Foreign Ministry revokes Thaksin's regular passport

The Foreign Ministry on Sunday revoked ousted premier Thaksin Shinawatra's passport to restrict his movements abroad, which are deemed a potential threat to the country, spokesman Tharit Charungvat said yesterday.

The ordinary passport |was Thaksin's final travel |document. It was issued after his diplomatic passport was revoked in the middle of December, shortly before Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva took office.

However Thaksin - living abroad as a fugitive after he was sentenced to two years in jail for abuse of power and corruption while premier - has said he also holds other countries' passports.

The ministry stripped Thaksin of his final Thai travel document the day after his red-shirt supporters disrupted the Asean Summit and related meetings in Pattaya, causing a big embarrassment for the government.

PM's Deputy Secretary-General Panitan Wattana-yagorn said the Pattaya incident was the deciding factor in taking away Thaksin's regular passport.

Thaksin's opponents have repeatedly called on authorities to nullify his passports of whatever class to bar him from travelling around to destabilise the government and instigate anti-government activities.

However, the government was reluctant to take action in recent months and asked the Council of State, its legal advisory body, to study the legal avenue for such a move.

The Council of State previously declined to back the move, arguing that termination of a passport held by a former prime minister should be a "political" decision.

The Foreign Ministry has full legal authority to issue |and recall passports. Nationals who commit a |crime and are prohibited from going abroad must return their passports to the ministry.

Tharit said the ministry took the drastic action after it became clear the passport holder, if allowed to stay outside the country, could further damage the country's interests.

The decision was made in accordance with Article 23 of the ministry's 2005 regulations on passports, but it did not affect Thaksin's Thai citizenship, he said.

While Thaksin can no longer travel on his Thai passport, he can still ask for a temporary travel document from any Thai embassy or consulate if he wants to return to Thailand, Tharit said.

The Foreign Ministry has already informed foreign governments of its decision, a ministry official said, adding that Thaksin could still take international trips if he had other passports issued by foreign countries as claimed.