Thai govt to form task forces to track wanted protest leaders

The beleaguered Thai government today said it would set up a dozen task forces to track 19 top protest leaders, including their chief Suthep Thaugsugan, "wanted" for violating the state of emergency.
The defiant leaders said the move will not affect their months-long campaign for the ouster of embattled premier Yingluck Shinawatra and for political and electoral reforms.
The Criminal Court yesterday approved the government's request for arrest warrants against protest leaders and said there was "sufficient evidence" to confirm that they had violated the emergency decree imposed in Bangkok in nearby areas ahead of disputed snap polls on February 2.

The leaders could be detained till the state of emergency is lifted, the court said.
Labour Minister Chalerm Yoobamrung said he would set up 12 task forces to track and arrest 19 leaders of the anti-government People's Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC) who are "wanted" under arrest warrants.
Each task force would include a police commissioner and deputy commissioner, said Chalerm, the director of the Centre for Maintaining Peace and Order.

The court said 18 witnesses and evidence, especially video CDs, provided enough grounds to suspect that 19 leaders, including PDRC secretary-general Suthep, had collaborated, instigated or supported actions that caused emergency situations.

If police failed to make arrests within a year after the warrants were approved, the court may summon the officers for questioning, and may revoke the warrants.
A PDRC leader, also facing the arrest, said they would appeal against the arrest warrants and that the court's decision "will have no effect on the operations of the PDRC".
"We announced clearly when the summons came out that we will not flee but we cannot turn ourselves in because we must fight against a government of tyrants," Bangkok Post quoted Sathit Wongnongtoey as saying.