(BBC News) Thailand’s Constitutional Court has suspended Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, who has come under mounting pressure to resign over her leaked phone conversation with former Cambodian leader Hun Sen.
The clip, in which Paetongtarn called him “uncle” and criticised a Thai military commander, sparked public anger and a petition for her dismissal, which the court is now considering.
That could make Paetongtarn the third politician in the powerful Shinawatra clan — which has dominated Thai politics for the past two decades — to lose power before completing their term.
Her ruling coalition is already teetering with a slim majority after a key conservative ally abandoned it two weeks ago.
The Constitutional Court voted 7-2 to suspend her while they consider the case for her dismissal. She has 15 days to present her defence.
In the meantime, the deputy PM will serve as the country’s acting leader. Paetongtarn, however, will remain in the cabinet as culture minister, a new appointment following a cabinet reshuffle that was endorsed hours before she was suspended.
On Tuesday, Paetongtarn apologised again, adding that the purpose of her phone call with Hun Sen was “more than 100%… for the country.”
The call was about the border dispute between the two countries — although it is decades old, tensions have risen again since late May when a Cambodian soldier was killed.
The leaked audio especially angered conservative lawmakers who accused her of appeasing Hun Sen and undermining Thailand’s military.
But she defended herself on Tuesday, saying, “I had no intent to do it for my own interest. I only thought about how to avoid chaos, avoid fighting and to avoid loss of lives.
“If you listened to it carefully, you’d understand that I didn’t have ill intentions. This is what I’ll focus and spend time on explaining thoroughly.”
If she is eventually dismissed, Paetongtarn will be the second prime minister from the Pheu Thai party to be removed from premiership since August last year.
