BANGKOK: Thailand’s former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra is included in a royal pardon for prisoners and his parole will end on Sunday (Aug 18), his lawyer Winyat Chartmontri told Reuters on Saturday (Aug 17).
According to a report by Thai-language newspaper Matichon, the royal pardon will immediately free Thaksin from his commuted sentence for corruption cases.
He is currently on parole after his sentence was royally commuted to one year, from eight, almost a year ago.
He was granted parole earlier in 2024 and due to walk free on Aug 31.
The King granted amnesty for prisoners, detainees and those on parole to offer them a new opportunity to contribute to society, according to a statement on the Royal Gazette website on Aug 17.
Thaksin is among about 7,500 on parole who were released, according to Matichon.
Paetongtarn Shinawatra, his youngest daughter, on Aug 16 won a parliamentary vote to become Thailand’s new prime minister.
She was picked after the country’s Constitutional Court dismissed Srettha Thavisin, who is a member of the same Pheu Thai party, in an ethics violation case. - Bloomberg, Reuters
