Ousted Thai leaders Yingluck Shinawatra and brother Thaksin leave Japan for Hong Kong: Report

Yingluck Shinawatra was last year sentenced in absentia by Thailand's Supreme Court to five years in prison for negligence in handling a rice subsidy project that resulted in massive losses to state coffers. PHOTO: REUTERS

TOKYO - Thailand's ousted Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and her brother Thaksin, both fugitives forced to live overseas, left Japan for Hong Kong on Tuesday (Feb 13), sources close to them said, Kyodo news agency reported.

They had stayed in Japan since Saturday, according to the sources.

Yingluck was last year sentenced in absentia by Thailand's Supreme Court to five years in prison for negligence in handling a rice subsidy project that resulted in massive losses to state coffers. She fled the country last August ahead of the verdict and was later confirmed to be in Britain.

Thaksin was ousted as prime minister in a military coup in 2006. He fled abroad to avoid a corruption conviction.

According to Kyodo, Yingluck, who is believed to have visited Japan for the first time after fleeing Thailand, was accompanied by Thaksin as well as Somchai Wongsawat, their brother-in-law who is also a former Thai prime minister.

They stayed in Japan for private purposes, the sources added.

Yingluck was granted permission for entry by the Japanese government, the sources said. She has sought asylum in Britain.

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