Thailand’s influential former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra suddenly left the country on his private jet Thursday days before a court ruling that could see him imprisoned, raising speculation that he might not return to face the verdict.
His departure came a day before Thailand’s parliament was set to pick a new prime minister and install a new government Friday; the ruling Pheu Thai party, which Thaksin founded, was widely expected to lose power.
Thaksin, 76, spent 15 years in self-imposed exile after being ousted from office in a 2006 military coup. His daughter Paetongtarn Shinawatra, who became Thailand’s youngest prime minister last year, was removed from office a week ago following an ethics probe.
Over the past 25 years, Thaksin has built one of the country’s most famous and successful political dynasties, with allied candidates winning almost every election since 2001.
But that dynasty has long been loathed by Thailand’s powerful conservative and royalist establishment which, with the help of both the military and courts, has frequently toppled or tied up Shinawatra-run governments.
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