Thailand Confirms Has Revoked Yingluck's Passports

By Mohd Haikal Mohd Isa

BANGKOK, Oct 31 (Bernama) -- The Thai government confirmed it has revoked passports belonging to fugitive former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra as it struggles to determine her current whereabouts, two month since she disappeared from the country.

According to Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha, the government also could not confirm speculation on Yingluck's presence in the United Kingdom.

"The official confirmation on Yingluck's whereabouts must come from the country (where she is in)," he told the media after chairing the weekly Cabinet meeting at Government House here today.

Speculation is rife that she is currently in the United Kingdom to seek asylum after arriving from Dubai where her older brother, former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra has a house, but is said to have kept silent until her (asylum) bid receives approval by London.

Yingluck, escaped from Thailand days before the Supreme Court sat on August 25 to deliver a key verdict on a controversial case involving the rice pledging scheme implemented during her administration.

Her no-show forced the court to postpone the verdict to Sept 27, where its nine judges subsequently found her quilty in absentia and handed her a five-year jail sentence for failing to stop corrupt practices in the scheme.

The government had alleged her rice pledging scheme was riddled with corruption which eventually caused the state to suffer massive financial losses.

Today, Thai Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai was quoted by the local media as saying that the United Kingdom had given its assurance that it will not grant Yingluck political asylum to reside in the country.

Meanwhile, Deputy National Police Chief Gen Srivara Rangsibrahmanakul said the Foreign Ministry had replied on Oct 25 to its earlier letter requesting for all passports belonging to the former Prime Minister to be revokes.

The kingdom's Foreign Ministry confirmed it had cancelled four passports held by Yingluck following the request from the police.

Srivara also said that Thai Police had yet to receive any information from Interpol members regarding her whereabouts.

-- BERNAMA