Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra Ordered to Spend 1 Year in Prison

Thailand’s Supreme Court said, ‘The defendant only had a chronic condition that could be treated as an outpatient and did not require hospitalization.’

Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra arrives at Supreme Court in Bangkok, Thailand, on Sept. 9, 2025, Wason Wanitchakorn/AP

Thailand’s former prime minister, Thaksin Shinawatra, was ordered to serve one year in prison by the country’s Supreme Court on Sept. 9, after it ruled that the time he spent in a hospital following his return from exile in August 2023 did not count as prison time.

The judges said Thaksin, 76, had no severe illness at the time and could have been treated in jail.

“The defendant knew the facts or was aware the situation was not a critical emergency,” the Supreme Court said in its ruling. “The defendant only had a chronic condition that could be treated as an outpatient and did not require hospitalisation.”

Thaksin—Thailand’s prime minister from 2001 to 2006—returned from 15 years in self-imposed exile in August 2023.

Upon his return, he was sentenced to eight years in prison for crimes involving conflicts of interest and abuse of power. The sentence was later commuted to 12 months by King Maha Vajiralongkorn.

Thaksin spent a few hours in prison on Aug. 22, 2023, before being taken to a hospital, complaining of chest pains that suggested a heart condition.

He then spent six months in detention in the VIP wing of a hospital before being released on parole.

Following Tuesday’s Supreme Court ruling, he was taken by prison van to a Bangkok jail.

‘Freedom of Thought’

In a statement posted to social media, he said, “Today, I may no longer have freedom, but have freedom of thought to create benefit for the country and people.”

His youngest daughter, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, said that the news of his incarceration “weighs heavy,” but she said her father and the rest of the Shinawatra family remain in good spirits.

On Aug. 22, Thaksin was acquitted of defaming the country’s former king during a 2015 interview. Thailand is a constitutional monarchy, and the royal family is protected by strict lèse-majesté laws.

King Bhumibol—who was the world’s longest reigning monarch—died in 2016, aged 88, a year after the interview Shinawatra gave to South Korean media.

Paetongtarn, 39, was permanently removed as prime minister by Thailand’s Constitutional Court on Aug. 29, ruling that she violated constitutional ethics rules during a leaked phone call with former Cambodian leader Hun Sen.

The Constitutional Court’s ruling meant Paetongtarn—whose deputy, Phumtham Wechayachai, has been serving as acting prime minister—was dismissed effective immediately.

Paetongtarn Shinawatra waves from a car as she leaves Government House after being dismissed from the position of prime minister by the Constitutional Court, in Bangkok on Aug. 29, 2025. Lillian Sunwanrumpha/AFP

She had been suspended by the court since July 1, after 36 senators filed a petition seeking her removal over the controversial June 15 phone call.

During the call, Paetongtarn—who led a coalition government dominated by her Pheu Thai party—criticized a Thai army commander and referred to Hun Sen as “uncle.”

Hun Sen’s son, Hun Manet, is the current Cambodian prime minister.

On Sept. 7, Anutin Charnvirakul, 58, was appointed as the new prime minister after being endorsed by King Vajiralongkorn.

Anutin, who is from the Bhumjaithai Party, said in a statement, “I’d like to take an oath that I determine to perform my duties to my fullest capabilities, with honesty and virtue.”

He said his government will seek to tackle urgent problems, including improving the economy and solving the border conflict with Cambodia.

Anutin was chosen after he won a vote in Thailand’s parliament on Sept. 5, defeating Chaikasem Nitisiri, who had been put forward by the ruling Pheu Thai Party.

The main opposition People’s Party backed Anutin after he agreed to dissolve parliament within four months and organize a referendum on the drafting of a new constitution.

Shinawatra Political Dynasty

Paetongtarn was the third prime minister from the Shinawatra family.

Thaksin, a telecom billionaire, first came to power in 2001 after his Thai Rak Thai Party won elections, garnering significant support from the poorer north and northeast of Thailand.

Thaksin led Thailand until he was ousted by a military coup in 2006. He then went into exile.

After the military restored democracy in 2011, Paetongtarn’s aunt, Yingluck Shinawatra, was elected Thailand’s first female prime minister.

She was removed by a Constitutional Court ruling in May 2014, and a few weeks later, another military coup suspended the democratic process.

Democracy was restored in 2019, and in 2024, Paetongtarn became prime minister at the head of a coalition.

Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra (L) and his daughter and newly elected Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra (R) arrive before the royal endorsement ceremony appointing Paetongtarn as Thailand's new prime minister at the Pheu Thai party headquarters in Bangkok, Thailand, on Aug. 18, 2024. Sakchai Lalit/AP Photo

In 2022, while campaigning, Paetongtarn said, “I am my dad’s daughter, always and forever, but I have my own decisions.”

The leaked phone call followed an incident on May 28 in which a Cambodian soldier was killed in a brief exchange of gunfire with Thai troops at a disputed border area between the two countries.

The incident happened between Cambodia’s Preah Vihear Province and Thailand’s Ubon Ratchathani Province.

Referring to an unnamed Thai general, Paetongtarn told Hun Sen, through a translator, “He just wants to look cool and say things that are not useful to the nation, but in truth, what we want is peace.”

Paetongtarn later apologized for what she said but rejected calls for her to resign or dissolve parliament.

Reuters contributed to this report.