Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra attended a birthday party for outgoing Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen in Phnom Penh, according to video posted online Sunday, a day after Thaksin said he would delay plans to return to Thailand following years of self-imposed exile.
Thaksin’s appearance in Cambodia came at a politically sensitive time in neighboring Thailand, as Pheu Thai, the latest in a string of parties affiliated with Thaksin, is seeking to win enough support in Parliament for one of its members to become the next prime minister almost three months after a general election in May.
Thaksin said on Saturday on the platform X, formerly known as Twitter, that he would delay a planned return to Thailand next Thursday for “no longer than two weeks,” citing a doctor’s appointment.
His daughter, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, who campaigned for prime minister with Pheu Thai in the latest election, had said nearly two weeks ago her father would return to Thailand on Aug. 10.
Thailand has faced an unexpectedly difficult time in selecting a new prime minister after the progressive Move Forward Party, which seeks reforms in several areas, including a controversial law that strictly forbids defamation of the royal family, emerged as a surprise winner in the May 14 polls. Move Forward Party leader Pita Limjaroenrat failed in an initial bid last month to have Parliament name him the new prime minister.
Thaksin was elected Thailand’s prime minister in 2001 and easily reelected in 2005, but was ousted by a military coup in 2006. He was accused of corruption and abuse of power and of disrespecting the country’s monarchy.
He fled Thailand in 2008 to escape a prison term in several criminal cases, which he decried as politically motivated, and still could be jailed for more than a decade on his return.
A government led by his sister, Yingluck Shinawatra, was also ousted by a military coup in 2014. She also faced criminal charges and fled into exile.
Thaksin’s message on Saturday about his delayed return did not mention a trip to Cambodia, but a video posted on Hun Sen’s official TikTok account shows Thaksin standing next to Hun Sen, joined by Hun Sen’s family members, at a birthday party at the Cambodian leader's residence on the outskirts of the capital.
Hun Sen, Asia’s longest-serving leader, turned 71 on Saturday.
Hun Sen posted more than one minute of video from the party and wrote: “This year, my son, children and grandchildren joined by elders and younger ones, and my godbrother, gathered on my birthday at my home.”
Yingluck was also seen in the video.
Thaksin and Hun Sen reportedly have a close relationship and regard each other as “godbrothers.” In 2009, Hun Sen appointed Thaksin as a Cambodian government adviser, but Thaksin soon resigned the position.
On July 26, Hun Sen announced that he will step down as prime minister on Aug. 22 and hand power to his oldest son, Hun Manet, the country’s army chief, after his ruling Cambodian People’s Party won a landslide victory in July 23 elections.
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8 Comments
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Rodney
Difficult to understand. hun sen won, but gave to his son, and the ex Thai, is friends but wanted for corruption. Totally confused.
buua
Birds of a feather . . . Oh, and it may take more than two weeks to select a new prime minister. So, he may need more doctor's appointments.
Stephen Chin
JT Do Not Give Him Any Publicity!
He Wants To Come Back!!
Richard K Price
Going to Thailand? BEWARE. Expect to see more political candidates fleeing to Cambodia, as the Thailand authoritarians are attacking all and any who prefer democracy. Elevated and fictitious charges have always been their chief weapon.s Even tourists and all foreign visitors are subject to random commando-style police assaults, raids, and serial deportations. If Thai law enforcement can further their political aims and succeed in seizing more power Thailand will quickly become another North Korea. It is obvious they wish to close Thai borders to all foreigners.
deanzaZZR
The 250-person Senate is composed of 194 members selected by the ruling junta. Fifty senators represent ten professional and forty social groups: bureaucrats, teachers, judges, farmers, and private companies. A shortlist of 200 were proposed to the NCPO which made the final selection of fifty. The remaining six Senate positions are reserved for the supreme commander of the Armed Forces, the defence permanent secretary, the national police chief, and the heads of the army, navy, and air force, who are all senators ex officio.[4] As of 2020, 104 out of the 250 senators are police or military officers.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Senate_of_Thailand
tom toto
Am I wrong to say in this case, "takes one to know another"? Hun Sen was in power nearly 4 decades! and now his son is in power for another 40 years then pass on to his younger bro? does it remind y'all of any dictatorship? North Korea? Russia? Thaksin to Yingluck, now Peatongtan? Pls say it ain't so. All about corrupt power to do nothing but make $$$$, ain't it?
TaiwanIsNotChina
Say what you will about the Shinawatra's: they weren't in power for even a decade combined. If you ask me the military has far more to answer for.
starpunk
Don't come back, Shinawastra. You have it good enough where you are.