BANGKOK: In an effort to stay one step ahead of the law, the fugitive former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra has been given a diplomatic passport by Nicaragua, a country with which Thailand has no extradition treaty.

"We have diplomatic relations with Nicaragua but no extradition agreement," a Foreign Ministry spokesman, Tharit Charungvat, said yesterday. Mr Tharit said Thailand had "not yet" issued a formal protest to authorities in Managua, who said in a statement that Thaksin had been appointed "an ambassador of Nicaragua on a special mission" to help attract investment.

"Nicaragua can give whatever they want to," Mr Tharit said. Thai authorities announced on Wednesday they had cancelled Thaksin's passport after his supporters stormed the venue of the ASEAN summit at a Thai beach resort, forcing its cancellation. "The ministry can cancel or recall a passport if it can prove a person has caused damage to the country," a Government spokesman said at the time.

Meanwhile, it has been disclosed Thaksin has left Dubai for an undisclosed destination in Africa despite the cancellation of his passport. A Thaksin spokesman said: "The Government can say what it wants but it will not stop us. Every Thai has the right to a passport which cannot simply be cancelled."

Agence France-Presse