The removal of Thailand’s prime minister by the Constitutional Court has rocked the nation’s politics and dealt a blow to its most powerful political family. Amid escalating border tensions with Cambodia, Paetongtarn Shinawatra was fired for unethical behavior in a phone call that was leaked in June. In the call, she was heard calling former Cambodian leader Hun Sen her “uncle” and criticizing the Thai army.
Hun Sen himself leaked the call, which hurt her image and led to accusations that she was weakening the nation’s army. Following the court’s decision, Paetongtarn, the daughter of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, becomes the fifth prime minister to be ousted from office since 2008. Paetongtarn was found to have broken the ethical norms expected of her office by the court’s nine justices, who voted against her on Friday, 6 to 3.
The court rejected her arguments that the conversation was a “personal negotiation to… bring back peace without using violence” and stated that Paetongtarn had a “personal relationship” that “appeared to align with Cambodia.” She was found to have “caused the public to cast doubt” on whether her actions “would benefit Cambodia more than the nation’s interest” in the verdict. Despite acknowledging the court’s decision, Paetongtarn maintained that she was attempting to save lives.
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