Thailand’s Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled that former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra must serve a one-year prison sentence, declaring that his previous stay in a hospital did not count as valid detention.
The court found that procedures were breached when Thaksin was moved to Bangkok’s Police General Hospital hours after entering prison in 2023, without a medical evaluation from prison doctors. Judges concluded the transfer was manipulated to help him avoid incarceration and that his reported health conditions could have been treated within the prison system.
Although Thaksin’s original eight-year sentence was reduced to one year by royal pardon and he was released on parole after six months, the court determined his hospital stay did not fulfill the terms of his punishment. It also ruled that claims of urgent neck surgery were misleading, noting he only underwent minor procedures for a finger joint and tendonitis.
Thaksin was immediately taken back into custody and returned to Bangkok Remand Prison following the verdict. In a statement on his official Facebook page, he accepted the decision, writing: “From today, although I’m without freedom, I still have freedom of thought for the benefit of the country and its people.”
His daughter, former Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, who was ousted last month over ethics violations, expressed support for him, saying the family remained in “good spirit” despite the ruling.
Thaksin, who led Thailand from 2001 until he was ousted in a 2006 coup, spent more than a decade in self-imposed exile while facing corruption charges he insists were politically motivated. His return last year reignited divisions in Thai politics, where his influence remains significant.
