Bangkok (AFP) – Jailed former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra will be freed on Sunday, the kingdom’s prime minister has said, just six months after returning from 15 years of self-imposed exile.
The controversial billionaire, twice elected prime minister and ousted in a 2006 military coup, was jailed for eight years on graft and abuse-of-power charges upon his return to Thailand in August, but within days had his sentence cut to one year by King Maha Vajiralongkorn.
Speaking to reporters on Saturday before boarding a flight, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin said Thaksin’s release would be “on the 18th” and handled “according to the rule of law”.
The exact details of Thaksin’s release are not clear, but he may be subject to monitoring – possibly with an ankle tag – and restrictions on his right to travel.
It comes after Justice Minister Tawee Sodsong said earlier this week that Thaksin, 74, would be among 930 prisoners granted early release.
“He is in the group where they are in a critical condition or aged over 70. He will be released after six months automatically,” the minister said.
Thai media have reported he could be released very early in the morning, but Srettha said he did not know any details.
A small group of supporters gathered outside Thaksin’s Bangkok home on Saturday in anticipation of his release, local media reported.
Thaksin’s homecoming coincided with his Pheu Thai party returning to government in alliance with pro-military parties, leading many to conclude that an agreement had been struck to cut his jail time.
The rumours grew stronger when he was transferred to a police hospital within hours of being sentenced because of his poor health, and it is not clear that he has spent any time in a prison cell.
Local media reported Thaksin had been suffering from chest tightness and high blood pressure when he was admitted to hospital, and his family has said he underwent two operations in the following months.
His daughter Paetongtarn Shinawatra, the current head of Pheu Thai, welcomed the news earlier this week, saying it was “time for him to live the rest of his life happily”.
She shared a video on Instagram on Saturday of his grandchildren preparing a welcome-home banner.
