The Criminal Court has approved Thaksin Shinawatra’s request to attend an Asean meeting in Brunei on Tuesday and Wednesday, the second time the former prime minister has been allowed to leave Thailand, after placing a 5-million-baht cash surety.
However, the court rejected his request to visit Vietnam and Cambodia during the same period.
Thaksin is visiting Brunei on Feb 18 and 19 in his capacity as an adviser to the chairmanship of Asean. Malaysia chairs the 10-country bloc this year and Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim earlier appointed Thaksin as his informal adviser on Asean affairs.
Thaksin is prohibited from leaving the country without permission under the terms of his bail, pending trial on lese-majeste and computer crime charges stemming from an interview he gave in South Korea in 2015. Witness testimony in the case is scheduled to be heard in July this year.
There were reports that the court’s approval came after Mr Anwar sent an invitation via the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for Thaksin to attend the meeting, similar to a pervious time.
The court earlier allowed Thaksin to travel to Malaysia on Feb 2-3 to consult with Mr Anwar, with a 5-million-baht surety to guarantee his return.
The former prime minister submitted his latest request on Feb 13 and the court held a hearing on Friday. Thaksin and Foreign Minister Maris Sangiampongsa were called to testify. Judges approved the request and ordered Thaksin to report to the court within 3 days after returning to Thailand.
Thaksin also submitted a request to travel to Vietnam at the invitation of some businesspeople, not the government. His request to travel to Cambodia was also not at the invitation of the government, but a personal one from his longtime friend Hun Sen, the former prime minister. The court rejected both requests.
