Thai junta asserts itself, banning ex-minister from politics over rice deals
By Aukkarapon Niyomyat BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand's military-appointed legislature banned a former minister from office on Friday over corrupt rice export deals, months after former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra was impeached for negligence over a rice-pledging scheme. Since taking power in a May 22 coup, the junta has actively pursued cases against members of the former administration. It also detained hundreds of activists and politicians linked to the Yingluck government in the weeks and months following the takeover, later releasing them. Boonsong Teriyaphirom, commerce minister in Yingluck's government, was banned from politics for five years by the National Legislative Assembly. "The NLA has voted to impeach Boonsong Teriyaphirom," assembly president Pornpetch Wichitcholachai said on Friday. Yingluck was removed from office days before the coup that overthrew the remnants of her government. The army has said intervention was necessary to avoid further bloodshed after months of street protests aimed at ousting Yingluck. Poom Sarapol, Boonsong's former deputy commerce minister, and Manas Soiploy, a former director-general of the Department of Foreign Trade, were also banned from office. The case was brought to the NLA by Thailand's National Anti-Corruption Commission which accused Boonsong's team of fabricating deals with Chinese firms in 2013. The Thai government said at the time it had sold 1.2 million tonnes of rice from its stockpiles to China to reduce stocks. But the NACC said the rice was sold locally and not exported, as claimed by the then-government. It said it was sold to China-based Guangdong Stationery & Sporting Goods Imp. & Exp. Corp. and Hainan Grain and Oil Industrial Trading Company, which in turn sold it back to Thailand's Siam Indica, a rice trading company. The two Chinese firms were not acting on behalf of the Chinese government, the NACC had said. Boonsong and his former team face further, criminal charges over the same deals. If found guilty, they could be jailed for life. In January, the NLA impeached Yingluck for negligence over a costly rice-pledging scheme that built up massive rice stockpiles and distorted markets. The NLA accused Yingluck of failing to stem losses from the scheme and banned her from political office for five years. The ruling junta, known as the National Council for Peace and Order, has said it has no plans to revive the rice-subsidy scheme. (Writing by Kaweewit Kaewjinda; Editing by Amy Sawitta Lefevre and Nick Macfie)
