he is regarded as a Cambodian citizen and his flight schedule information could not be disclosed although it is public information.
The prosecutor said the information was also related to the Cambodian security.
Spy cases raises tension between Cambodia, Thailand
The Associated Press
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia — A Thai man was ordered to serve seven years in prison for spying on Thailand's former prime minister while he was in Cambodia as a guest of the government, a case that threatens to worsen a diplomatic feud between the two neighbours.
The trial in the capital of Phnom Penh follows Cambodia's decision last month to name former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra its special economic adviser. The appointment and Thaksin's subsequent visit to Cambodia angered the government in Bangkok and resulted in a recall of ambassadors from both sides.
Thai national Siwarak Chothipong, an employee of the Cambodia Air Traffic Service, which manages flights in the country, was accused of stealing Thaksin's flight schedule before his Nov. 10 arrival and sending it to the Thai Embassy in Phnom Penh. Thaksin stayed five days, getting red-carpet treatment as he talked to Cambodian economists.
Siwarak, 31, was arrested Nov. 12 and charged with stealing information that could impact national security.
Municipal Court Judge Ke Sakhan ruled that Thaksin's flight information was confidential and sharing it was a breach of security protocol for dignitaries.
"Thaksin is an adviser to Cambodia's government and Cambodia has the obligation to provide him security," the judge said. He ordered Siwarak to pay a 10 million riel (US$2,500) fine and serve seven years in prison, the lowest possible for the spying charge, which carries a penalty of seven to 15 years behind bars.
Siwarak acknowledged earlier in court that he saw the flight schedule and passed the details on to Thai embassy First Secretary Kamrob Palawatwichai who was later expelled from the country. But he denied stealing the document.
"I took a look at the flight schedule and made a phone call to Kamrob about the flight schedule," Siwarak told the court. "But I didn't get a copy of the flight schedule and hand it over to anyone."
Two other employees from the Cambodia Air Traffic Service testified that Siwarak asked them about the flight schedule.
Thaksin went into self-imposed exile last year before a Thai court found him guilty of violating a conflict of interest law and sentenced him to two years in prison. He had served as prime minister from 2001 to 2006, when he was ousted in a military coup after being accused of corruption and showing disrespect to the monarchy.
Thaksin's supporters and opponents have repeatedly taken to the streets since then to spar over who has the right to rule the country, sometimes sparking violence.
Thaksin's visit to Cambodia led to allegations he was trying to ignite a new political crisis from across the border.
Critics, including Thailand's government, have portrayed Thaksin as a traitor for accepting the Cambodian appointment and have lambasted Cambodia for hosting him while he is a fugitive. Relations have already been roiled by several deadly skirmishes over the past year and a half over land surrounding the ancient Preah Vihear temple.
read more “Spy cases raises tension between Cambodia, Thailand”
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia — A Thai man was ordered to serve seven years in prison for spying on Thailand's former prime minister while he was in Cambodia as a guest of the government, a case that threatens to worsen a diplomatic feud between the two neighbours.
The trial in the capital of Phnom Penh follows Cambodia's decision last month to name former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra its special economic adviser. The appointment and Thaksin's subsequent visit to Cambodia angered the government in Bangkok and resulted in a recall of ambassadors from both sides.
Thai national Siwarak Chothipong, an employee of the Cambodia Air Traffic Service, which manages flights in the country, was accused of stealing Thaksin's flight schedule before his Nov. 10 arrival and sending it to the Thai Embassy in Phnom Penh. Thaksin stayed five days, getting red-carpet treatment as he talked to Cambodian economists.
Siwarak, 31, was arrested Nov. 12 and charged with stealing information that could impact national security.
Municipal Court Judge Ke Sakhan ruled that Thaksin's flight information was confidential and sharing it was a breach of security protocol for dignitaries.
"Thaksin is an adviser to Cambodia's government and Cambodia has the obligation to provide him security," the judge said. He ordered Siwarak to pay a 10 million riel (US$2,500) fine and serve seven years in prison, the lowest possible for the spying charge, which carries a penalty of seven to 15 years behind bars.
Siwarak acknowledged earlier in court that he saw the flight schedule and passed the details on to Thai embassy First Secretary Kamrob Palawatwichai who was later expelled from the country. But he denied stealing the document.
"I took a look at the flight schedule and made a phone call to Kamrob about the flight schedule," Siwarak told the court. "But I didn't get a copy of the flight schedule and hand it over to anyone."
Two other employees from the Cambodia Air Traffic Service testified that Siwarak asked them about the flight schedule.
Thaksin went into self-imposed exile last year before a Thai court found him guilty of violating a conflict of interest law and sentenced him to two years in prison. He had served as prime minister from 2001 to 2006, when he was ousted in a military coup after being accused of corruption and showing disrespect to the monarchy.
Thaksin's supporters and opponents have repeatedly taken to the streets since then to spar over who has the right to rule the country, sometimes sparking violence.
Thaksin's visit to Cambodia led to allegations he was trying to ignite a new political crisis from across the border.
Critics, including Thailand's government, have portrayed Thaksin as a traitor for accepting the Cambodian appointment and have lambasted Cambodia for hosting him while he is a fugitive. Relations have already been roiled by several deadly skirmishes over the past year and a half over land surrounding the ancient Preah Vihear temple.
CAMBODIA: Pepper Farmers Get Ready for their Champagne Moment
A woman dries Kampot peppercorns in the sun near Kampong Trach town, Kampot province, southern Cambodia. (Credit:Robert Carmichael/IPS)By Robert Carmichael
PHNOM PENH, Dec 8 (IPS) - Under a shady trellis of rice sacks in the province of Kampot in southern Cambodia, 42-year-old Nuon Yan tends his crop of pepper vines.
Small-scale farming is a tough occupation, with prices and weather unpredictable and the cost of inputs high. But Nuon Yan knows a good idea when he sees one. When he heard about an opportunity to double the money he was making from black pepper, he jumped at it.
That opportunity is to register the prized variety of pepper that he and neighbouring farmers grow – known as Kampot Pepper – for Geographical Indicator, or GI, status. Kampot pepper is highly regarded by some chefs in Europe and the United States as one of the world’s finest pepper varieties.
If the term GI sounds unfamiliar, the concept itself is much better understood, says Jean-Marie Brun, an advisor at GRET, a French non- governmental organisation involved in getting Kampot pepper its GI status.
The most famous GI product is champagne. In fact, says Brun, GI is what makes champagne champagne rather than sparkling wine. Unless bubbly is grown in a specific part of France to specific rules and meets a certain quality standard, it may not be marketed as champagne.
That, in a nutshell, is GI, and it will work exactly the same way with Kampot pepper. The added advantage is that Nuon Yan and the 130 other members of the newly formed Kampot Pepper Producers’ Association (KPPA) – most of whom are also farmers – decide on the rules and the quality standard.
Brun says any grower who meets the requirements can join the association, and once GI is registered it is protected under World Trade Organisation rules.
"The right to use the name Kampot pepper once it is registered belongs to anybody that complies with a certain number of requirements," says Brun. "The stakeholders decide on the delimitation of the area, how it should be produced and the quality criteria."
Brun explains that farmers like Nuon Yan, who currently earns 2.50 U.S. dollars per kilo for his crop, will likely double their income when GI status is confirmed.
Complying with GI does bring added costs, but Brun says these typically equate to five percent of the extra income. In the case of Kampot pepper, and because it is early days for the KPPA, the costs of compliance are higher than that – currently around 10 percent – but they will decline as more members join.
Farmers like Nuon Yan benefit as a direct result of providing a product that consumers can buy safe in the knowledge that it has attained a certain quality standard and is what it claims to be. But that assurance is worth nothing unless someone ensures the members abide by their own standards.
That policing role is performed by the KPPA itself and an independent auditor. The KPPA is based in a small room in a shady grove five kilometres outside the provincial town of Kampong Trach in Kampot province. KPPA deputy head, En Trou, explains that growers have had a tough time in the past.
"Because they were not able to market Kampot pepper and didn’t have much money, the farmers faced many problems trying to earn enough to support their families," he says. "We also found that other growers were using the name Kampot pepper on their products."
But the advent of GI status, which will be confirmed in a matter of weeks, should start to resolve that. En Trou is confident that the future will be brighter for the association’s members, who currently harvest 14 tons of pepper annually.
"I am hopeful that in another five years we will have increased the number of producers to 150, and be selling between 20 and 30 tons a year," he says.
The man in charge on the government side is Var Roth San, who heads the intellectual property department at the Ministry of Commerce. Among the powers wielded by his department is the power to revoke the GI registration for Kampot pepper should the independent auditor find the KPPA is shirking its role to maintain standards.
"The association must form control within themselves to keep the quality good," he points out. "Therefore the price of GI products increases. If [there is] no control within themselves or by an international organisation, who will believe [that their product is high quality]?"
Var Roth San says getting GI status for Kampot pepper links directly with the strategy of government and donors to reduce widespread rural poverty. Around 80 percent of the country’s people live in rural areas, and more than half the eight million-strong labour force is involved in agriculture, so boosting rural livelihoods is critical for Cambodia.
"We want to create jobs, and we want our poor to get more money from their work in the rural area," he says. "GI law is one thing that will help the poor in the rural areas."
Although GI for Kampot pepper will benefit at most a couple of hundred farmers, the government plans to roll out the initiative for other products too, including palm sugar from Kampong Speu province and honey from the northeastern province of Ratanakkiri. But Kampot pepper will be the first.
Back on his one-fifth hectare pepper plot in Kampot province, Nuon Yan explains that his rice crop has to date generated more income than the pepper he harvests from his 300 pepper vines. Last year he made around 400 U.S dollars from selling 150 kilograms of pepper.
But he is clearly banking on Kampot pepper’s potential.
"If I can sell my pepper for a higher price, then it is possible that one day I could earn more from pepper than from rice," he says.
Nuon Yan has an eye on that future possibility. He will deposit some of the extra money he will earn in the bank and put the rest towards buying more pepper vines. He and the other members of the association are banking that Kampot pepper’s GI status will result in a more secure future for them and their families.
China says investigating Uighur asylum case
BEIJING (Reuters) - China's Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday it was investigating an apparent asylum request lodged with the the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees by a group of Uighurs in Cambodia.
Two of the 22 Uighurs who sought asylum through the UNHCR offices in Phnom Penh say they witnessed security forces killing and beating Uighur demonstrators in the far western Chinese city of Urumqi on July 5, the Uighur American Association said.
On that day, demonstrations in Urumqi by Uighurs protesting against fatal attacks on Uighur workers in South China turned into a violent rampage in which 197 people died, mostly Han Chinese. Han Chinese crowds launched revenge attacks against Uighur neighbourhoods two days later.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said officials were investigating reports of the asylum claims.
"Related departments are at present looking into the situation," she told a regular news briefing in Beijing.
"We have a good cooperative relationship with Cambodia on every level," Jiang added. "We hope the international community can enhance cooperation in the fight against terrorism."
China often accuses militants of formenting ethnic unrest in Xinjiang, though Beijing has provided no evidence so far that the 22 Uighurs in Cambodia are connected with such groups.
The UNHCR in Phnom Penh declined comment.
But a foreign human rights activist, who asked not to be identified, told Reuters the group would submit asylum applications to both the Cambodian government and the UNHCR.
Uighurs are a Muslim, Turkic speaking ethnic group native to Xinjiang, many of whom chafe under Chinese rule.
Refugees who flee China face a dangerous crossing over the often mountainous and bleak border, and risk repatriation while still in neighbouring countries.
In October, an ethnic Mongolian school principal, Batzangaa, was abruptly brought back to China by Chinese police while he and his family were appealing the UNHCR's initial rejection of their refugee application in Ulan Bator. He is still in detention.
(Reporting by Ben Blanchard; Additional reporting by Ek Madra in Phnom Penh; Editing by Ron Popeski)
read more “China says investigating Uighur asylum case”
Two of the 22 Uighurs who sought asylum through the UNHCR offices in Phnom Penh say they witnessed security forces killing and beating Uighur demonstrators in the far western Chinese city of Urumqi on July 5, the Uighur American Association said.
On that day, demonstrations in Urumqi by Uighurs protesting against fatal attacks on Uighur workers in South China turned into a violent rampage in which 197 people died, mostly Han Chinese. Han Chinese crowds launched revenge attacks against Uighur neighbourhoods two days later.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said officials were investigating reports of the asylum claims.
"Related departments are at present looking into the situation," she told a regular news briefing in Beijing.
"We have a good cooperative relationship with Cambodia on every level," Jiang added. "We hope the international community can enhance cooperation in the fight against terrorism."
China often accuses militants of formenting ethnic unrest in Xinjiang, though Beijing has provided no evidence so far that the 22 Uighurs in Cambodia are connected with such groups.
The UNHCR in Phnom Penh declined comment.
But a foreign human rights activist, who asked not to be identified, told Reuters the group would submit asylum applications to both the Cambodian government and the UNHCR.
Uighurs are a Muslim, Turkic speaking ethnic group native to Xinjiang, many of whom chafe under Chinese rule.
Refugees who flee China face a dangerous crossing over the often mountainous and bleak border, and risk repatriation while still in neighbouring countries.
In October, an ethnic Mongolian school principal, Batzangaa, was abruptly brought back to China by Chinese police while he and his family were appealing the UNHCR's initial rejection of their refugee application in Ulan Bator. He is still in detention.
(Reporting by Ben Blanchard; Additional reporting by Ek Madra in Phnom Penh; Editing by Ron Popeski)
Thai mother to seek royal pardon for son sentenced to jail in Cambodia
BANGKOK, Dec. 8 (Xinhua) -- The mother of a Thai man, who was sentenced to seven years in Cambodia on Tuesday, plans to seek a royal pardon for her son.
Mrs. Simarak Na Nakhon Phanom said she decided not to make an appeal since she is worried that the appeal process will take time, Thai News Agency reported.
The Phnom Penh Municipal Court sentenced Thai engineer Siwarak Chutipong to seven years in jail on Tuesday.
Siwarak, who worked as an engineer at Cambodia Air Traffic Services Co., Ltd., has been arrested in Cambodia on Nov. 11, according to an arrest warrant of prosecutor of Phnom Penh Municipality Court.
Cambodia had charged Siwarak of having had confidential information affecting Cambodia's national security.
Mrs. Simarak Na Nakhon Phanom said she decided not to make an appeal since she is worried that the appeal process will take time, Thai News Agency reported.
The Phnom Penh Municipal Court sentenced Thai engineer Siwarak Chutipong to seven years in jail on Tuesday.
Siwarak, who worked as an engineer at Cambodia Air Traffic Services Co., Ltd., has been arrested in Cambodia on Nov. 11, according to an arrest warrant of prosecutor of Phnom Penh Municipality Court.
Cambodia had charged Siwarak of having had confidential information affecting Cambodia's national security.
Mother of sentenced Thai engineer will not appeal Cambodian court verdict
BANGKOK, Dec 8 (TNA) – The mother of the detained Thai engineer found guilty in a Cambodian court opted to not appeal the verdict, saying she will seek a royal pardon with the help of the opposition Puea Thai Party.
Speaking by phone from Phnom Penh to Puea Thai party headquarters after hearing the verdict, Simarak Na Nakhon Panom, mother of Siwarak Chutipong, the Thai national jailed for seven years and fined Bt 100,000 (US$3,000) on espionage charges, said she would not appeal the verdict out of concern that it would delay the court case.
Mr Siwarak was convicted of passing allegedly confidential flight information relating to ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra’s visit to Phnom Penh last month.
His mother said she would ask her lawyer to seek a royal pardon in an attempt to free her son as soon as possible. She also urged two former Thai prime ministers--Thaksin Shinawatra and Chavalit Yongchaiyudh--to help secure her son’s release.
"I decided to seek help from the opposition party for fear that obstacles may arise through Thai foreign ministry channels as the relations between the two countries are in trouble," said Mrs Simarak.
She reiterated that her son’s case should not be linked to political issues and called on Kamrob Palawatwichai, the then first secretary of the Thai Embassy in Phnom Penh, to show his responsibility as he had asked her son to pass on the information.
The Cambodian court said the flight schedule of Mr Thaksin was considered confidential as Mr Thaksin was appointed an economic adviser of the Cambodian government by King Norodom Sihamoni.
As Mr Thaksin is a prominent figure, sharing information of his flight details to the Thai embassy is tantamount to sharing Cambodian confidential information to Thailand.
The six-hour trial called the defendant and four witnesses to testify, including two Cambodian colleagues of Mr Siwarak and two police officers. Mr Siwarak admitted he inform the Thai diplomat verbally but didn’t pass on copy of the flight schedule.
His two colleagues said the flight schedule was not important information, but should not be shared with persons outside the company.
Mr Siwarak’s lawyer argued the flight information is not confidential and anyone in the company can view it and Siwarak didn’t know Thaksin was aboard that plane. The only thing he knew was that a VIP was on the plane.
Moreover, Cambodian media had earlier reported Mr Thaksin’s arrival.
Thai and Cambodian relations were downgraded after Cambodia appointed Mr Thaksin as an economic adviser and refused to extradite him to Thailand. enewsMr Thaksin was sentenced in absentia to two years in prison for violating a conflict-of-interest law.
Speaking by phone from Phnom Penh to Puea Thai party headquarters after hearing the verdict, Simarak Na Nakhon Panom, mother of Siwarak Chutipong, the Thai national jailed for seven years and fined Bt 100,000 (US$3,000) on espionage charges, said she would not appeal the verdict out of concern that it would delay the court case.
Mr Siwarak was convicted of passing allegedly confidential flight information relating to ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra’s visit to Phnom Penh last month.
His mother said she would ask her lawyer to seek a royal pardon in an attempt to free her son as soon as possible. She also urged two former Thai prime ministers--Thaksin Shinawatra and Chavalit Yongchaiyudh--to help secure her son’s release.
"I decided to seek help from the opposition party for fear that obstacles may arise through Thai foreign ministry channels as the relations between the two countries are in trouble," said Mrs Simarak.
She reiterated that her son’s case should not be linked to political issues and called on Kamrob Palawatwichai, the then first secretary of the Thai Embassy in Phnom Penh, to show his responsibility as he had asked her son to pass on the information.
The Cambodian court said the flight schedule of Mr Thaksin was considered confidential as Mr Thaksin was appointed an economic adviser of the Cambodian government by King Norodom Sihamoni.
As Mr Thaksin is a prominent figure, sharing information of his flight details to the Thai embassy is tantamount to sharing Cambodian confidential information to Thailand.
The six-hour trial called the defendant and four witnesses to testify, including two Cambodian colleagues of Mr Siwarak and two police officers. Mr Siwarak admitted he inform the Thai diplomat verbally but didn’t pass on copy of the flight schedule.
His two colleagues said the flight schedule was not important information, but should not be shared with persons outside the company.
Mr Siwarak’s lawyer argued the flight information is not confidential and anyone in the company can view it and Siwarak didn’t know Thaksin was aboard that plane. The only thing he knew was that a VIP was on the plane.
Moreover, Cambodian media had earlier reported Mr Thaksin’s arrival.
Thai and Cambodian relations were downgraded after Cambodia appointed Mr Thaksin as an economic adviser and refused to extradite him to Thailand. enewsMr Thaksin was sentenced in absentia to two years in prison for violating a conflict-of-interest law.
Thai Jailed In Cambodia Over Thaksin Flight Leak
December 8, 2009
The court said Siwarak Chutipongse, 31, had breached national security when he leaked the flight details to Thai diplomats ahead of Thaksin's visit to Cambodia last month.
Thaksin, who lives in exile after skipping bail last year ahead of a prison sentence for graft, caused a diplomatic uproar when he visited Cambodia to begin work as an economic adviser to its government.
The move was widely dismissed as a publicity stunt staged by Thaksin and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen to boost the billionaire's profile and discredit the Thai government.
"Thaksin is Cambodia's adviser, so the government of Cambodia has an obligation to protect his life," Judge Ke Sakhan said in reading the verdict. "If anything happens to him, we would be blamed and that could lead to rocky relations with Thailand."
Siwarak denied leaking the information and said he obtained the flight details because he wanted to know when his former prime minister would arrive.
PARDON SOUGHT
Chavanond Intarakomalasut, a senior Thai Foreign Ministry official, told reporters in Bangkok that the government would submit a formal request for Siriwak's pardon if he chose not to appeal.
His arrest on November 10 prompted Cambodia to take temporary control of Thai-operated Cambodia Air Traffic Services (CATS) and suspend all Thai expatriates at the company.
The ruling is likely to ramp up diplomatic tensions that reached boiling point when Cambodia refused to extradite Thaksin or recognise his conviction on the grounds that he was a victim of a vendetta by his political rivals.
The extradition snub and Cambodia's offer of a home and a job to Thaksin led to the recall and expulsion of diplomats and the freezing of bilateral agreements, including a pact to jointly develop untapped energy reserves in the Gulf of Thailand.
The downgrade of diplomatic ties has prompted concerns about a possible military confrontation along their disputed frontier and fears the border would be closed. Neither has happened.
If the border was closed, traders say Thailand's economy would suffer most because Cambodia imports more goods from Thailand, which relies on its neighbour for just 0.05 percent of total imports.
Sivarak gets 7-year jail term
Tue, December 8, 2009
The Nation
Thai engineer Sivarak Chutipong was sentenced to 7 years imprisonment and fined Bt 100,000 over the charged of spying on fugitive former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra's flight information, Thai television reported Tuesday.
His mother Simarak Na Nakhon Phnanom who was in Phnom Penh busted into tear as the court ruled the verdict.
Sivarak was ruled guilty in accordance with article 19 of the 2005 Archives Law which cover information on national security and social order.
The Cambodian Court issued the ruling at 4:30 pm.
Thai Foreign Ministry's deputy spokesman Thanee Thongpakdee said that the ruling will deliver the ruling on Sivarak Chutipong at 4.30pm Tuesday.
Thanee said Consular Department's Deputy Director General Maturotpochana Ittirong who attended the trial in Phnom Penh called him and informed of the information.
The Cambodian court started the trial at about 8.15am on Tuesday. Sivarak was charged of spying the flight plans of Thaksin in November.
A presiding judge started the trial with Sivarak's defending and testimonies of witnesses from both sides. Earlier reports speculated that the court is possibly giving the verdict today.
Sivarak , 31, an employee of the Cambodia Air Traffic Service which controlled air traffic in Cambodia, rejected an allegation that he sent the flight plans of Thaksin to Thai Embassy's First Secretary Kamrob Palawatwichai.
"I knew the first secretary only for about two years and rarely contacted him," he told the court.
On the day that Thaksin arrived in Phnom Penh, that diplomat telephoned him and asked whether it was true that Thaksin arrived in the Cambodian capital.
"I am authorised to know that kind of information, so I checked it with a Khmer staff who confirmed Thaksin had arrived. That staff even gave me a copy of the flight plan," he said.
Sivarak said he did not pass on the copy to Kamrob.
Two other employees from the Cambodia Air Traffic Service testified that Siwarak asked them about the flight schedule.
Sivrak, was taken into court under heavy security.
Presiding judge Ke Sakhan of Phnom Penh Municipal Court said Sivarak was being tried on charges linked to "national security and public safety" related to offences committed in the capital.
The defendant's mother, Simarak na Nakhon Panom, and Thai diplomats were seen attending the trial.
The arrest took place on the second day of Thaksin's visit to Phnom Penh as an economic advisor to Cambodian premier Hun Sen and his government. The visit deepened a diplomatic crisis between both countries, following recalling of their ambassadors and first secretaries.
Cambodia expelled the first secretary of Thailand's embassy in Phnom Penh after alleging that Siwarak had passed information to the diplomat. Thailand retaliated hours later.
The feud was worsened after Phnom Penh refused to extradite Thaksin who has runaway from two-year jail term for corruption and abuse of power in Thailand.
Hun Sen announced the refusal even before forwarding Thailand's extradition request to its court for consideration.
read more “Sivarak gets 7-year jail term”
The Nation
Thai engineer Sivarak Chutipong was sentenced to 7 years imprisonment and fined Bt 100,000 over the charged of spying on fugitive former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra's flight information, Thai television reported Tuesday.
His mother Simarak Na Nakhon Phnanom who was in Phnom Penh busted into tear as the court ruled the verdict.
Sivarak was ruled guilty in accordance with article 19 of the 2005 Archives Law which cover information on national security and social order.
The Cambodian Court issued the ruling at 4:30 pm.
Thai Foreign Ministry's deputy spokesman Thanee Thongpakdee said that the ruling will deliver the ruling on Sivarak Chutipong at 4.30pm Tuesday.
Thanee said Consular Department's Deputy Director General Maturotpochana Ittirong who attended the trial in Phnom Penh called him and informed of the information.
The Cambodian court started the trial at about 8.15am on Tuesday. Sivarak was charged of spying the flight plans of Thaksin in November.
A presiding judge started the trial with Sivarak's defending and testimonies of witnesses from both sides. Earlier reports speculated that the court is possibly giving the verdict today.
Sivarak , 31, an employee of the Cambodia Air Traffic Service which controlled air traffic in Cambodia, rejected an allegation that he sent the flight plans of Thaksin to Thai Embassy's First Secretary Kamrob Palawatwichai.
"I knew the first secretary only for about two years and rarely contacted him," he told the court.
On the day that Thaksin arrived in Phnom Penh, that diplomat telephoned him and asked whether it was true that Thaksin arrived in the Cambodian capital.
"I am authorised to know that kind of information, so I checked it with a Khmer staff who confirmed Thaksin had arrived. That staff even gave me a copy of the flight plan," he said.
Sivarak said he did not pass on the copy to Kamrob.
Two other employees from the Cambodia Air Traffic Service testified that Siwarak asked them about the flight schedule.
Sivrak, was taken into court under heavy security.
Presiding judge Ke Sakhan of Phnom Penh Municipal Court said Sivarak was being tried on charges linked to "national security and public safety" related to offences committed in the capital.
The defendant's mother, Simarak na Nakhon Panom, and Thai diplomats were seen attending the trial.
The arrest took place on the second day of Thaksin's visit to Phnom Penh as an economic advisor to Cambodian premier Hun Sen and his government. The visit deepened a diplomatic crisis between both countries, following recalling of their ambassadors and first secretaries.
Cambodia expelled the first secretary of Thailand's embassy in Phnom Penh after alleging that Siwarak had passed information to the diplomat. Thailand retaliated hours later.
The feud was worsened after Phnom Penh refused to extradite Thaksin who has runaway from two-year jail term for corruption and abuse of power in Thailand.
Hun Sen announced the refusal even before forwarding Thailand's extradition request to its court for consideration.
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