Srettha assures adherence to law in Thaksin’s release on parole tomorrow
Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin maintained on Saturday that the release on parole of former premier Thaksin Shinawatra on Sunday was in line with the law.
“I understand that he will be released on February 18. I believe that everything is in accordance with the justice process involving the Department of Corrections and the Police General Hospital,” Srettha said.
“Things are done completely as per the law,” he added.
Srettha, who doubles as the finance minister, was speaking to the media at the Don Mueang military airport in Bangkok before flying to Nakhon Phanom province as part of his three-day northeastern tour that also includes Sakon Nakhon and Udon Thani provinces.
When asked by reporters if Thaksin would be released in the early hours of Sunday, the prime minister said he did not know the exact time of day that the ex-PM would be released on parole.
“I don’t know the law in detail. It’s February 18, but I don’t know the details. I believe everything will follow the legal procedure,” he said.
When asked if he would seek advice from Thaksin, Srettha said that he would do so with every former prime minister on matters in which they have expertise.
However, he ruled out the possibility of Thaksin joining the PM’s working group as his adviser.
“There’s no plan to go that far yet. I don’t know if he wants to do that. He may have [other] things he wants to do, and he’s not very well now,” Srettha said.
Thaksin, 74, will be among 930 convicts to be released on parole this month, in a Department of Corrections directive approved by Justice Minister Tawee Sodsong.
The ex-PM is entitled to parole after having served at least one-third of his prison term or six months, whichever is longer, according to the Corrections department regulations on granting parole for inmates who are 70 and over or seriously ill.
Thaksin was sentenced in absentia to eight years in prison for corruption stemming from his 2001-2006 tenure as prime minister, which was cut short by a military coup. However, he received a royal pardon soon after his return to Thailand last year, which reduced the sentence to one year in jail.
The former premier flew back to Thailand on a private jet on August 22, ending 15 years of self-imposed exile overseas. Less than 24 hours after landing on Thai soil, he was sent from Bangkok Remand Prison to the Police General Hospital for treatment of unidentified health issues. He has reportedly been there ever since.
His long hospital stay aroused suspicions about the seriousness of his illness while leading to allegations that he was enjoying VIP treatment from the authorities. Some even suspected that Thaksin was no longer at the hospital.
According to an informed source, here is the process for Thaksin's release from hospital. The Bangkok Remand Prison will be notified on Thaksin's eligibility for parole. The prison will then work with the Department of Probation to determine whether Thaksin should be released immediately on Sunday or if he needed further treatment somewhere else.
Department of Corrections officials in charge of Thaksin at the hospital will release him with recommendations from his doctor. Thaksin’s family will then meet him at the hospital for further treatment at another hospital or an arranged place.
Thaksin is not required to wear an electronic monitoring bracelet, but he is required to stay at a designated location and strictly follow the terms of parole.
Police General Hospital spokesperson Pol Colonel Sirikul Srisanga said on Saturday that Thaksin's family would not be allowed to receive him inside his hospital room.
“Corrections Department officials would come to receive him, and they would hand him over to his family. That duty belongs to the Corrections Department,” she said.
The department’s officials on duty can ask for Thaksin to be dismissed from the hospital as early as the first minute of the day he is eligible for parole, according to the spokesperson.
