AI In-Brief

Thailand News in Brief

Thai PBS World

Thailand and the world, every day

AI can make mistakes. Please double-check.

Winyat Chatmontree: Thaksin and the red shirts’ legal defender

20 Sept 12:04 Key points summarised by AI

Winyat Chatmontree is a prominent Thai lawyer, serving as the long-trusted legal counsel for former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and the powerful Shinawatra family.
He recently secured an acquittal for Thaksin on a lese majeste charge but subsequently failed to prevent a Supreme Court ruling that ordered Thaksin to serve a one-year prison term.
Winyat earned the moniker 'red-shirt lawyer' by dedicating himself to defending the red-shirt movement's leaders and followers against numerous civil and criminal cases stemming from political conflicts.
His career path shifted from aspiring public prosecutor or judge to a defense lawyer, driven by a desire to combat social inequality and injustice, particularly after the 2006 military coup.

Today 14:58 Key points summarised by AI

Thailand's government will launch the "Chainat-Pasak-Gulf" water diversion canal project in fiscal year 2027, a seven-year mega-infrastructure initiative.
This permanent structural solution aims to mitigate recurrent central plains flooding by diverting water from the Chao Phraya River directly into the Gulf of Thailand, significantly reducing flow to major cities like Ayutthaya and Bangkok.
Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul justifies the long-term investment as a means to reduce future damages and fiscal burdens, contrasting it with the 40-50 billion baht spent annually on short-term flood relief.
Concurrently, the Prime Minister instructed officials to expand drainage capacity into the Tha Chin River and swiftly remove water hyacinths to improve immediate flood management.