Dean’s firm acted for Thaksin Siniwatra, the former Prime Minister of Thailand. The Prime Minister was ousted in a military coup after winning three consecutive national elections. Although he was forced into exile, Mr. Siniwatra’s supporters in Thailand continued to back him and maintain the democratic movement that he originally inspired when he came to power. Mr. Siniwatra’s supporters are known as the “Red Shirts”.
Dean’s firm was retained to publicly defend Mr. Siniwatra and the Red Shirt movement. At the time that the firm was engaged, Mr. Siniwatra’s reputation had been severely maligned by his political opponents- the so-called “Yellow Shirts” and their political party that held office after the coup.
Dean co-managed a team of Thai and international experts who provided sophisticated technical knowledge concerning the relevant historical events. This base of knowledge was used to mount a case in the media on behalf of Mr. Siniwatra and the Red Shirts.
At the same time, Dean spent significant time in Bangkok investigating the circumstances surrounding the killing of approximately 80 Red Shirt protesters and several international journalists. The killings took place during a prolonged and massive protest during which thousands of Red Shirts occupied Bangkok’s key financial district. In the end, the Thai army launched a violent crackdown that resulted in the suspicious deaths.
Dean worked intensively with a Thai investigative team to uncover compelling evidence that the Thai military had systematically deployed highly trained snipers to assassinate the protesters and the journalists. Dean’s firm then secured written statements from all eye witnesses and informed sources. In conjunction with this process, Dean worked closely with a leading international criminal lawyer to prepare a well-documented complaint to the International Criminal Court. The complaint alleged that the ruling Thai party and the Thai military- who stand in firm opposition to Mr. Siniwatra and the Red Shirts- committed crimes against humanity in the course of the Bangkok protests.