Overview

• Thailand’s Medical Council upheld the suspension of two doctors who enabled Thaksin Shinawatra to serve his sentence in a hospital instead of jail
• A Supreme Court hearing beginning Friday will determine whether Thaksin must serve his original prison term after his VIP hospital stay
• Thaksin remains a central figure behind the government despite holding no official post and his legal fate could undermine its authority
• Public confidence in the Pheu Thai administration has waned amid a stalled economy and the suspension of a major cash handout programme
• Tensions with Cambodia have led to troop deployments on both sides and fuelled concerns about national security under the current government