BANGKOK: A top Thai court is set to rule next month whether former premier Thaksin Shinawatra (pic) effectively served a one-year prison term that he spent in a hospital, with an unfavourable verdict potentially sending the ruling party’s de facto leader back to jail.
The Supreme Court’s Criminal Division for Persons Holding Political Positions will deliver its verdict at 10am on Sept 9, following the conclusion of a weeks-long trial that ended on Wednesday (July 30), according to Thaksin’s lawyer Winyat Chatmontree.
The case centres around Thaksin’s controversial stay in Bangkok’s police hospital after his 2023 return to Thailand, following 15 years in exile.
The two-time former prime minister didn’t spend a single day of his royally-commuted sentence for corruption in prison, but was instead lodged in the hospital for various illnesses before being released on parole.
Winyat declined to say whether the court could send Thaksin back to jail if it rules that he has not properly served his time.
Thaksin is required to be present for the ruling along with the chief of the Bangkok remand prison, according to the court.
Thaksin’s return was seen as part of a deal with his former foes in the conservative establishment to help them stay in power following the general election in 2023.
He had previously been convicted in three corruption cases dating back to his tenure as prime minister from 2001 until his ouster in a 2006 coup. He fled the country in 2008 and was sentenced in absentia to eight years in prison.
The court’s scrutiny of Thaksin’s hospital stay comes amid a wave of legal challenges targeting the Shinawatra family. His daughter, Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, was suspended earlier this month by the Constitutional Court, which is reviewing whether she violated ethical standards in her handling of a border dispute with Cambodia.
On Wednesday, the court set Aug 4 as the final deadline for Paetongtarn to submit her response to the allegations before it starts deliberating on the case and issues a ruling later.
Thaksin, now 76, also faces a verdict next month in a royal defamation case that could result in a prison sentence of up to 15 years.
Thailand has a long history of political instability. Over the past two decades several prime ministers linked to Thaksin have been removed from office through court rulings or military coups. Paetongtarn’s immediate predecessor, Srettha Thavisin, was dismissed by the Constitutional Court last year over allegations of ethical misconduct. - Bloomberg
