Thai officials, accused of coddling jailed ex-PM, say not calling him ‘inmate’ is standard practice

BANGKOK (AP) — Thailand’s Correction Department says that former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra shouldn’t be called an inmate even though he is serving a prison sentence after being convicted of wrongdoing in office. The agency felt it necessary to explain that it is not being deferential to the controversial former leader when it refers to him in public without using the term. The department said Tuesday that its standard practice is not to call prisoners “inmates” in public statements to avoid stigmatizing them. Critics have charged that the 74-year-old Thaksin — a billionaire populist and unofficial patron of the political party that returned to power last year — is being given special treatment as he serves his sentence in a state hospital rather than a prison cell.