In response to rising hostility over a phone call with former Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, thousands of protesters have gathered in Thailand’s capital to demand Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra’s resignation.
Demonstrators stormed the streets on Saturday, angered by a conversation on June 15 where Paetongtarn warned the current Cambodian Senate president, who still has a lot of influence in his country, to ignore “the other side,” including a resolute Thai army general who she said “just wants to look cool.”
One Cambodian soldier was killed last month in a border clash that the army commander was in charge of. Following an armed brawl in a contentious area, the man was killed on May 28.
The leaked phone call between Hun Sen and Paetongtarn was the catalyst for the protest on Saturday.
As they occupied parts of Bangkok’s central district’s streets near the Victory Monument, protesters carried national flags and signs. Speakers from across the country chanted their love for Thailand during a large stage set up at the monument in response to the country’s escalating border dispute.
According to Al Jazeera’s Tony Cheng, who is based in Bangkok, “It seems like this is going to be a pretty well-attended rally, definitely with a loud voice… Lots of speeches, lots of whistles, lots of noise, all of which are urging Prime Minister Paetongtarn to step down.” They claim that this exchange has undermined Thailand, undermined the military, and that it places her in a difficult position.
Many of the protest’s main figures were well-known Yellow Shirts members, whose clothing color indicates devotion to the Thai monarchy. They are close friends with Hun Sen, Paetongtarn’s father, former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who reportedly has a close relationship with him.
The issue then is who would take Paetongtarn’s place as prime minister, according to Cheng, according to the political scientists we’ve been speaking to about the past few days.
Hun Sen addresses supporters.
Hun Sen in Cambodia on Saturday made the promise to defend the country’s borders from foreign invaders and condemned what he called a Thai force’s attack on the country’s soil last month.
Hun Sen claimed that the Thai army’s engagement with Cambodian forces was against the law at a 74th anniversary celebration marking the establishment of his long-ruling Cambodian People’s Party.
Despite Cambodia’s goodwill in attempting to resolve the border issue, he claimed the skirmish inside Cambodian territory was a serious violation of the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
Cambodia’s poor country has experienced foreign invasion, war, genocide, isolation, and isolation, but it has now come out on top like other nations. We have no politics or hostile stance toward any nation, according to Hun Sen, who addressed thousands of party members at the gathering in Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia. We also need peace, friendship, cooperation, and development.
Territorial disputes between the nations have a long history. A 1962 International Court of Justice decision that granted Cambodia the disputed territory where the site of the famous Preah Vihear temple is still raging still piqued Thailand’s concern. In 2011 there were sporadic but serious clashes. When Yingluck became prime minister in 2013, the UN court’s decision was reaffirmed.
The scandal has caused Paetongtarn’s fragile coalition government to collapse, leaving her party’s main partner, the Bhumjaithai Party, without its assistance.
With 255 seats, just above the majority of the 500-seat house, Bhumjaithai’s departure gave way to the 10-party coalition.
The Constitutional Court and the country’s anticorruption agency are also conducting inquiries into Paetongtarn. Her actions could result in her being removed from office.
The Office of the National Anti-Corruption Commission’s secretary-general, Sarote Phuengrampan, announced on Wednesday that his organization is looking into Paetongtarn for a serious ethical issue related to the Hun Sen phone call. He did not provide a potential decision-making timeline.
According to reports, the Constitutional Court has the authority to appoint Paetongtarn to his position while the investigation is pending, and it may make a decision as early as the following week. The prime minister stated on Tuesday that she is confident in her assertions and is prepared to provide evidence to back up her claim.
She said, “It was obvious from the phone call that I had nothing to gain from it, and I also didn’t harm the country.”
