Thaksin, the former Prime Minister of Thailand, has been released from prison
Thaksin Shinawatra, the billionaire former premier of Thailand, was released from jail on parole and greeted by cheering crowds on Monday, eight months after a court mandated his prison sentence, which he had attempted to evade with an extended hospital stay.
The 76-year-old tycoon reshaped and controlled Thai politics for 25 years, yet his influence has diminished recently due to his imprisonment and the Pheu Thai Party’s poorest election results in history earlier this year.
Upon leaving Bangkok’s Klong Prem prison, Thaksin, with his hair closely cropped and wearing a loose white shirt, smiled as he embraced family members. Among them was his daughter and protégé, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, who had been removed from her position as prime minister by a court just ten days prior to his incarceration.
Numerous supporters, many adorned in his party’s distinctive red hue, assembled to welcome him upon his release, chanting, “We love Thaksin.”
When a reporter inquired about his feelings, Thaksin lifted his hands above his head and expressed that he was “relieved.”
I decided to enter a state of hibernation. “I can’t remember anything now,” he stated.
Powerful Return from Exile
After 15 years in self-exile, Thaksin returned to Thailand in 2023 to serve an eight-year sentence for conflicts of interest and abuse of power during his tenure as prime minister from 2001 to 2006, coinciding with the election of a party ally as premier by parliament on the same day.
However, without having to spend even a single night in prison, he was moved to the VIP wing of a hospital, citing issues with his heart and experiencing chest pains. His sentence was subsequently reduced to one year by the king, and Thaksin remained in the hospital for six months prior to being paroled.
The Supreme Court, however, determined that he and his doctors had prolonged his hospital stay through minor and unnecessary surgeries and that he should serve time in prison once more.
During his exile and much of his return, the polarizing tycoon had a significant influence on Thailand’s turbulent politics, serving as the catalyst for successive populist governments led or controlled by the influential Shinawatra family.
However, the ousting of Paetongtarn, the sixth premier associated with the family to be removed through courts or coups, marked the beginning of a political reckoning for Thaksin. The Pheu Thai government fell, and ally-turned-adversary Anutin Charnvirakul was appointed as premier just days prior to Thaksin’s imprisonment.
‘HE MUST PROCEED WITH CAUTION’
Thaksin’s release may aid in revitalizing his previously dominant Pheu Thai, which currently holds a junior position in Anutin’s coalition following a significant electoral loss in February, according to Titipol Phakdeewanich, a political scientist at Ubon Ratchathani University. “However, he must proceed with caution,” Titipol remarked. He pushed his luck too far. It would be preferable for him to remain behind the scenes. One must ponder how long he can remain in the background given his personality.
Thaksin must wear an electronic ankle monitor until his sentence concludes in September.
Supporter Rommanee Nakano, 76, expressed that he should never have been incarcerated. “He is an excellent person,” she stated outside the prison. Everything he did was for the benefit of the people. He simply desired for the people to be adequately nourished and to have sufficient means to sustain themselves.
