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Thaksin Shinawatra

Thaksin Shinawatra
The latest news, analysis and opinion on Thaksin Shinawatra. In-depth analysis, industry insights and expert opinion.
Thailand’s former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra after his release from Klong Prem Central Prison in Bangkok on May 11. Photo: AFP
Thailand

Thailand’s Thaksin is out of jail, but can he ‘leave politics behind’?

While the former PM is ‘no longer a political magnet’, analysts say he will still be behind the scenes as Pheu Thai tries to make a comeback.

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Thailand

Thailand’s Thaksin officially free but faces new multimillion tax battle

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Thailand

Thailand’s ex-PM Thaksin gets royal pardon after release on parole

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Thailand

Video | Thailand’s ex-PM Thaksin Shinawatra released from prison

Thaksin has served 8 months since September 2025 for an abuse of power conviction.

Thailand’s former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra (R) hugs his daughter Paetongtarn Shinawatra upon his release at Klong Prem Central Prison in Bangkok on May 11, 2026. Thailand’s former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra was released early from prison on May 11, raising the prospect of a return to the spotlight for the political heavyweight. (Photo by Lillian SUWANRUMPHA / AFP)
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Thailand

Thaksin exits jail to a Thailand that seems to have moved on from Shinawatra era

The former prime minister’s once unassailable Pheu Thai party is now just a minor player in Anutin Charnvirakul’s government.

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Thailand

Anutin takes charge in Thailand as Mideast chaos pressures economy

Facing economic challenges and border tensions with Cambodia, the prime minister has pledged swift responses to public needs.

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Thailand

Will Thailand’s election be voided? Bar code blunder sparks ballot secrecy fears

With counting errors forcing revotes this Sunday, the reformist opposition is seizing on irregularities to demand a fresh election.

An election worker counts ballots at a counting station in Bangkok, Thailand, on February 8. Photo: Xinhua
Thailand

Thai PM agrees to form coalition with Thaksin-backed Pheu Thai

The 2 parties were previously coalition partners, until PM Anutin pulled out over a Cambodia border dispute scandal last June.

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Thailand

Thailand rejects radical change with Anutin’s ‘right-wing turn’

Voters weary of upheaval embraced Bhumjaithai’s technocratic promises of debt relief and subsidies, sidelining the reformist People’s Party.

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Thailand

Conservatives storm to victory in Thailand’s election

The Bhumjaithai Party is forecast to win nearly 200 seats as People’s Party concedes election.

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Thailand’s caretaker PM, Anutin Charnvirakul, reacts on Sunday in Bangkok as his party takes the lead. Photo: Reuters
Thailand

As Thailand prepares to vote, can election deliver the change it needs?

Whoever wins will become Thailand’s fourth prime minister in three years but face a daunting task to revive the economy and ease political gridlock.

Thailand’s caretaker prime minister Anutin Charnvirakul, Bhumjaithai Party leader and prime ministerial candidate, with his party’s supporters during an election rally in Bangkok, Thailand, on January 30. Photo: Reuters
Thailand

‘Still handsome’ Abhisit breathes new life into Thailand’s oldest party

Although the ex-prime minister trails behind other candidates in support, he has helped the Democrats win back conservative voters.

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Thailand

Meet the PM candidates vying for leadership in Thailand

Reformers, conservatives and populists face off in the coming election with lofty promises to fix the country’s economy and political system.

Thailand

Thailand’s Pita hopes to rise again through reformist People’s Party successor

The former leader was blocked from leading government and banned from politics after his party stunned the ruling elite in 2023.

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Former party leader Pita Limjaroenrat speaks on stage during a People’s Party election campaign event in Bangkok on Sunday. Photo: EPA
Thailand

Ruling Thai party vows to end Cambodia conflict, close scam hubs if it wins poll

Sihasak Phuangketkeow, Bhumjaithai’s second candidate after Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, believes his party has popular support.

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China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi (centre) looks on as Thailand’s Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow (right) shakes hands with Cambodia’s Deputy Prime Minister Prak Sokhonn during a meeting in China’s Yunnan province on December 29, 2025. Photo: Agence Kampuchea Presse/AFP
Thailand

Border row aids Anutin as Shinawatras play catch up in Thai election

Caretaker PM Anutin rides nationalist wave over Cambodia; Pheu Thai taps Thaksin’s nephew to revive brand; reformists drop key vows to stay relevant.

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Thailand

Who is running for Thai PM? Unofficial campaign starts as parties name candidates

PM Anutin seeks re-election in a three-way race against People’s Party and Thaksin’s Pheu Thai amid constitutional referendum in February poll.

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Thailand

From PM purge to border bombs: Thailand’s year of upheaval

As the country mourns the loss of Queen Mother Sirikit amid political chaos and a sluggish economy, Lisa’s global reign lights up Thai public.

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Rescue workers extinguishing a fire at a house after it was hit by Cambodian rocket strikes during clashes between Thai and Cambodian troops, at a village in Kantharalak district, Si Sa Ket province, Thailand, on December 14. Photo: EPA/Royal Thai Army
Thailand

Will holiday high season survive Thai-Cambodian border conflict?

Curfews, increased airport screening and the bombing of the province housing Angkor Wat have rattled foreign travellers.

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Thailand

Thailand’s sidelined reformists battle ‘baan yai’ dynasties to repeat poll win

It could become ‘everybody vs the People’s Party’ as old power networks unite to crush the movement that won the popular vote in 2023.

Thailand

Thailand court orders Thaksin to pay US$540 million in tax dispute

The Supreme Court overturned a prior decision, ordering Thaksin pay tax on his Shin Corporation sale to Singapore’s Temasek Holdings in 2006.

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Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra arrives at the Supreme Court in Bangkok in September, photo: dpa
Thailand

11 Thaksin supporters jailed 15 years after 2010 Bangkok protests

The 2010 protests, backing former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, resulted in over 90 deaths and concluded with a lethal army crackdown.

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An anti-government protester gestures near Victory Monument in Bangkok, Thailand in May 2010. Photo: EPA
Thailand

Thailand’s ex-PM Thaksin seeks royal pardon for 1-year jail sentence

Thaksin’s request for a royal pardon could lead to the reduction of his current one-year jail sentence.

Thailand

Jailed former Thai prime minister Thaksin has new job overseeing sewer cleaning

As a foreman, Thaksin Shinawatra is unlikely to get his hands dirty and will be allowed to leave the prison during work hours.

Thailand

Asian Angle | Thai politics is no longer orange, yellow and red. Anutin turned it blue

The political colours of 2023 have faded as Thailand’s progressive and dynastic parties embrace the new PM’s Bhumjaithai blue of compromise.

Thailand’s Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul attends a press conference at Bhumjaithai party headquarters on September 7. Photo: Reuters
Thailand

No special privileges for Thailand’s Thaksin in jail, lawyer says

Thaksin has been placed in an area used for quarantine and elderly inmates, and remains under standard security measures, the lawyer says.

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Thailand’s former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra arrives at the Supreme Court in Bangkok on September 9. Photo: Zuma Press Wire/dpa
SCMP Highlights

Malaysian mall risks boycott, Thailand’s Thaksin imprisoned: 7 Asia highlights

From Thaksin’s fall from grace to Nepal’s historic new interim prime minister, here are a few highlights from SCMP’s recent Asia reporting.

Thailand

Anutin’s ascent: how the ‘new face’ of Thailand’s elite took control

A master political operator and heir to a construction empire, Thailand’s new prime minister rose to power with ruthless pragmatism.

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