Deposed Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra and his family have fled to the UK, the former leader said yesterday after he and his wife skipped a hearing on corruption charges in a Thai court.
A handwritten statement from Thaksin issued yesterday said he fled because he could not expect justice in Thai courts. It came amid newspaper reports that he would seek asylum in Britain.
“My wife and I have traveled to reside in England,” Thaksin said in the statement. “If I still have luck, I would come back and die on Thai soil like every other Thai person.”
Thaksin’s statement, which did not mention asking for asylum, was read yesterday afternoon on state-run television.
Thaksin, who was deposed in a 2006 military coup, faces a slew of court cases as well as investigations probing alleged corruption and abuse of power during his five years in office. In his statement, he again said he was innocent of all accusations against him.
“What happened to my family and me is like fruit from a poisonous tree — the fruit will also be poisoned,” the statement said. “There is a continuation of dictatorship in managing Thai politics ... which is followed by interference in the justice system.”
Thaksin and his wife Pojaman failed to appear yesterday morning before the Supreme Court’s Criminal Division for Holders of Political Positions in a case involving an allegedly unlawful purchase of real estate.
Thailand’s Supreme Court issued arrest warrants yesterday for the pair.
The Supreme Court for political office holders ordered the warrants and seized 13 million baht (US$389,000) in bail deposited by the billionaire couple.
Thaksin and his wife left Thailand last week after the court gave them permission to attend the Olympic Games in Beijing but ordered them to report yesterday. News reports in Bangkok said Thaksin and Pojaman flew from China to England, where the former leader owns several properties and the Manchester City football club.
Thaksin lived in exile in Britain after his downfall. He returned to Thailand earlier this year to face corruption charges against him after his political allies won new elections and formed a coalition government.
“I thought I would be able to prove my innocence and receive justice, which is why I returned to Thailand on Feb. 28. But the situation has deteriorated,” he said.
He also said there had been threats against his life.
“I have also constantly received news that my life is not safe. Wherever I travel, I have to use bulletproof cars. This is the result I got from volunteering to serve the country, the king and the people,” he said.
In yesterday’s court case, the couple had been charged with abuse of authority and corruption in Pojaman’s 2003 purchase of land in Bangkok from a state agency. The Supreme Court earlier said it would deliver a verdict Sept. 16.
Thaksin is embroiled in three other court cases as well as a slew of investigations that may lead to trials.
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