ID :
199015
Wed, 08/03/2011 - 18:13
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/199015
The shortlink copeid
Thailand's fugitive ex-leader Thaksin trying to visit Japan
TOKYO, Aug. 3 Kyodo -
Thailand's fugitive former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra is trying to visit Japan this month, a senior Democratic Party of Japan lawmaker said Wednesday.
After meeting with Prime Minister Naoto Kan, DPJ Vice President Hajime Ishii told reporters he asked the premier to allow Thaksin's entry into Japan.
Ishii said Thaksin, who has been convicted of corruption, is hoping to visit Japan between Aug. 22 to 28. But the Japanese immigration control law does not allow the entry of a person who has been found guilty and given a jail term of more than one year.
''It is said that his entry is difficult. But Thailand is an important country and I told the premier to make a political decision,'' Ishii said.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano, when asked about the issue, said at a news conference the government has yet to receive a request from Thaksin to be allowed into Japan.
''If a specific request is made, we will then consider it in a responsible manner,'' the top government spokesman said.
As an exception to the entry ban, the immigration control law says the justice minister can issue a special permit for a person if circumstances requiring his or her entry into Japan are recognized.
Thaksin served as Thai prime minister between 2001 and 2006, before being ousted in a bloodless military coup. He now lives in exile in Dubai to escape a two-year prison sentence.
His Japanese supporters have said the former Thai premier hopes to hold a press conference, speak at a lecture meeting and go to Miyagi Prefecture hit by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami during a Japan visit.
Thailand's fugitive former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra is trying to visit Japan this month, a senior Democratic Party of Japan lawmaker said Wednesday.
After meeting with Prime Minister Naoto Kan, DPJ Vice President Hajime Ishii told reporters he asked the premier to allow Thaksin's entry into Japan.
Ishii said Thaksin, who has been convicted of corruption, is hoping to visit Japan between Aug. 22 to 28. But the Japanese immigration control law does not allow the entry of a person who has been found guilty and given a jail term of more than one year.
''It is said that his entry is difficult. But Thailand is an important country and I told the premier to make a political decision,'' Ishii said.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano, when asked about the issue, said at a news conference the government has yet to receive a request from Thaksin to be allowed into Japan.
''If a specific request is made, we will then consider it in a responsible manner,'' the top government spokesman said.
As an exception to the entry ban, the immigration control law says the justice minister can issue a special permit for a person if circumstances requiring his or her entry into Japan are recognized.
Thaksin served as Thai prime minister between 2001 and 2006, before being ousted in a bloodless military coup. He now lives in exile in Dubai to escape a two-year prison sentence.
His Japanese supporters have said the former Thai premier hopes to hold a press conference, speak at a lecture meeting and go to Miyagi Prefecture hit by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami during a Japan visit.
