Why did he return to China at this time?, Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin has been sentenced to 8 years in prison. Former Prime Minister | Bangkok | Thailand

On the 22nd, former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who had been in exile for 15 years, returned to Bangkok but was immediately imprisoned.

Shortly after his arrival, Thai police detained him. Subsequently, the Supreme Court of Thailand ruled that Thaksin was convicted on three counts and sentenced to 8 years in prison.

According to the Supreme Court of Thailand, Thaksin's three charges have a cumulative sentence of 10 years, with an actual serving time of 8 years. It is reported that after the court issued a notice of imprisonment and execution, Thaksin was escorted by law enforcement personnel to Bangkok Special Prison and was imprisoned there.

Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who has been in exile for 15 years, has returned to Bangkok

After Thaksin Shinawatra returned to Thailand and was sentenced to several hours in prison, the Thai parliament will hold a third round of voting for the Prime Minister election, which has been deadlocked for several months and may have some conclusions. According to an analysis by Agence France Presse, "Thai politics will usher in a turbulent day.".

Thaksin, who is now 74 years old, was overthrown in a military coup in 2006 and has been in self exile for 15 years.

He, with ancestral roots in Fengshun County, Meizhou, Guangdong, began serving as the Prime Minister of Thailand in 2001 and became the first Thai Prime Minister to achieve re-election in 2005. The following year, the Thai military launched a coup, and Thaksin was accused of corruption, bribery, and abuse of power. He was forced to step down and go into exile overseas. After a brief return to China in 2008, he was convicted of corruption and later left Thailand on bail. He has been in exile for about 15 years.

For a long time, Thaksin has expressed his hope to return to China, but due to the criminal charges he faces, he has not been able to proceed.

Although exiled overseas, the influence of the Thaksin family on Thai politics is still ongoing. During Thaksin's exile, two Thai Prime Ministers emerged from his family, namely Thaksin's brother-in-law Somchai Ongsawat and Thaksin's sister Yingluck.

The influence of Thaksin on Thai politics is also reflected in his choice of timing for returning to his home country. Analysis suggests that Thaksin's return to China at this time is to support his Thai party.

The Prime Minister election in Thailand this year has been quite deadlocked. The Far Progressive Party, which received the highest number of votes in the Thai parliamentary lower house elections held in May this year, failed to lead the "Eight Party Alliance" to form a cabinet due to various reasons, and the power to form a cabinet was handed over to the Thai Party, which received the second most votes in the elections. However, the Thai party has not yet gained the support of more than half of the members of the upper and lower houses of parliament.

In Thai politics, if all parties want to successfully form a cabinet, they need to not only win enough support from allies, but also properly handle the connection with the Thai military and the conservative forces appointed by the military in the House of Lords.

In the upcoming new prime minister election on the 22nd, the Thai party expressed confidence in allowing its candidate for prime minister, Seta Tadah, to pass the vote in both houses of parliament. Previously, Seta Tadah's authority had received support from the pro military party People's National Power Party, which holds 40 seats in parliament.

Therefore, the public opinion generally believes that the Thai party and Thaksin are likely to have reached an agreement with the Thai military, obtaining more or less guarantees from the military for Thaksin's safe return to China.

However, this guarantee should not involve the imprisonment that Thaksin faces. So, shortly after getting off the plane, Thaksin was sentenced to prison.

The South China Morning Post previously reported that many people speculated that after returning to China, Thaksin may be allowed to stay in medical institutions dedicated to detaining prisoners and will quickly seek royal pardon.

Some analysts believe that the initiative of the current Thai political situation is firmly in the hands of the Thai military, and the military is currently adopting a more wait-and-see attitude towards the situation. Based on this, the military may not treat Thaksin too harshly.

So, after 15 years of exile, this is an opportunity for Thaksin to return to China and an effort to gain more political influence for the Thai party. However, it remains to be seen whether this effort will be effective, as 15 years is not a short period of time and his appeal will inevitably be affected.

Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra returns to his home country to serve his sentence. Officially, he needs to be held in solitary confinement due to health issues

Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who has been in exile for more than ten years, returned to Thailand on the 22nd and was sentenced to eight years in prison on three charges by the Supreme Court of Thailand. He then entered a prison in Bangkok to serve his sentence.

The Supreme Court issued a statement on the same day, stating that Thaksin was sentenced to a total of 10 years in prison for corruption and other charges, with some sentences planned to be executed simultaneously, and the actual sentence served was 8 years. The Thai Prison Authority stated that the medical examination results showed that the 74 year old Thaksin had health problems in areas such as heart, lungs, and blood pressure, making him a vulnerable group and requiring solitary confinement. The prison has made arrangements for Thaksin's personal safety, visits to relatives and friends, and medical examinations.

On the same day, Thaksin arrived at Bangkok's Langman Airport in Thailand by private plane. Accompanied by his family, Thaksin briefly walked out of the airport terminal to pay tribute to the portraits of King Wajilalongkorn and Queen Sutida of Thailand, and greeted the waiting supporters and journalists by clasping their hands together.

Thaksin was subsequently escorted by the police to the court and entered the Bangkok Special Prison at noon.

Thaksin served as the Prime Minister of Thailand from 2001 to 2006. After being overthrown by a military coup in 2006, except for a brief return to foreign countries in 2008, Thaksin has been in long-term exile overseas. He was charged with corruption in cases of lottery fraud and illegal bank loans.