Thursday, 16 April 2009

Thailand revokes ex-PM Thaksin's passport

Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra speaks on a live video broadcast from Dubai during a FCC luncheon in Hong Kong in this March 12, 2009 file photo. Thailand has revoked the passport of Thaksin for instigating political unrest, the government spokesman said. (REUTERS/Bobby Yip/Files)

Wednesday April 15, 2009

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand has revoked the passport of ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, saying he helped instigate the unrest that caused an Asian summit to be cancelled, the government spokesman said on Wednesday.

"The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has revoked the passport of Mr. Thaksin since April 12," Panitan Wattanayagorn told Reuters, adding it was due to incidents that led to the scuttling of the East Asia summit last weekend in the seaside town of Pattaya.

"According to the law, the government has the right to revoke a passport of a person who damages the country and the Pattaya incident has shown that Mr.Thaksin is trying to damage our country."

Thaksin, who was ousted in a 2006 coup, is living in self-imposed exile to avoid a two-year jail term on corruption and abuse of power conviction.

A court issued arrest warrants on Tuesday for Thaksin and 12 other leaders of his protest movement, the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD).

The UDD on Tuesday ended a three-week siege of Government House in central Bangkok to avoid a potentially bloody confrontation with troops.

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