Thailand frees ex-PM Thaksin after royal pardon

Former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who was convicted of corruption and abuse of power, has been released on parole after serving six months in a police hospital.

Thaksin, ousted by a military coup in 2006 and fled the country in 2008, returned to Thailand in August last year. He was granted a royal pardon that reduced his original sentence of eight years to one year. He is currently 74 years old and has been experiencing health issues.

The release of a controversial political figure has elicited mixed responses in Thailand. He has been a subject of division among the people, with his supporters, who are primarily poor rural Thais, lauding him for his populist policies.

Meanwhile, his opponents, mainly the elite of Bangkok, accuse him of compromising the monarchy and the rule of law. Furthermore, his family’s Pheu Thai party currently holds power in Thailand.

Thaksin was seen in a convoy of cars leaving the Police General Hospital just before sunrise on Sunday and is believed to be headed to his residence in western Bangkok. The authorities said he was eligible for parole due to his age and health issues. They did not tell if he was released under certain conditions, such as monitoring or travel curbs.

Thaksin, considered Thailand’s most successful elected leader, has always been a target of conservative royalists. They have supported military coups and controversial court cases to weaken him. In 2008, he was deposed by a coup and left the country.

During his exile, he spent most of his time in either London or Dubai¹. His family’s Pheu Thai party, led by his younger sister, Yingluck Shinawatra, is in power in Thailand. However, she was removed from power by a coup in 2014 and had to flee the country in 2017.

The former telecoms magnate remains one of the most divisive public figures in the country: loathed by many of Bangkok’s wealthy elite but adored by millions of poor rural Thais for his populist policies.

Thaksin was the first prime minister in Thailand’s history to lead an elected government through a full term in office in 2001-06. He introduced universal health care, cheap loans, and subsidies for farmers, which earned him a loyal following among the rural poor. However, he also faced accusations of corruption, human rights abuses, and disrespect for the monarchy, which led to massive protests and legal challenges against him².

His release has sparked controversy in Thailand, where he remains a polarizing figure. Some of his supporters celebrated his freedom and hoped for his return to politics, while some of his critics denounced his pardon and questioned the justice system’s fairness.

For over a decade, Thailand has been plagued by political instability and social unrest, as the pro-Thaksin and anti-Thaksin factions have clashed on the streets and in the courts. The country is also undergoing a delicate transition of power, as King Maha Vajiralongkorn, who ascended the throne in 2016, has been consolidating his authority and reshaping the monarchy’s role.