Former Prime Minister of Thailand Thaksin Shinawat Released from Prison

Thailand’s former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawat has been released from a prison in Bangkok after spending eight months of a one-year sentence there over a corruption-related charge.

Thaksin remade ⁠and dominated Thai politics for a quarter-century, but his influence has waned of late following his jailing and his once formidable Pheu Thai Party’s worst election performance on record ⁠earlier this year.

Thaksin walked out of prison at about 7:40am local time (00:40 GMT) and was immediately surrounded by family members, including his daughter, Paetongtarn Shinawat, who was sacked as prime minister by a court order in August last year, weeks before his imprisonment.

Thaksin had served as prime minister from 2001 until a military coup toppled him in 2006, while he was abroad.

After 15 years in self-exile, he returned to Thailand in 2023 to face an eight-year sentence for conflicts of interest and ⁠abuse of power relating to his time in office. That sentence ⁠had been commuted to one year by the king.

But he was in prison for only a few hours following his homecoming before complaining of heart trouble and chest pains. He then spent six months in the VIP ⁠wing of a hospital until he was freed on parole.

Thaksin's release could help revive his once dominant Pheu Thai, now a junior ​party in Anutin's coalition after a crushing electoral defeat in February, said Titipol Phakdeewanich, a political ​scientist.

Thaksin is required to wear an electronic ankle monitor until his ⁠sentence finishes ​in September.

Source - Al Jazeera | Reuters