Daughter of Thailand's ex-PM Thaksin says clemency request "up to him"

Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who is expected to be arrested upon his return as he ends almost two decades of self-imposed exile, gestures while flanked by his son Panthongtae Shinawatra and daughter Paetongtarn Shinawatra at Don Mueang airport in Bangkok, Thailand August 22, 2023. REUTERS/Athit Perawongmetha/File Photo

BANGKOK (Reuters) - The daughter of Thailand's jailed former premier Thaksin Shinawatra on Tuesday said any move to seek a royal pardon for her father would be entirely "up to him" and such a process would take time.

In her first comments on the topic since her father's dramatic return last week from 15 years of self-exile, Paetongtarn Shinawatra said Thaksin, who must serve eight years for abuse of power and conflicts of interest, would be the one to pursue the matter himself.