Legitimate expert cites a law that was signed by former justice minister Somsak, who is now Deputy Prime Minister in the innovative government.
5 Oct 2023 at 17: 31 PUBLISHED
Whether former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra truly is so severely ill that he needs care in a superior clinic at the Police General Hospital as claimed is the question that has prompted the Department of Corrections to listen.
According to Asst Prof Prinya Thaewanarumitkul, a professor at the Faculty of Law of Thammasat University, the majority of people are nowadays unsure whether Thaksin will be able to stay in the hospital until his one-year prison sentence is over.
He claimed that the solution is actually alluded to in a new Ministry of Justice rules pertaining to the detention of tired inmates who need therapy outside the department’s health facilities.
Past justice minister Somsak Thepsutin, who has since become a deputy prime minister in the fresh Pheu Thai Party-led government, signed the relevant legislation in 2020, according to Asst Prof Prinya.
According to this rule, if the prison commander approves it, any prisoners who are ill and require care outside the facility may do so. If it is deemed essential, care in a private clinic is also permitted.
According to him, if such care necessitates a stay of more than 30 days in an outdoor hospital, the department’s director-general must approve it on the basis of medical evidence demonstrating the need to continue the therapy.
The continuous minister of justice needs to approve the treatment if it lasts longer than 60 days, and the justice minister must approve it after more than 120 days.
After more than 15 times of self-exile worldwide, Thaksin arrived back in Thailand on August 22. Due to views for conflict of interest and abuse of authority while in company prior to 2006, he was given an eight-year prison sentence within days. He received a royal pardon next Friday, reducing the time he must offer to one year.
According to Asst Prof. Prinya, questions about whether Thaksin is receiving protections over other prisoners as part of a social package may be answered by the director-general of the Department of Corrections. He continued by saying that a thorough justification for why Thaksin must be in the medical was required.
According to Asst. Prof. Prinya, the former top was transferred from the Bangkok Remand Prison to the doctor on September 21.
All captives, regardless of wealth, must be treated likewise, he declared. The same law also holds true; they must go back to the prison after they recover. Often, this will develop into a significant problem that will undoubtedly affect the government.
The federal police commander, Pol Gen Damrongsak Kittiprapas, stated that the Department of Corrections had a duty to inform the people of Thaksin’s expected hospital stay and his justifications.
Thaksin was transferred to the Police General Hospital 13 hours after being admitted into the facility’s quarantine area on August 22. He was apparently experiencing chest pain, hypertension, and lower blood oxygen saturation. He has stayed ever since.
Srisuwan Janya, a political advocate, charged Mr. Somsak with purposefully pushing for the governmental rules to be passed in order to benefit Thaksin despite being aware that doing so would be against the law.
According to Mr. Srisuwan, Thaksin would be able to request that his remaining one-year prison sentence be suspended due to health issues under an associated governmental legislation that was also signed by Mr Somsak.
Thaksin Shinawatra, a former prime minister, is now receiving treatment at Police General Hospital on the 14th surface. ( Photo: Wikimedia Commons’ Chainwit )