Thailand considers revoking former PM Yingluck’s passports

 Thai police have asked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to revoke former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra’s passports, the foreign ministry announced on September 30.

Busadee Santipitaks, spokesperson of the ministry, said that she knew media news reporting that Yingluck arrived in Britain to seek political asylum but did not comment on the issue. Earlier, Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha was informed by the ministry that Yingluck was in Dubai.

Meanwhile, government spokesperson Sansern Kawekhamnerd said that the Foreign Ministry had been aware that Yingluck would head for Britain. Thailand has the extradition treaty with the UK but not with the UAE.

Police have also asked Interpol to issue an international alert, known as a Blue Notice, to its 190 member countries to locate Yingluck.

According to a new legislation on criminal lawsuits against politicians, Yingluck stands no chance to appeal against her five-year jail sentence. The new law, which takes effect from September 29, also ends her political career, said Meechai Ruchupan, head of the Constitution Drafting Committee (CDC).

Yingluck failed to appear for her verdict on August 25, prompting the Supreme Court to issue an arrest warrant.

She was accused of abusing power in May, 2014. Her dereliction of the rice subsidy scheme supervision led to severe loss to the country. If found guilty, she will be subject to a jail term of 10 years and face the seizure of assets worth 35 billion baht (nearly 1 billion USD) over the loss.

The rice scheme was a flagship policy of Yingluck’s election campaign with the Pheu Thai party, which helped her win the 2011 general election. The scheme offered to buy rice from farmers at a double of market price then keep in store houses nationwide.-VNA