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Thailand’s Supreme Court has ordered the country’s most powerful and polarising statesman, Thaksin Shinawatra, to be jailed for one year, ruling he improperly served a 2023 prison term in hospital.
Thaksin, 76, had been sentenced to eight years for corruption and abuse of power after returning to the country in August 2023 following years spent living in exile.
But he never spent a night in a cell — whisked to a private hospital room, his sentence was reduced to one year by royal pardon, before he was freed in an early release scheme for elderly prisoners.
“Sending him to hospital was not legal, the defendant knows his sickness was not an urgent matter, and staying in hospital cannot count as a prison term,” said the ruling read out by a judge.
The court ordered the issuance of a warrant to take Thaksin to Bangkok Remand Prison to start serving a one-year prison term.
Shinawatra’s political clan has been the key foe of Thailand’s pro-military, pro-royalty elite for two decades, who view their populist brand as a threat to the traditional social order.
But the dynasty’s momentum is flagging after a series of legal and political setbacks, culminating in the dismissal of his daughter, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, as the nation’s prime minister last month.
Thaksin arrived at the court smiling and posing for photos, flanked by dynasty heiress Paetongtarn, who left the ruling without him but told reporters he was “in good spirits”.
“My father remains a spiritual leader — whether through his past political role, his contributions to the country, or his sincere intention to be part of improving the lives of the people,” she said.
Pheu Thai replaced by coalition
Thaksin was elected prime minister in 2001 and again in 2005, but took himself into exile after his second term was cut short by a military coup.
The timing of his return and his transfer to hospital, which coincided with his Pheu Thai party forming a new government, fuelled public suspicion of a backroom deal and allegations of special treatment.
The Supreme Court’s Criminal Division for Persons Holding Political Positions started investigating in April and has questioned prison and medical officials to determine if the sentence was properly served.
Their ruling came just days after the Pheu Thai party was removed from top office, with Paetongtarn dismissed by a Constitutional Court ruling she breached ministerial ethics in a border spat with Cambodia.
The Pheu Thai party had held the premiership since the 2023 polls, but a coalition led by Anutin Charnvirakul, once an ally of the Shinawatras, took office as prime minister on Sunday.
Thaksin flew out of the country by private jet ahead of Tuesday’s verdict — fuelling speculation in Thai media he may have absconded.
But he returned on Monday ahead of the ruling.
