2013 protesters sentenced

The Criminal Court yesterday sentenced 13 protesters from the now-defunct People’s Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC) to two years in jail as punishment for their attempt to violently obstruct the registration of party-list MP candidates in December 2013.

Their terms were commuted to 16-18 months depending on the severity of the crimes committed.

Led by Chanon Khanthong, the 13 defendants were found guilty of trespassing, criminal intimidation and violations of the 2007 organic law on the Election Commission (EC).

According to the indictment, they and a number of accomplices who have yet to be arrested used weapons — including glass balls, metal bolts and bricks — to attack security officers while forcing their way into Gymnasium 2 of the Bangkok Youth Centre (Thai-Japanese) in Din Daeng district of Bangkok on Dec 26, 2013.

Using a rubbish truck to break open…