On the 17th (local time), just one day after Paetongtarn Chinnawath (37), the youngest daughter of former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra (74), was elected as prime minister in Thailand, Thaksin Shinawatra was pardoned.
According to Reuters and local media on the day, Thaksin, who was on parole, was included in the royal pardon list of about 50,000 people, his lawyer revealed.
This pardon follows King Maha Vajiralongkorn of Thailand's decision last month, on the occasion of his birthday, to grant pardons to prisoners with good behavior during their incarceration.
The pardon announced the previous day took effect immediately, freeing Thaksin from parole and granting him full freedom. He returned to Thailand on August 22 last year after 15 years of living in exile abroad, when Srettha Thavisin of the pro-Thaksin party, Pheu Thai Party, was elected prime minister.
Immediately after his return, he was sentenced to eight years in prison by the court on charges including abuse of power and was promptly incarcerated. However, that same night, he was transferred to the police hospital for hypertension treatment and was allowed to extend his hospitalization, staying in the hospital. Subsequently, his sentence was reduced to one year by the royal pardon, and he was paroled in February after six months of imprisonment, followed by this pardon.
Earlier the previous day, Paetongtarn was nominated as the sole prime minister candidate by the coalition government led by the Pheu Thai Party in a House of Representatives vote, successfully securing a majority and being elected prime minister.
She is the youngest prime minister in Thai history and the third member of the Shinawatra family to hold the position, following former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra (in office 2001?2006) and his sister, former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra (in office 2011?2014).
With the removal of restrictions on his activities due to this pardon, it appears increasingly likely that former Prime Minister Thaksin will fully return to the political forefront and assume a role akin to a 'kingmaker.'
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