Forum Views ()
Forum Replies ()
Read more with google mobile :
Thaksin back in Cambodia as Thai spy to be freed
|
Edition:
U.S.
Article
Save
Email
Print
Reprints
Most Popular
Most Shared
Exclusive: IRS hires "hundreds" for new wealth unit
11 Dec 2009
Thailand to charge plane crew over North Korean arms
5:50am EST
Houston elects openly gay mayor
12:30am EST
Google to produce, sell own "Nexus One" phones: report
12 Dec 2009
"Dead" man wakes up under autopsy knife
17 Sep 2007
Exclusive: IRS hires "hundreds" for new wealth unit
11 Dec 2009
Houston elects openly gay mayor
12:30am EST
"Dead" man wakes up under autopsy knife
17 Sep 2007
Rotating house puts family in a spin
11 Dec 2009
Thailand to charge plane crew over North Korean arms
5:50am EST
Thaksin back in Cambodia as Thai "spy" to be freed
Jared Ferrie
PHNOM PENH
Sun Dec 13, 2009 9:51am EST
Related News
Thai anti-government protesters demand new elections
Thu, Dec 10 2009
PRESS DIGEST - Thai newspapers Dec 9
Tue, Dec 8 2009
Thai and Cambodian defense ministers vow to keep peace
Fri, Nov 27 2009
Thai shares set to fall, political demos a worry
Thu, Nov 19 2009
UPDATE 1-Cambodia takes reins of Thai-owned firm as row deepens
Thu, Nov 19 2009
PHNOM PENH (Reuters) - Fugitive former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra returned to Cambodia on Sunday, a month after a visit that sparked a diplomatic row when the Cambodian government refused Bangkok's request to extradite him.
World
Thaksin came to Phnom Penh in November to take up a job as economic adviser to the Cambodian government, a move that fueled fears of further political instability in Thailand since it gave him a base over the border for his campaign to unseat the Thai government.
The episode led to a Thai engineer working for Cambodian air traffic control being found guilty of spying for leaking Thaksin's flight details to the Thai embassy.
Siwarak Chutipongse, 31, was pardoned last week after a request to Cambodia's king from Thaksin and others, according to a Cambodian minister speaking at the time, and Thaksin went immediately to see Sirawak on his arrival on Sunday.
He traveled to the prison where Sirawak is being held, before his release on Monday, in a police-escorted convoy of 14 vehicles.
"I am very happy that Thaksin, who is economic adviser to the government, and Prime Minister Hun Sen, helped to release my client," Siwarak's lawyer, Khieu Sambo, told journalists outside the prison.
Thaksin was ousted by the military in 2006 and later sentenced to jail in absentia on conflict of interest charges.
HUMANITARIAN GROUNDS
Cambodian government spokesman Phay Siphan said Siwarak would be officially freed on Monday at Hun Sen's residence.
He told Reuters that Thaksin had not had a direct role in Siwarak's release and that the billionaire former telecoms tycoon would hold economic seminars this week with Cambodian officials.
"He is going to be released because of humanitarian reasons and because his mother requested a royal pardon," Siphan said, adding this was a sign Cambodia's government wanted good relations with the Thai nation.
Last Tuesday a court had jailed Siwarak for seven years for breaching national security by passing on Thaksin's flight schedule to a Thai diplomat, who was subsequently expelled.
Siwarak's arrest last month prompted Cambodia to take temporary control of Thai-operated Cambodia Air Traffic Services (CATS) and suspend Thai expatriates at the company.
The two countries were already at odds over an ancient temple on a disputed stretch of their border, the scene of deadly clashes over the past 18 months.
Critics have dismissed Thaksin's visit and his involvement in the pardon as publicity stunts to rile the Thai government.
Hun Sen has openly given his backing to the pro-Thaksin Puea Thai party in Thailand and calls Thaksin his "eternal friend," who he says is the victim of a vendetta by powerful opponents.
The extradition issue and Cambodia's offer of a home and a job to Thaksin led to the recall and expulsion of diplomats and the freezing of bilateral agreements, including a pact to jointly develop untapped energy reserves in the Gulf of Thailand.
Despite the pardon, there has been no move by either side to restore diplomatic relations.
(Writing by Alan Raybould; Editing by Charles Dick)
World
More from Reuters
D-Day nears for Dubai's $3.5 billion debt hurdle
DUBAI (Reuters) - Heavy rain pounded Dubai on Sunday adding to the gloom of the emirate's debt woes a day before the deadline of the $3.52 billion bond by state-owned developer Nakheel, with no word on how it will be handled.
Kuwait finance minister says no dispute with Citi: report
Saab confident will find buyer, Spyker in talks
Volcker finds British bonus tax "interesting": report
UAE, Oman seen unlikely to rejoin Gulf union now
Environment ministers try to unlock climate deal
» More Top News
Health & Fitness:
Great expectations
Pregnant women are turning to the ancient practice of yoga in an effort to condition their bodies and minds for the challenges of parenthood. Full Article
Lakshmi talks of endometriosis battle
It's a bird, it's a plane, it's a ... baby boy!
Lifestyle
Pictures that defined a decade
A man's grief as he holds the body of his relative in Georgia, heavy fog obscuring the Dubai skyline and a singed shoe are among the indelible Reuters images of the last 10 years. Slideshow
Fifth selection in the series
Do you agree with our choices?
Pictures
© Copyright 2009 Thomson Reuters
Editorial Editions:
Africa
Arabic
Argentina
Brazil
Canada
China
France
Germany
India
Italy
Japan
Latin America
Mexico
Russia
Spain
United Kingdom
United States
Reuters
Contact Us
Advertise With Us
Help
Journalism Handbook
Archive
Site Index
Video Index
Analyst Research
Mobile
Newsletters
RSS
Podcasts
Widgets
Your View
Labs
Thomson Reuters
Copyright
Disclaimer
Privacy
Professional Products
Professional Products Support
Financial Products
About Thomson Reuters
Careers
Online Products
Acquisitions Monthly
Buyouts.com
Buyouts Europe:
Buyouts Conferences:
Venture Capital Journal
ECVJ
International Financing Review
International Securitisation Report
Project Finance International
PEhub.com
PE Week
Thomson Reuters is the world's largest international multimedia news agency, providing investing news, world news, business news, technology news, headline news, small business news, news alerts, personal finance, stock market, and mutual funds information available on Reuters.com, video, mobile, and interactive television platforms. Thomson Reuters journalists are subject to an Editorial Handbook which requires fair presentation and disclosure of relevant interests.
NYSE and AMEX quotes delayed by at least 20 minutes. Nasdaq delayed by at least 15 minutes. For a complete list of exchanges and delays, please click here.
Other News on Sunday, 13 December 2009 Lawmaker: Iraqi security had tip-off before bombs
Showdown looms over West Bank construction curb
Intelligence on Baghdad blasts mishandled: interior minister
|
Iraq hails 2nd oil auction but risky sites shunned
Iran offers to swap low-enriched uranium for fuel
Seven crew missing after ship capsizes off Lebanon
Afghan cabinet unveiled end of the week: official
|
Rebel Abkhazia chooses leader, Russia hails vote
|
UN builds mud brick homes for homeless Gazans
Iranian clerics rally to support supreme leader
Brazil, Peru condemn Honduran limits on Zelaya
|
Blair defends Iraq war, even without WMD
Iran proposes fuel swap on Kish island
Japan takes three titles in Grand Slam judo
Martial law ended in Philippine massacre province
Violence mars huge Copenhagen demonstration
Sri Lanka war refugees face uneasy homecoming
`Family Ties' actor Bonsall charged with assault
State Department says Cuba has detained US citizen
Peshawar on front line of Pakistan's militant war
Hundreds line up as Wash. coffee shop reopens
Police: Americans in Pakistan had Taliban contact
Guzzlers gouge rift between Nevada state agencies
Thailand seizes arms on plane from North Korea
Hawaii abuzz about Obama's expected holiday return
Houston voters could elect first openly gay mayor
Philippines lifts martial law in southern province
Official: Kabul deputy mayor arrested in crackdown
NYC woman gets probation for smuggling monkey meat
Expanded Medicare won't provide seamless coverage
Rights complaint planned in Philly school attacks
Lebanon pressing US to deliver military aid
China, Kazakhstan unveil landmark gas pipeline
Japan, US reach 'open skies' deal
Woods may find it difficult to recapture old dominance
|
Miss World opens with African drums, legal drama
French rocker in induced coma in Los Angeles
Murder At A Nursing Home, 98-Year-Old Woman Kills 100-Year-Old Roommate
Jewish settler woman stabbed in West Bank
Top British banker admits 'mistakes' on bonuses
Thailand to charge plane crew over N.Korean arms
|
US-TECH Summary
Iran opposition seeks leader's removal
Rebel Abkhazia elects president in 'illegitimate' vote
Catalans vote in referendum on independence
|
Google to produce, sell own "Nexus One" phones: report
Venezuela arrests ex-securities commission chief
|
Search for Air France black boxes to resume in February
Google hints at making mobile telephone
China demotes editor after Obama interview: sources
|
Intelligence on Baghdad blasts mishandled
Tiger's website becomes forum for fans, critics
Iran opposition warns of action against reformers
|
Billionaire favored in Chile vote but run-off seen
|
Amazon projects undercut Brazil's new green path
|
Jewish settler woman stabbed in West Bank
|
Google to produce, sell own Nexus One phones: report
|
Gunmen storm jail, free 31 prisoners in Philippines
Body found on Mount Hood; 2 climbers still missing
Expanded Medicare won't provide seamless coverage
Aussie, Chinese officials urge pandas to reproduce
Correction: Japan-Slain Briton story
Man accused of killing 12 people captured in China
Obama, Medvedev discuss weapons treaty
Philippine kidnappers' animal sacrifice demand
90 vehicles trapped as Calif faces rain, snow, mud
Six injured in fifth Hong Kong acid attack
Vehicles stuck on S. Calif highway after mudslides
Police capture mass-murder suspect in China
Protesters damage Calif. university leader's home
Almost 1,000 arrested at Copenhagen climate rally
Missing Utah mom's family prays for her return
Episcopal bishop seeks prayer in rift over gays
Guerrillas stage Philippine jailbreak: police
Creator of first 50-star American flag dies at 67
Euphoria ends, reality bites Malaysia's opposition
Young Chinese groan at skyrocketing property costs
China cracks EU roadworks market via Poland
Haneke's White Ribbon sweeps European Film Awards
|
Twilight studio to distribute Polanski film
|
'Uncharted 2' nabs top prize at VGAs
Doh! The Simpsons still young and yellow at 20
Comedians in Chicago for Second City anniversary
Miss World: Gibraltar's Kaiane Aldorino crowned
Haneke's "White Ribbon" sweeps European Film Awards
Protesters condemn Swiss minaret ban
Hindus Protest Fox Channel Show's Remark That Ganges River Is 'Disease'
Supreme leader says Iran's opposition violates law
Catalans vote in symbolic independence referendum
Philippines hostage crisis ends, victims freed
|
US, Russia talks on cyberspace security: report
Sudan leaders reach deal on disputed reforms
North Korea, U.S. agree to resume peace talks: report
|
Dubai stocks maintain profits after break
'Whack A Banker' game proving a hit in Britain
Burned ayatollah photo sparks new Iranian protests
India test fires ballistic missile off east coast
|
Brown vows new push to defeat Taliban
PLO set to extend Abbas term as Palestinian leader
|
Sudan leaders "make progress" in reform row talks
Billionaire favored in Chile vote but run-off seen
|
New Afghan city official detained over graft
Israel votes new funds for settlements
|
Israeli cabinet to vote on new settlement credits
Petraeus sees shift in Al Qaeda's Iraq tactics
|
Blair will give Iraq war evidence in public: inquiry
Ethnic tensions simmer in crisis-struck Guinea
|
Cause of Air France crash may remain mystery: sources
|
Thaksin back in Cambodia as Thai spy to be freed
|
Militants attack Philippine jail, 31 inmates freed
The nation's weather
Thaksin provokes Thailand with new Cambodia visit
India test fires ballistic missile off east coast
Obama celebrates the holidays
S.Lankan rebels killed in cold blood: ex-army chief
Ex-Thai PM Thaksin Shinawatra arrives in Cambodia
Senate to vote on $1.1 trillion spending bill
Gunmen free 47 hostages in Philippines
Thailand to charge plane crew over North Korean arms
Philippines hostage crisis ends, victims freed
Hundreds protest over decision on new Indian state
Dubai stocks maintain profits after break
Disney exec: China big enough for 2 theme parks
Bangladesh seeks investment for energy projects
Kate Winslet wins Best European Actress award
Romania's unwanted children given a chance
S.Africa tackles World Cup child trafficking fears
Greece at new risk of being pushed off euro
Bodies of missing Tenn. mom, Jo Ann Bain, and daughter found
Female Breasts Are Bigger Than Ever
AMD Trinity Accelerated Processing Units Now in Volume Production
The Avengers (2012 film), made the second biggest opening- and single-day gross of all-time
AMD to Start Production of piledriver
Ivy Bridge Quad-Core, Four-Thread Desktop CPUs
Islamists Protest Lady Gaga's Concert in Indonesia
Japan Successfully Broadcasts an 8K Signal Over the Air
ECB boosts loans to 1 trillion Euro to stop credit crunch
Egypt : Mohammed Morsi won with 52 percent
What do you call 100,000 Frenchmen with their hands up
AMD Launches AMD Embedded R-Series APU Platform
Fed Should not Ignore Emerging Market Crisis
Fed casts shadow over India, emerging markets
Why are Chinese tourists so rude? A few insights