Thailand’s jailed former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra will soon walk free from detention after his parole was approved, according to Thailand’s justice minister, just six months after his dramatic return to the kingdom.
The announcement caps an extraordinary decades-long political saga that will see the return of one of Thailand’s most controversial political figures to everyday life.
Thaksin, the head of a famed political dynasty and a former owner of English premier league soccer club Manchester City, was prime minister from 2001 until he was ousted in a military coup in 2006 while in New York.
He returned to Thailand from a 15-year self-imposed exile on August 22 and was sentenced to eight years in prison for conflict of interest, abuse of power and corruption during his time in power. Thaksin was found guilty of the charges in absentia during his exile.
Thaksin, 74, became eligible for parole as he falls into the category of an inmate aged over 70 years old, and or has a serious chronic illness.
Credit: cnn.com
