Thai govt to re-issue Thai passport for Thaksin : FM
New passport will be New Year gift for Thaksin : Surapong
The Thai government will soon re-issue a passport for fugitive former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra as a New Year's gift, the foreign Minister said Friday.
“When Thaksin’s passport was revoked, there was no order from the courts or the police to seize it,” Foreign Minister Surapong Tovichakchaikul told reporters.
“I will therefore use my authority and proceed legally under the regulations of the ministry to issue a new passport to ex-premier Thaksin,” he said.
“We are checking more details but it will be very soon. It will be a normal Thai passport. Let us make a normal passport first. It doesn’t have to be a diplomat passport.”
Asked by reporters whether the process would be completed before the end of this year, Surapong said he expected it to be soon. “It would be excellent if it could be a New Year gift for Thaksin,” he said.
Surapong is confident that the move will not be opposed by any group, adding that giving the ex premier a passport would be in accordance with the law. “Issuing a passport is under the jurisdiction of the ministry and within the power of the foreign minister,” he said.
Thaksin, brother of current Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra was stripped of his ordinary passport during Abhisit Vejjajiva government after fleeing a conviction of two years in prison for corruption and abuse of power.
However, he has been granted citizenship by some countries including Montenegro, which allows him to travel internationally.
