Sondhi guilty but gets bail
Sondhi Limthongkul gestures in court yesterday.
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The Criminal Court yesterday sentenced media tycoon Sondhi Limthongkul to two years in jail following his conviction for libel against former deputy transport minister Phumtham Wechayachai.
The court battle centred on Sondhi's remarks as part of his crusade against the Thaksin Shinawatra government.After the verdict, Sondhi sought and received Bt200,000 bail pending his appellate review. Emerging from the courtroom, he said he respected the judicial decision, although he would appeal it on grounds that some of his comments might have been lifted out of context. "I have been to court hundreds of times as a defendant, so I am not worrying and will duly appeal my verdict," he said. The court found Sondhi guilty of making malicious comments aired and published by media outlets under his Manager Group. In his talk show, broadcast live from Udon Thani in November, 2004, Sondhi portrayed Phumtham as an "ex-Communist who has no loyalty to the monarchy and is not an adherent of democracy". He also linked Phutham to a Swedish-based website, manusaya.com, which circulated comments deemed offensive to the Royal Family. The court ruled in favour of the prosecution, which proved that Sondhi's remarks could not be substantiated. Although the prosecution listed Sondhi and nine accomplices as defendants, the court penalised Sondhi and ordered the show's broadcaster - ThaiDay Dot Com Co - to pay a fine of Bt200,000 and destroy all VCDs and DVDs of the show.
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