A new Thai political party yesterday vowed to obey a command from the king blocking the candidacy of his eldest sister for prime minister in a dramatic reversal that appeared to boost the junta’s chances ahead of next month’s elections.
The announcement effectively blocks Princess Ubolratana Mahidol’s unprecedented bid for the prime ministry and comes after an extraordinary rebuke of the candidacy by King Maha Vajiralongkorn.
The Thai Raksa Chart party, affiliated with the powerful Shinawatra political clan, announced the princess as their candidate on Friday morning.
Photo: AFP
The move looked to rattle the “status quo” and threaten the ambitions of the junta that has ruled Thailand since it toppled the administration of then-Thai prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra in a 2014 coup.
However, the king torpedoed the bid in a sharply worded statement later in the day that said bringing senior royal family members into politics is against tradition and national culture, and is “highly inappropriate.”
Thai Raksa Chart responded swiftly, canceling a campaign event scheduled for yesterday and issuing a statement saying it would respect “tradition and royal customs.”
“Thai Raksa Chart party complies with the royal command,” it said.
Thailand has some of the most severe lese majeste laws in the world and the king’s word is considered final.
Royalist Thais and celebrities praised the intervention on social media after the order, writing: “Long live the king.”
Analysts believe the events that unfolded over the past two days would help the junta consolidate power and tilt the odds in favor of coup leader and Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-ocha.
Prayut is standing as prime minister for the Phalang Pracharat party, a group aligned with the regime.
The military has “gained the upper hand,” said Anusorn Unno, a professor at Thammasat University, adding that it is poised to perform well in the upcoming vote.
The election on March 24 is the first since the 2014 coup.
Even before Thai Raksa Chart’s reversal, many said that the palace statement had scuttled the princess’ chances.
“The palace disapproval invalidates her candidacy,” said Puangthong Pawakapan a professor of political science at Chulalongkorn University.
Thailand is a constitutional monarchy and has not had a royal run for frontline office since 1932.
The 67-year-old princess did not address the royal rebuke head-on when she yesterday thanked supporters on her widely followed Instagram account, saying vaguely that she wanted Thailand to “move forward.”
The king did not criticize the princess directly and seemed to focus blame on political party members who brought her on board.
The government is aiming to recruit 1,096 foreign English teachers and teaching assistants this year, the Ministry of Education said yesterday. The foreign teachers would work closely with elementary and junior-high instructors to create and teach courses, ministry official Tsai Yi-ching (蔡宜靜) said. Together, they would create an immersive language environment, helping to motivate students while enhancing the skills of local teachers, she said. The ministry has since 2021 been recruiting foreign teachers through the Taiwan Foreign English Teacher Program, which offers placement, salary, housing and other benefits to eligible foreign teachers. Two centers serving northern and southern Taiwan assist in recruiting and training
WIDE NET: Health officials said they are considering all possibilities, such as bongkrekic acid, while the city mayor said they have not ruled out the possibility of a malicious act of poisoning Two people who dined at a restaurant in Taipei’s Far Eastern Department Store Xinyi A13 last week have died, while four are in intensive care, the Taipei Department of Health said yesterday. All of the outlets of Malaysian vegetarian restaurant franchise Polam Kopitiam have been ordered to close pending an investigation after 11 people became ill due to suspected food poisoning, city officials told a news conference in Taipei. The first fatality, a 39-year-old man who ate at the restaurant on Friday last week, died of kidney failure two days later at the city’s Mackay Memorial Hospital. A 66-year-old man who dined
EYE ON STRAIT: The US spending bill ‘doubles security cooperation funding for Taiwan,’ while also seeking to counter the influence of China US President Joe Biden on Saturday signed into law a US$1.2 trillion spending package that includes US$300 million in foreign military financing to Taiwan, as well as funding for Taipei-Washington cooperative projects. The US Congress early on Saturday overwhelmingly passed the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act 2024 to avoid a partial shutdown and fund the government through September for a fiscal year that began six months ago. Under the package, the Defense Appropriations Act would provide a US$27 billion increase from the previous fiscal year to fund “critical national defense efforts, including countering the PRC [People’s Republic of China],” according to a summary
‘CARRIER KILLERS’: The Tuo Chiang-class corvettes’ stealth capability means they have a radar cross-section as small as the size of a fishing boat, an analyst said President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday presided over a ceremony at Yilan County’s Suao Harbor (蘇澳港), where the navy took delivery of two indigenous Tuo Chiang-class corvettes. The corvettes, An Chiang (安江) and Wan Chiang (萬江), along with the introduction of the coast guard’s third and fourth 4,000-tonne cutters earlier this month, are a testament to Taiwan’s shipbuilding capability and signify the nation’s resolve to defend democracy and freedom, Tsai said. The vessels are also the last two of six Tuo Chiang-class corvettes ordered from Lungteh Shipbuilding Co (龍德造船) by the navy, Tsai said. The first Tuo Chiang-class vessel delivered was Ta Chiang (塔江)