Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra has been removed from office by Thailand’s Constitutional Court after being found guilty of an ethics violation related to a leaked phone call with former Cambodian leader Hun Sen. With this order passed, her one-year tenure comes to an end.
Paetongtarn Shinawatra who is the daughter of the former PM Thaksin Shinawatra and the niece of former PM Yinluck Shinawatra became Thailand’s first female PM in a decade after her party’s strong performance in the elections of 2023.
During Shinawatra’s reign, the Thai government focused extensively on economic revival, agriculture, and expanding social welfare. Her regime was known for its youth inclusivity that promoted women in politics as well as improved ties with foreign nations.
Even though her tenure was marked by both socio and economic progress, a few accusations led to her removal from the office of the Prime Minister.
First and foremost she was charged with ethical violation where she breached political ethics, that was evidenced by a leaked phone call conversation with the former counterpath PM Hun Sen of Cambodia. Analysts argue that her talks with Hun Sen could have influenced the Thai foreign policies, and might also bring a clash between her personal interest and the nation’s interest.
Secondly, throughout her career, critics have argues that she never was never chosen as a PM on the basis of merit, but her selection was influenced by her political background, more importantly because of being Thaksin Shinawatra’s daughter who was himself an ousted PM, when his government got dismissed in 2006 because accusations of mass corruption, abuse of power and violation of human rights.
Hence, keeping these circumstances in consideration, the Constitutional Court of Thailand delivered a ruling where the PM was found guilty, the court cited that she failed to uphold integrity and the ethos of the Thai constitution as the nation’s Prime Minister.
The procedure of this dismissal came into being through a petition signed by opposition parties which included the evidence of the leaked conversation recording, on the basis of which the judges unanimously disqualified her and forced her to remove from the Prime-Ministership of Thailand.
