Ousted Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra (R)and his wife Potjaman Shinawatra wade through an army of photographers at the criminal court in Bangkok in this file photo from July 31, 2008.
BANGKOK Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, facing a two-year jail sentence at home for breaking a conflict of interest law, has been barred from Britain where he was living in exile, a Thai official said on Saturday.
British officials have refused to comment on the decision to revoke visas for Thaksin and his wife, the latest twist in Thailand's long-running political saga since the billionaire telecoms tycoon was removed in a 2006 coup.
"The Foreign Ministry has checked the reports with British authorities and they have confirmed that the visas were revoked," ministry spokesman Thani Thong Phakdi told Reuters.
He did not know the reason for the move, and the British embassy in Bangkok declined to comment.
Thai newspapers earlier cited what they said was an advisory issued by Britain's border agency on Friday to airlines cancelling the visas held by Thaksin and Potjaman Shinawatra.
"Airlines are advised not to carry these passengers to the U.K.," the email message said, according to the Nation newspaper.
Thaksin, who spent most of his time in exile in London after he was ousted, drawing headlines when he bought and later sold the Manchester City soccer club, was in China, a close aide said.
"He is in Beijing on business," the aide told Reuters, without giving more details.
Thaksin was sentenced to two years in jail last month for breaking a conflict of interest law by getting involved in a government agency's sale of a piece of prime Bangkok land to his wife.
Potjaman was cleared of any wrongdoing in the land case, but in July was sentenced to three years in jail for tax evasion.
Thai prosecutors have issued numerous arrest warrants and urged London to extradite Thaksin, who won two landslide election victories but was ousted amid accusations of corruption and abuses of power.
Thaksin, who fled to London with Potjaman in August, has said the case against him was politically motivated by his opponents and the jail term was meant to keep him out of the country's political arena for at least 10 years.
"Nobody can bring me home except Their Majesties' graciousness or the will of the people," Thaksin said earlier this month in a 10-minute telephone call from Hong Kong to thousands of supporters at a rally in Bangkok.
The campaign against Thaksin is largely driven by the People's Alliance for Democracy -- an unelected group comprising royalists, academics and businessmen -- while he continues to enjoy support in the countryside. The PAD has occupied the official compound of the prime minister's offices since August, demanding the current government stocked with Thaksin loyalists step aside.
Thailand's political crisis dates back to 2005 when the PAD launched its first street campaign against Thaksin, whom PAD accused of cronyism and abuse of power.
It has meandered through a coup to elections and back to protests and shows no signs of resolution, to the dismay of investors worried about a lack of functioning government with a global economic recession looming.
Informationen von Nachrichtenagenturen zufolge hat die Britische Regierung die Visa für den ehemaligen thailändischen Ministerpräsidenten Thaksin Shinawatra und seine Frau Pojaman zurückgezogen. Thaksin, der sich zurzeit auf einer Reise durch Asien befindet, hatte nach seiner Entmachtung durch eine Militärjunta im September 2006 Zuflucht in London gesucht. Hier hat er in erheblichem Umfang Immobilien sowie den britischen Fußballclub Manchester City erworben, den er inzwischen wieder verkauft hat. Die britische Botschaft in Bangkok sowie die Regierung in London wollten den Vorgang nicht kommentieren. Die in Thailand erscheinende englischsprachige Zeitung „The Nation“ zitiert in ihrer Onlineausgabe aus einer E-Mail, die die britische Grenzkontrollbehörde (UK Border Agency) an verschiedene Fluggesellschaften geschickt haben soll und in der es heißt, dass die Visa für Thaksin Shinawatra und seine Frau für nichtig erklärt worden seien und in der Fluggesellschaften angewiesen werden, die genannten Personen (mit Angabe der Passnummern) nicht nach Großbritannien zu transportieren.

Thaksin war im Oktober 2008 vom obersten thailändischen Gericht wegen Korruption zu zwei Jahren Haft verurteilt worden (Wikinews berichtete). Bereits vor der Urteilsverkündung hatte sich der Ex-Premier aus Thailand abgesetzt.