Thailand's Supreme Court said today that former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra must serve a one-year prison sentence for previous convictions for corruption and abuse of power.
Shinawatra also holds Montenegrin citizenship.
The Supreme Court ruled that lower courts did not act improperly regarding his return to Thailand in 2023 and that Shinawatra, who is now in custody, should serve his sentence.
Upon his return to Thailand after more than a decade in self-imposed exile, Thaksin was sent to a suite at Bangkok General Hospital, ostensibly for medical reasons, having spent less than a day in prison. His eight-year prison sentence was then commuted to one year by King Maha Vajiralongkorn, and Shinawatra was paroled after six months in hospital.
These circumstances raised the question of whether he had received special treatment and many were suspicious about whether he was truly ill.
After the retrial, Thaksin was sent to prison in Bangkok, and in a message on his Facebook page shared by his team after the verdict, it is said that he accepted the court's decision.
"I want to look to the future, to bring a conclusion to everything, whether legal proceedings or conflicts are caused by or related to me," the post reads. "From today, even though I am not free, I still have freedom of thought for the benefit of the country and its people," the post reads.
Before the verdict, Shinawatra arrived at the court with his family, including two of his children, Pinthongta Shinawatra, and former Prime Minister Penthongtarn Shinawatra, who was removed last month when a court found her guilty of ethical misconduct over a politically compromising phone call with Cambodian Senate President Hun Sen.
DON'T MISS IT
In a statement to reporters after the verdict, the former prime minister thanked the king for overturning Thaksin's sentence. She said that Thaksin will remain the spiritual leader of Thai politics and that he always thinks about working for the good of the country and the Thai people.
"I'm worried about my father but I'm also proud that he created so many historic moments for the country. It's very difficult but my father and our family are certainly in good spirits," she said.
Thaksin was prime minister from 2001 until he was ousted in a military coup in 2006 while abroad. He briefly returned to Thailand in 2008 but later left again, violating his parole in a corruption case.
Thaksin's ouster triggered nearly two decades of deep political polarization between his supporters and opponents, including wealthy urbanites, hardline royalists, and the military. He returned briefly in 2008 to face charges, but again, while on parole, fled abroad and began a self-imposed exile that lasted more than a decade.
After leaving office, he faced a series of legal proceedings and criminal charges that he said were politically motivated.
Last month, a criminal court acquitted him of charges of insulting the king, which if convicted would have carried a 15-year prison sentence.
Bonus video:
