Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra was sentenced to 1 year in prison by the Thai Supreme Court after it was determined that his time in the hospital last year was not counted as serving a sentence.
According to the verdict, Mr. Thaksin will be transferred to Bangkok Remand Prison. This is considered a shocking turning point in the turbulent career of the figure who served as prime minister from 2001 2006 before being overthrown in the military coup.
Mr. Thaksin returned to Thailand in 2023 after 15 years of exiledity, and was sentenced to 8 years in prison for abusing power and corruption during his time as prime minister. However, King Maha Vajiralongkorn reduced Thaksin's sentence to 1 year. After only half a year, in February 2024, Mr. Thaksin was released on conditional terms.
However, he has never slept in prison. Immediately after his return, Mr. Thaksin was taken to Bangkok Police Hospital for chest pain, high blood pressure and lack of blood oxygen. He stayed there in a comfortable private room, raising public doubts about special favor.
In June, the Thai Medical Council suspended the work of two doctors for being accused of issuing documents containing false information, creating conditions for Mr. Thaksin to "ightify the sentence" at the hospital. A prison doctor was also warned for failing to comply with professional standards when he was offered a treatment transfer.
Many analysts believe that Mr. Thaksin's return at the same time as Pheu Thai's takeover of control of the country is a sign of an underground political deal with conservatives and the royal family, in exchange for a lighter sentence or leniency. However, Mr. Thaksin himself has always denied this.
With the new ruling, the Supreme Court affirmed that Mr. Thaksin's hospital stay is not considered execution time, meaning that former Prime Minister Thaksin will officially face a real prison sentence after nearly 2 decades of political turmoil.
