Thailand to review pardon rules after release of 85-year-old drug lord brings backlash

Thailand's justice minister has announced a review of pardon rules after public outcry over the release of 85-year-old drug trafficker Laota Saenlee. Saenlee, who was sentenced to life imprisonment, had served less than ten years of his sentence. He was arrested in 2016 for selling crystal methamphetamine in the Golden Triangle, a region known for drug production where Thailand, Myanmar, and Laos converge. Saenlee was a former anti-communist guerrilla who became involved with powerful Myanmar drug kingpins. The review of pardon criteria comes in response to the backlash generated by his early release.