Princess Ubolratana

Court to hear case against Thai Raksa Chart

Thailand's constitutional court on Thursday said it would hear a case to dissolve the party which proposed a princess for prime minister, an ill-fated candidacy which threatens to sink the election strategy of the powerful Shinawatra clan.The Thai Raksa Chart party nominated Princess Ubolratana for premier last Friday, a bombshell move bringing Thai royalty to frontline politics for the first time since the 1932 establishment of a constitutional monarchy.Hours later the princess's b

15 February 2019
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Thailand may dissolve party linked to princess

Thailand's election commission on Wednesday asked the constitutional court to dissolve a party that proposed a princess as candidate for prime minister, a potentially serious blow to the political aspirations of the kingdom's powerful Shinawatra clan.Junta-ruled Thailand has sunk into political chaos since Friday, when Princess Ubolratana's name was submitted by Thai Raksa Chart, a party allied with the divisive billionaire ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra.Her unprecedented bid to

14 February 2019
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Thaksin turns campaign to Thai economy

Allies of Thailand’s exiled former leader Thaksin Shinawatra are seeking to woo voters with a plan to revive economic growth after a failed bid to run King Maha Vajiralongkorn’s sister as a prime minister candidate in next month’s election.Kittiratt Na Ranong, a former finance minister and deputy leader of Pheu Thai – one of several parties backed by Thaksin along with Thai Raksa Chart – said his colleagues are “going forward in full gear” ahead of the 24 March vote.

13 February 2019
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Army-aligned party says its respectful of Thai law

Opponents of the Shinawatra political clan campaigned triumphantly in the Thai capital on Sunday, after a weekend of high political drama when a Thai princess' bid to be premier provoked a rare royal rebuke.Thai Princess Ubolratana's unprecedented attempt to become prime minister of Thailand was scuttled after her party agreed to comply with a command from her brother King Maha Vajiralongkorn on Friday, opposing her move to contest the upcoming election.The Thai Raksa Chart party, a

11 February 2019
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Royal command ends Thai princess’ bid for PM

Thai Princess Ubolratana's unprecedented attempt to become the country's next prime minister was abruptly nixed Saturday after her party agreed to comply with a command from the king opposing the plan.The party's announcement effectively blocking Ubolratana's candidacy came after an extraordinary rebuke by her brother King Maha Vajiralongkorn, and removes a hurdle for the ruling junta to hold onto power after the 24 March – the first since a 2014 coup.The Thai Raksa Chart

10 February 2019
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Blood is thicker than water

"Montesquieu once said 'There is no crueller tyranny than that which is perpetuated under the shield of law and in the name of justice'," Thaksin Shinawatra tweeted on August 29, 2017. Thaksin broke his two-year silence on Twitter by issuing the tweet in both English and Thai which quoted the 18th century French philosopher Charles de Montesquieu. The tweet went viral on Thai social media and has been retweeted 11,700 times to-date.

13 September 2017
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