Jailed former Thai PM Thaksin to be released tomorrow
JAILED former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra will be released from hospital detention tomorrow, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin said.
Billionaire political heavyweight Thaksin, 74, who was Thailand’s prime minister from 2001 to 2006, has been in detention since August after making a dramatic homecoming from 15 years of self-exile overseas to avoid prison for a conflict of interest.
He had his eight-year jail term commuted to a year by the king after his return and has served six months in hospital detention due to an undisclosed health condition.
Thaksin was granted parole earlier this week, but it was uncertain until today when he would be freed. Tomorrow is the first day of his parole eligibility.
“It will be on the 18th,” Srettha told reporters today, adding that he did not know the details and that “everything would be in accordance to the law.”
Despite being granted parole, Thaksin could face further legal troubles as public prosecutors are considering charging him for insulting the monarchy during a 2015 media interview.
Thaksin’s return last year coincided with ally and political newcomer Srettha being chosen as prime minister on the same day, adding to speculation that both developments were part of a behind-the-scenes deal between Thaksin and his powerful enemies in Thailand’s royalist-military establishment.
Thaksin’s allies and the government, led by the Shinawatra-backed Pheu Thai Party, have dismissed that. – Reuters Feb 17, 2024
