Thailand has just got its youngest woman prime minister, but everything is not as it seems.
So what’s really going on with Thai politics?
Thailand's Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra is attending a press conference at the Pheu Thai party headquarters following a royal endorsement ceremony in Bangkok, Thailand, on August 18, 2024. (Photo by Anusak Laowilas/NurPhoto)
37-year-old Paetongtarn Shinawatra is the daughter of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.
Thailand's newly elected Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra (R) is meeting her father, former premier Thaksin Shinawatra (L), upon her arrival to receive the royal command appointment to become prime minister. (Photo by Anusak Laowilas/NurPhoto)
Thaksin was ousted in a military coup in 2006 and went into self-imposed exile but remained one of Thailand’s most influential politicians.
After that, Thakin’s sister – Paetongtarn’s aunt – Yingluck Shinawatra, became Thailand’s first woman prime minister in 2011 but was removed from office in 2014 for abuse of power.
, Thai prime minister specks with media during a welcoming ceremony at the presidential palace in New Delhi, India, on Wednesday, January 25, 2012. (Photographer: Pankaj Nangia/Bloomberg)
After Yingluck was removed, the military seized power in another coup, with the military government ruling the country for years.
A Thai protester points a finger at the Thai military during an anti-coup protests as General Prayuth receives the Royal Endorsement as the military coup leader in Bangkok, Thailand. (Photo by Paula Bronstein/Getty Images)
Pita Limjaroenrat (C), prime minister candidate and leader of the Move Forward Party greets his supporters during the rally. (Photo by Varuth Pongsapipatt/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Move Forward wanted to promote democracy, remove the military’s influence on politics and revise the lèse-majesté law, which jails people for criticizing the monarchy.
To form a government, Move Forward then joined a coalition with Thakin’s party, Pheu Thai.
Thailand’s Move Forward Party, which has staked claim to lead a government after emerging as the single-largest party in Sunday’s election, held talks with its coalition partners as it struggles to win enough support from the influential Senate. Photographer: James Wilson/Bloomberg
Move Forward Party Leader and prime ministerial candidate Pita Limjaroenrat speaks to the media in Thai Parliament after the parliamentary vote for the premiership in Bangkok. (Photo by Lillian SUWANRUMPHA / AFP)
After Pita was suspended, Pheu Thai instead formed a new alliance with pro-military parties.
Thailand’s new Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin greets the media as he arrives at the Pheu Thai party’s headquarters. (Photo by LILLIAN SUWANRUMPHA/AFP via Getty Images)
Paetongtarn Shinawatra and Srettha Thavisin, Prime Ministerial candidates for Thailand’s Pheu Thai party, greeted supporters during an election rally on May 12, 2023, in Bangkok, Thailand. (Photo by Lauren DeCicca/Getty Images)
62-year-old Srettha is a real estate developer and did not have much experience in politics.
Pheu Thai Party’s prime ministerial candidate Srettha Thavisin greets the press during the election. (Photo by Lauren DeCicca/Getty Images)
But analysts say he had been appointed because he was seen as acceptable to the royalist monarchy supporters and the military.
Thailand's Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, attends during a news conference at Government House. The Constitutional Court has found Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin guilty of a gross ethics violation for appointing ex-convict Pichit Chuenban as a cabinet minister. (Photo by Chaiwat Subprasom/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
During Srettha’s one year as prime minister, opinion polls showed he was very unpopular with the public, who criticized him for failing to show results despite traveling abroad 15 times during his first 10 months.
Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin speaks to the media during talks with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz at the Chancellery on March 13, 2024 in Berlin, Germany. (Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images)President Emmanuel Macron (R) welcomes Prime Minister of Thailand Srettha Thavisin at Elysee Palace on May 16, 2024 in Paris, France. (Photo by Christian Liewig - Corbis/Corbis via Getty Images)
The same day Srettha was approved, Thaksin, who has been living in exile since 2006, returned to Thailand after 15 years.
Self-exiled former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra returned to Thailand on Tuesday, the same day that parliament held the general election. (Photo by Sirachai Arunrugstichai/Getty Images)
He was immediately arrested and put in prison to serve an 8-year sentence over three corruption and abuse-of-power cases.
Thaksin Shinawatra returned to Thailand after 15 years abroad. (Photo by Peerapon Boonyakiat/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
However, Thaksin’s return coincided with his party, Pheu Thai, coming back to power with the pro-military alliance.
Thaksin Shinawatra, Thailand's former prime minister, center, arrives at Don Mueang airport after returning from self-exile in Bangkok, Thailand. Photographer: Valeria Mongelli/Bloomberg
This has led to speculation that Thaksin made a deal with the conservative and royalist establishment to have his jail term reduced to help them retain power.
Former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra (C) and his daughters Pintongtha Kunakornwong (L) and Paetongtarn Shinawatra (2R) greet supporters as he arrives at Don Mueang International Airport. (Photo by Lauren DeCicca/Getty Images)
Thaksin ended up serving only six months of his jail term, receiving a royal pardon from the king and being released in February 2024.
Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra (L) with his daughter Paetongtarn Shinawatra (R) seen during visits Rajapruek Royal Park in Chiang Mai. Thaksin Shinawatra began his first public appearances since leaving detention. (Photo by Pongmanat Tasiri/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
And then, on Aug. 7, Thailand’s constitutional court disbanded Move Forward, finding that its attempt to revise the lèse-majesté law amounted to attempting to overthrow the monarchy.
This screengrab from Thai TV Pool video taken on May 1, 2019 shows a ceremony in which Thailand’s King Maha Vajiralongkorn “legally married” Suthida Vajiralongkorn na Ayudhya in Bangkok. (Photo credit should read THAI TV POOL/AFP/Getty Images)
It banned 11 of its members, including Pita, from politics for 10 years.
A week later, on Aug. 14, the constitutional court removed Srettha as prime minister for "violating ethical standards”.
Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin arrives to the Grand Hyatt Erawan where 6 people were confirmed dead in central Bangkok on July 16, 2024 in Bangkok, Thailand. (Photo by Lauren DeCicca/Getty Images)
This was because he had appointing a lawyer who had been jailed for attempting to bribe government officials, to his cabinet.
Thailand's former prime minister Srettha Thavisin addresses the media after the Thai Constitutional Court ruled to removed him as prime minister at Government House in Bangkok. (Photo by Chanakarn Laosarakham / AFP)
Then two days later, on Friday, Aug. 16, with no other candidates, the parliament chose Thakin’s daughter, Paetongtarn, to be the new prime minister.
Thailand's Defence Minister Sutin Klungsang (C) attends a Pheu Thai Party meeting to decide who to put forward as candidate for prime minister at the parliament in Bangkok. (Photo by Chanakarn Laosarakham / AFP)Thailand's new Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, known by her nickname "Ung Ing" and daughter of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, reacts during a press conference in Bangkok. (Photo by Chanakarn Laosarakham / AFP)
Analysts have said that the chain of events has voided the Thai people’s votes and voices, with one analyst telling the New York Times that it amounted to a “judicial coup” that sets a dangerous precedent.
A protester holds up a placard during a protest at Democracy Monument following the suspension of Move Forward Party leader and prime ministerial candidate Pita Limjaroenrat in Bangkok on July 19, 2023. (Photo by Jack TAYLOR / AFP)
However, others have pointed out that there is still hope as voter engagement has remained high in Thailand despite the political repression at the top.
People cast their vote for the Thai General Election on early voting day on May 07, 2023 in Bangkok, Thailand. (Photo by Lauren DeCicca/Getty Images)
Indeed, upon being banned from politics for 10 years, Pita encouraged voters to vent their frustration in every election forward.
Former Thai prime ministerial candidate and former leader of the progressive Move Forward Party (MFP) Pita Limjaroenrat (L) gestures at the Thai Parliament before the Constitutional Court decides on whether to dissolve his party over its pledge to reform the royal insult laws, in Bangkok. (Photo by Lillian SUWANRUMPHA / AFP)
Meanwhile, the remaining members of Move Forward who were not banned all joined another progressive party, which was renamed the People’s Party and became Move Forward’s successor.
Natthaphong Ruengpanyawut (C), leader of the Thai opposition People's Party, takes part in a press conference next to party members at parliament in Bangkok on August 15, 2024. (Photo by Chanakarn Laosarakham / AFP)
The People’s Party, which is made up of primarily young politicians, is now the largest party and the main opposition party in Thailand and has already exceeded its fundraising target.
People's Party leader, Natthapong "Teng" Ruengpanyawut accepts donations from a supporter at a party recruitment event at Stadium. (Photo by Lauren DeCicca/Getty Images)Move Forward party supporters flash three finger salutes during a pro democracy protest outside Thailand's Parliament building in Bangkok on July 13, 2023, as lawmakers vote on a new prime minister following the country's general election. (Photo by Jack TAYLOR / AFP)
Kassy Cho
