Former Thai PM Thaksin Granted Parole, to be Released Early Next Month
Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra has been granted parole and will be released early next month on May 11, the Department of Corrections announced. He met the conditions due to his age and having less than one year remaining on his sentence.
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- 📰 Published: April 29, 2026 at 20:17
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Central News Agency
(Central News Agency, Bangkok, 29th, comprehensive foreign report) Thailand's Department of Corrections today announced that former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who was serving a prison sentence, has been granted parole and will be released early next month.
Thaksin, 76, a telecommunications tycoon, was imprisoned in September last year on corruption charges.
Agence France-Presse reported that the Department of Corrections stated in a statement that Thaksin will be released on May 11 and "must comply with all regulations" during his parole, including wearing an electronic ankle monitor.
The Department of Corrections added that Thaksin's advanced age and having less than one year remaining on his sentence met the conditions for early release.
Over the past 20 years, Thaksin's political faction has been a major opponent of Thailand's pro-military and pro-royalist elites, who view Thaksin's populist approach as a threat to traditional social order.
His Pheu Thai party and its predecessors were the most successful political parties in Thailand in the 21st century. The Thaksin family had produced four prime ministers and gained widespread support in vast rural areas.
However, the Pheu Thai party suffered its worst defeat in history in the parliamentary elections in February this year, becoming the third-largest party, raising questions about the future of Thaksin's political machine.
Nevertheless, the Pheu Thai party subsequently joined the ruling coalition of conservative Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, leaving a glimmer of hope for Thaksin's comeback. Thaksin's nephew, Yodchanan Wongsawat, currently serves as the Minister of Higher Education in Anutin's cabinet.
Thaksin was elected Prime Minister of Thailand in 2001 and 2005, and went into exile after his second term was interrupted by a military coup. He returned to Thailand in August 2023, ending his overseas exile, and was sentenced to 8 years in prison for corruption and abuse of power.
Thaksin is currently serving his sentence in Bangkok Prison. The Supreme Court of Thailand ruled last year that he improperly evaded his sentence by staying in a luxury hospital ward instead of a prison cell during his imprisonment in 2023, and ordered him to return to prison for one year.
The Department of Corrections stated that Thaksin is one of more than 850 inmates granted parole today. (Compiled by Liu Shu-chin) 1150429
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(Central News Agency, Bangkok, 29th, comprehensive foreign report) Thailand's Department of Corrections today announced that former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who was serving a prison sentence, has been granted parole and will be released early next month.
Thaksin, 76, a telecommunications tycoon, was imprisoned in September last year on corruption charges.
Agence France-Presse reported that the Department of Corrections stated in a statement that Thaksin will be released on May 11 and "must comply with all regulations" during his parole, including wearing an electronic ankle monitor.
The Department of Corrections added that Thaksin's advanced age and having less than one year remaining on his sentence met the conditions for early release.
Over the past 20 years, Thaksin's political faction has been a major opponent of Thailand's pro-military and pro-royalist elites, who view Thaksin's populist approach as a threat to traditional social order.
His Pheu Thai party and its predecessors were the most successful political parties in Thailand in the 21st century. The Thaksin family had produced four prime ministers and gained widespread support in vast rural areas.
However, the Pheu Thai party suffered its worst defeat in history in the parliamentary elections in February this year, becoming the third-largest party, raising questions about the future of Thaksin's political machine.
Nevertheless, the Pheu Thai party subsequently joined the ruling coalition of conservative Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, leaving a glimmer of hope for Thaksin's comeback. Thaksin's nephew, Yodchanan Wongsawat, currently serves as the Minister of Higher Education in Anutin's cabinet.
Thaksin was elected Prime Minister of Thailand in 2001 and 2005, and went into exile after his second term was interrupted by a military coup. He returned to Thailand in August 2023, ending his overseas exile, and was sentenced to 8 years in prison for corruption and abuse of power.
Thaksin is currently serving his sentence in Bangkok Prison. The Supreme Court of Thailand ruled last year that he improperly evaded his sentence by staying in a luxury hospital ward instead of a prison cell during his imprisonment in 2023, and ordered him to return to prison for one year.
The Department of Corrections stated that Thaksin is one of more than 850 inmates granted parole today. (Compiled by Liu Shu-chin) 1150429
Choose to stand with facts. Every sponsorship you make is a force for safeguarding press freedom.
Download the Central News Agency "First-Hand News" APP to stay updated with the latest news.
The text, images, and videos on this website may not be reproduced, broadcast publicly, or transmitted and utilized without authorization.