ID :
64789
Mon, 06/08/2009 - 20:10
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Shortlink :
http://m.oananews.org//node/64789
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Ex-premier Thaksin may have entered UAE under alias
Ex-premier Thaksin may have entered UAE under alias
BANGKOK, June 8 (TNA) - Ousted former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra may have entered the United Arab Emirates (UAE) under another name earlier this year, a senior Thai government official said on Monday.
Panich Vikitsreth, an assistant to the Thai foreign affairs minister, said the UAE government had reaffirmed to Thailand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs that it would not allow anyone to use the country as a springboard to attack another country.
Mr. Panich said that the UAE foreign minister informed him that Mr. Thaksin had left the country on April 20.
However, some reports that the former prime minister, ousted in a bloodless coup in September 2006, was seen in UAE, so it is possible that Mr. Thaksin had re-entered the country under an assumed name, Mr. Panich said, noting that the UAE is investigating the reported sightings.
Reiterating that the foreign ministry closely watches the movements of Mr. Thaksin on a regular basis, Mr. Panich said the UAE government had sent a draft extradition treaty to the Thai Foreign Affairs Ministry last month and that Thai officials are reviewing details of the draft, which might take some time.
An extradition treaty with Hong Kong where Mr. Thaksin was a frequent visitor is expected to be completed soon, he said.
His remarks were made after Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said on Sunday that Mr. Thaksin now travels internationally using aliases, making it more difficult to locate and return him to Thailand to serve his jail sentence.
A Thai court in October last year sentenced Mr. Thaksin in absentia to two years prison for abuse of power, for allowing his then wife to bid on a plot of Bangkok land at a government auction in 2003, while he was a prime minister.
Mr. Abhisit said his government had sought cooperation from Interpol to track the ousted premier, but that the problem of Mr. Thaksin’s false names remains a complicating factor. (TNA)
BANGKOK, June 8 (TNA) - Ousted former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra may have entered the United Arab Emirates (UAE) under another name earlier this year, a senior Thai government official said on Monday.
Panich Vikitsreth, an assistant to the Thai foreign affairs minister, said the UAE government had reaffirmed to Thailand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs that it would not allow anyone to use the country as a springboard to attack another country.
Mr. Panich said that the UAE foreign minister informed him that Mr. Thaksin had left the country on April 20.
However, some reports that the former prime minister, ousted in a bloodless coup in September 2006, was seen in UAE, so it is possible that Mr. Thaksin had re-entered the country under an assumed name, Mr. Panich said, noting that the UAE is investigating the reported sightings.
Reiterating that the foreign ministry closely watches the movements of Mr. Thaksin on a regular basis, Mr. Panich said the UAE government had sent a draft extradition treaty to the Thai Foreign Affairs Ministry last month and that Thai officials are reviewing details of the draft, which might take some time.
An extradition treaty with Hong Kong where Mr. Thaksin was a frequent visitor is expected to be completed soon, he said.
His remarks were made after Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said on Sunday that Mr. Thaksin now travels internationally using aliases, making it more difficult to locate and return him to Thailand to serve his jail sentence.
A Thai court in October last year sentenced Mr. Thaksin in absentia to two years prison for abuse of power, for allowing his then wife to bid on a plot of Bangkok land at a government auction in 2003, while he was a prime minister.
Mr. Abhisit said his government had sought cooperation from Interpol to track the ousted premier, but that the problem of Mr. Thaksin’s false names remains a complicating factor. (TNA)
