BANGKOK (news agencies) — Thailand’s Constitutional Court suspended Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra on Tuesday, pending an ethics investigation over accusations that she was too deferential to a senior Cambodian leader when the two discussed a recent border dispute in a phone call that was leaked.
Paetongtarn has faced growing dissatisfaction over her handling of the dispute, which involved an armed confrontation on May 28, in which one Cambodian soldier was killed. In a call with Cambodian Senate President Hun Sen, she attempted to defuse tensions — but instead set off a string of complaints and public protests by critics who accused her of being too fawning.
Paetongtarn’s suspension raises the possibility of renewed instability in Thailand, a still fragile democracy that has suffered several similar bouts of uncertainty. At the root of much of that were concerns from the conservative establishment, including the military, that the political dynasty started by Paetongtarn’s father, the popular but divisive former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, was growing too powerful.
She is the third member of her family to hold the prime minister’s office — and the third to face the possibility of removal before her term ended. Thaksin was removed from office in a 2006 coup and driven into exile, while his sister, former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawtra, was removed by a court order in 2014, followed shortly after by a coup.
This “recurring cycle of political instability” would likely keep repeating unless Thailand goes through a genuine democratic reform that includes limiting power of unelected institutions, said Purawich Watanasukh, a political science lecturer at Thammasat University in Bangkok.
“Without such foundational reforms, any government, regardless of who leads it, will remain vulnerable to the same forces that have repeatedly disrupted Thailand’s democratic development,” he said.
The suspension also comes at a time when the country is facing an economic slowdown and growing discontent with Paetongtarn and her Pheu Thai party, in general, with critics saying her government’s performance has been underwhelming.
The judges voted unanimously Tuesday to review the petition accusing her of a breach of the ethics, and voted 7-2 to immediately suspend her from duty as a prime minister until a ruling is given. The court gave Paetongtarn 15 days to give evidence to support her case.
After the court order, Paetongtarn said that she would accept the process and defended her actions.
“I only thought about what to do to avoid troubles, what to do to avoid armed confrontation, for the soldiers not to suffer any loss,” she said.
She also apologized to people upset over the leaked call and left the Government House shortly after.
Suriya Jungrungruangkit, who is a deputy prime minister and a transport minister, will take charge as acting prime minister, said Chousak Sirinil, minister of the prime minister’s office.
Earlier Tuesday, before the court suspended Paetongtarn, King Maha Vajiralongkorn had endorsed a Cabinet reshuffle after a major party left the government coalition over the leaked call.
In the reshuffle, Paetongtarn also received the position of culture minister, in addition to prime minister, though it’s not clear if she can take the oath to take up that role.
In the call about the border tensions, Paetongtarn could be heard urging Hun Sen — a longtime friend of her father — not to listen to a Thai regional army commander who had publicly criticized Cambodia about the border dispute, and called him “an opponent.”
