Thaksin Chapter Closes, Another Opens

Former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra speaks to members of the media as he attends the THACCA SPLASH — Soft Power Forum 2024 at the Queen Sirikit National Convention Center in Bangkok onJune 28, 2024 | Photo: Reuters

In an article for the Bangkok Post, Thitinan Pongsudhirak recaps former Thai PM Thaksin’s recent jail sentence and the events that led to it. While this may seem as a close on Thaksin's chapter in Thai politics, Thitinan argues that he will likely continue to have a political role as part of the Shinawatra dynasty.

In yet another dramatic twist in Thai politics, erstwhile anti-establishment political juggernaut and former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra accepted a one-year jail sentence and began serving his time behind bars on Sept 9. After his return from a 15-year self-imposed exile in August 2023 and a concomitant royal pardon that reduced his eight-year imprisonment on corruption convictions to just one year, Thaksin cited his gravely ill health and spent the time comfortably at the Police General Hospital before being released on parole. The Supreme Court's ruling that his get-out-of-jail health card was invalid means Thaksin's renewed imprisonment and its aftermath are likely to reshape and realign Thailand's political landscape ahead of the next election, due by mid-2027.