CNN
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The Thai prime minister was suspended from his mission on Tuesday and could face fire as ethical investigations are pending over leaked calls with Cambodia’s strong former leader.
Paetongtarn Shinawatra, 38, served as prime minister for ten months after replacing his predecessor who was taken from the office. Her pause brings new uncertainty to the Kingdom of Southeast Asia, which has been caught up in years of political turbulence and leadership reforms.
The Thai Constitutional Court has accepted a petition filed by a group of 36 senators who accused both sides of violating the constitution for violating ethical standards in leaked calls that were confirmed as authentic.
The court voted to suspend Paetongtarn from prime minister’s duties until it reached a verdict on the ethics case. Paetongtarn will remain in the cabinet as Minister of Culture following the re-shuffle.
Paetongtarn faces an increase in resignations as anti-government protesters took them to the streets of the capital Bangkok on Saturday after leaking a leaked border dispute with Cambodia’s Hun Sen sparked widespread outrage in the country.
The scandal urged the Bumjaitai Party, a key partner in the prime minister’s government, to withdraw from the coalition last week, causing a major blow to her ability to retain power. Paetongtarn is also fighting a plunging approval rating and faces an unconfident vote in Congress.
In a leaked call on June 15, Paetongtan called former Cambodian Strongman Hun Sen “Uncle” and appeared to be criticizing the actions of her own military forces after the border conflict led to the death of a Cambodian soldier last month.
The Thai Prime Minister could be heard telling Hun Sen that she was under domestic pressure, urging her not to listen to the “opposite side” who mentioned the outspoken Thai army commander in northeastern Thailand.
She also added that Hun Sen “If he wants something, he can tell me and I’ll take care of it.”
Her comments on the leaked audio have been nervous in Thailand, with opponents accusing her of compromising the country’s national interests.
Following the ruling, Paetontan accepted the court’s decision and stated that her intention was “to act in the interests of the state.”
“I want to make it clear that my intentions are 100% integrity. I have acted for the country, to protect sovereignty, to protect the lives of our soldiers and to maintain the peace of our nation,” she said at a press conference Tuesday.
“I would also like to apologise to my fellow Taiyce who may be worried or upset about the issue,” she added.
Thailand and Cambodia have developed complex relationships with both cooperation and competition over the last few decades. The two countries share a 508-mile (817km) land border. This is mainly mapped by the French while occupying Cambodia, but it was a source of political tensions, seeing regular military conflicts.
In the wake of the scandal, Paetongtann tried to downplay his remarks to Hun Sen, and said at a press conference it was trying to spread tensions between his two neighbors and his “private” calls.
The Prime Minister said she was using “negotiation tactics” and that her comments were “not a statement of loyalty.”
Paetongtarn became prime minister last year after the Constitutional Court ruled that her predecessor, Srettha Thavisin, voted to dismiss him as prime minister, in violation of ethical rules.
The same court also dissolved the general progressive progressive party in the country, which won the most seats in the 2023 election, banning leaders from politics for a decade.
