5/10/2014 BBC News - Profile: Yingluck Shinawatra

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ASIA
7 May 2014 Last updated at 05:19 ET
Profile: Yingluck Shinawatra
Yingluck Shinawatra became Thailand's first female prime minister when she led the Pheu Thai party to victory in the July
2011 general election.
She remained in the post for nearly three years, until the Constitutional Court forced her to step down in May 2014 after finding her
guilty of abusing her power.
The former businesswoman, who is 46, was following as PM in the footsteps of her more famous brother, tycoon-turned-politician
Thaksin Shinawatra.
Pheu Thai's landslide victory in the July 2011 general election came a year after violent protests on the streets of Bangkok. Under
Ms Yingluck, Thailand enjoyed relative stability for just over two years.
But a failed attempt to pass a political amnesty bill in November 2013 reignited simmering tensions, fuelling long-standing claims
that her government is controlled by her brother, who was ousted from power and lives in self-imposed exile.
Protesters returned to the streets, leaving Thailand's bitter divisions once again exposed.
Ms Yingluck called a snap election, which was disrupted and later annulled. The battle to oust her then moved to the courts, which
her supporters say are biased.
'Two competencies'
Before the 2011 election, Ms Yingluck, who has two degrees in politics, had never run for office or held a government post.
She had until then pursued a corporate career, formerly as managing director of AIS, the telecommunications firm her brother
founded, and managing director of SC Asset Company, a family firm involved in property.
Critics were quick to point out her political inexperience, saying her main qualification appeared to be the fact that she was the
youngest sister of Thaksin Shinawatra, the telecommunications billionaire who was ousted as prime minister by the military in 2006
and jailed in absentia for corruption.
They suggested her primary role was to marshal the Thaksin faithful - the mainly poor rural voters who kept him in power - and then
serve as his proxy as he governed from overseas exile.
Ms Yingluck performed well on the campaign trail - people seemed to warm to her.
In July 2011, the same voters who had put her brother in power backed the Pheu Thai party, which formed a ruling coalition.
Speaking to the BBC after her election win, Ms Yingluck said she planned to work hard.
"My family is a political family plus I have experience in business - I have been running a listed company for 20 years - so I will use
the two competencies together to help Thailand to improve, especially in terms of the economy," she said.
After several politically turbulent years in Thailand, people would trust her, she said, as long as the government preserved the rule of
law and treated people fairly.
"As long as we solve problems, I hope Thai people will give me a chance to prove myself and show my sincerity," she said.
5/10/2014 BBC News - Profile: Yingluck Shinawatra
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Three months later, she faced her first challenge as parts of Thailand were hit by severe flooding.
More than 500 people died in the north of the country and a fifth of the capital ended up under water, forcing her government to
announce a 100bn baht ($4bn: 2.5bn) recovery plan amid accusations it had been unprepared.
In early 2012, her government approved a compensation fund for victims of recent political unrest - allocating 2bn baht ($63m,
40.8m) to families of the deceased, as well as those who were hurt or "unfairly detained".
Ms Yingluck was also seen to establish cordial ties with two key institutions, the royal palace and the military.
But a rice subsidy policy, whereby her government bought rice from farmers at above market rates to boost rural incomes, hit
Thailand's rice exports hard. Her opponents said the programme was rife with corruption and many farmers were left out of pocket.
Snap poll
It was, however, the political amnesty bill that provided the trigger for protests which foreshadowed Ms Yingluck's demise.
Her government proposed legislation allowing amnesty for those convicted of political violence that took place after the coup that
ousted Thaksin Shinawatra, including the mass street protests that paralysed Bangkok in 2010.
It proved unpopular with some of her traditional supporters, who argued it would allow those responsible for the deaths of civilian
protesters in 2010 to go free.
But it sparked opposition fury, amid fears the ruling party would use it to allow Thaksin Shinawatra back into Thailand without having
to serve his jail term.
And the firm conviction among opposition supporters that Ms Yingluck's government was controlled by her brother caused some to
erupt onto the streets in protest.
Ms Yingluck appealed for calm - and allowed the amnesty bill to fail in the Senate. But that did not appease the protesters, who want
her government replaced with an unelected "people's council".
The government's decision to call a snap election for 2 February also failed to quell anger. The ruling party was expected to win the
election and the opposition boycotted the polls, which were then declared unconstitutional.
Fresh elections were announced but the opposition called for them to be delayed and a referendum on reforms to be held.
Then the courts stepped in and removed Ms Yingluck over the transfer of her national security chief. Whether this will appease the
protesters, however, and end Thailand's political crisis remains to be seen.
More Asia stories
Ousted Thai PM supporters hold rally
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Police are on standby as the first big pro-government march after the ousting of Thai PM Yingluck Shinawatra takes place in Bangkok.
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REVIEW & OUTLOOK NOCO
Thailand's Aristocratic Dead-Enders
The royalists who can't win an election stage a judicial
coup.
May 7, 2014 12:52 p.m. ET
Thailand's new caretaker prime minister, Niwattumrong Boonsongpaisan, ended his first full day Thursday as the nation's leader. The
WSJ's Ramy Inocencio asks Asia Foundation's Kim McQuay if the removal of Yingluck will ease the political crisis.
Royalist forces struck another blow against Thai democracy Wednesday when the
country's Constitutional Court staged a judicial coup and removed Prime
Minister Yingluck Shinawatrafrom office. Her supposed crime: having impure motives
when she transferred a bureaucrat three years ago. For the third time in a decade,
this unaccountable institution controlled by the aristocracy has removed an elected
leader for dubious reasons.
The justices' meddling rewards the bad behavior of the ironically named royalist
Democrat Party. It boycotted the general election in February after several of its
leaders led street protests aimed at overthrowing democracy and installing a ruling
council made up of the country's elite.
In March, the Constitutional Court nullified the result of the election on the grounds
that protesters prevented it from being held on the same day across the country. The
opposition has blocked a revote, leaving the country in political limbo with a caretaker
government. Now that the court has removed Ms. Yingluck and nine other ministers
from office, Deputy Prime Minister Niwattumrong Boonsongpaisan will soldier on. But
the National Anti-Corruption Commission might remove him too.
The situation would be laughable if it weren't so dangerous. The conflict has
emboldened extremists on both sides who threaten to start a civil war. That would pit
rural parts of the country, particularly in the north, that support the populist
Shinawatra family against the pro-royalist urban areas and the south. The pro-
Shinawatra forces won the last five elections, so new elections are unlikely to change
the outcome. The military, which last staged a coup in 2006, is divided and reluctant
to seize power again.
Yingluck 2

Thailand's Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra.Reuters
That leaves the aristocracy with institutional power centers guaranteed by an
undemocratic constitution created by the military junta in 2007. The Anti-Corruption
Commission and several other bodies can also stymie the will of the voters, but the
Constitutional Court is the key because it has blocked all attempts so far to revise the
constitution.
It appears the only near-term solution that will preserve Thailand's fragile democracy
and avoid bloodshed is a negotiated settlement. The Democrat leader Abhisit
Vejjajiva opened the door to talks two weeks ago, and Ms. Yingluck welcomed the
move. If the aristocracy's prerogatives are guaranteed and the Democrats given a
few posts, it's possible that the conflict can be shelved for a few more years.
However, such a peace will remain precarious because the two sides hold
fundamentally incompatible visions for Thailand's future. Ms. Yingluck's brother
Thaksin Shinawatra upset the country's feudal order when he mobilized ordinary
Thais to demand real power in 2001. That genie can't be put back in the bottle, even
if the Shinawatras are purged from politics.
The Constitutional Court's decision this week is a last gasp of the old regime,
discrediting itself as it fights to hold back the forces of democracy. One can hope that
a wiser leader will emerge from the royalist camp who will realize this and stop trying
to overthrow democracy. While the Democrats may be unable to win elections in the
near term, they can still wield considerable influence and restrain the worst populist
impulses of the pro-Shinawatra camp. For now, though, it appears the aristocracy is
not ready to give up its claim to a divine right to rule Thailand and accept the more
modest role of loyal opposition.
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Yingluck 3
Banyan
Asia
The future of Thailand's elite
!"#$#"%%#& ()$*+,
May 6th 2014, 18:10 by The Economist | BANGKOK


A FEW months before Yingluck Shinawatra became prime minister, German spies in
the state of Bavaria found themselves facing an exotic problem: her billionaire
brother, Thaksin Shinawatra, was to be granted a royal audience. The crown prince of
Thailand, Maha Vajiralongkorn, was already a familiar visitor to southern Germanys
Alpine foothills. But in deigning to greet Mr Thaksin on foreign soil, the prince was
meeting not only a former prime minister but also a fugitive from Thai justice.
Little is known about what the two men discussed. The old Thai establishment
represented by the civil service, the army, the judiciary and the monarchy despises
them both. For Mr Thaksin and the heir-apparent personify the end of the old
tutelary democracy and the beginning of Thailands political future: a European-style
constitutional monarchy with the king as titular head of state. With it will come an
end to the kingdoms Byzantine court culture, which reveres rank and rewards status,
and devalues electoral democracy.
The elites fear is well-grounded: In the words of a cable sent by Americas
ambassador to Thailand in 2005, Mr Thaksin long ago invested in crown-prince
futures. A Singaporean diplomat judged that the telecoms-tycoon-turned-populist-
politician had been pursuing a relationship with the Crown Prince by paying off the
Crown Prince's gambling debts. And the Germans knew of a gift that Thaksin gave
Yingluck 4
the crown prince in early 2001: a Maybach, a !500,000 luxury car, which was
subsequently integrated into the royal fleet.
Their next meeting on Thai soil is probably still one royal succession, a few elections,
court rulings and perhaps a new constitution away. On May 7th Ms Yingluck is poised
to become the third prime minister to be removed from office by court order since
Thailands revolution of 1932 (another unlucky nine, including her brother, were
simply kicked out by coup dtat). On May 6th she appeared before the constitutional
court to defend herself against allegations that she abused the powers of her office in
2011 by transferring a national-security adviser. The speculation has it that, if she
were removed by a court order, it could trigger a civil warwhich would be the first
ever in a modern, upper-middle-income country. (For anyone planning to keep score:
in 2011 Thailands upper-middle benchmark of $4,400 gross national income per
capita put it in a higher bracket than Ukraine, with $3,100; the World Bankregards
that as the difference between upper-middle and lower-middle income brackets.)
So on May 2nd, Abhisit Vejjajiva, the leader of the establishment political party, the
Democrats, made an offer. He wants for a general election that is scheduled for July
20th to be scrapped; for Ms Yingluck and her cabinet to step down; and for the senate
to appoint an unelected prime minister and a neutral government who would
oversee reforms to be drawn up by the foes of the Shinawatra clan. Some of those
planners include people who have been trying to topple the government in six
months of street protests. The whole affair could take two years. Economic advisers
were not consulted, apparentlythey would have pointed out that Thailands
grinding war of ideologies has already tipped the economy into recession. Mr Abhisit
said that if his plan were successful he would not run in the next poll (leaving it to his
critics to point out that he is anyway already barred from standing in it).
The government rejected his proposal as unconstitutional. It must have been hard for
them to see how Mr Abhisits bid to dictate democracy differed from the ideas of the
coup-mongering Mr Suthep, an ex-Democrat MP who is leading the street protests.
Mr Sutheps movement has been boxed into a public park in Bangkok since March.
On May 4th village headmen organised against Mr Suthep and descended on the
capital, forcing him to call off his six-month long siege of the interior ministry.
Nevertheless, he issued another call, his ninth, for a final battle to rid the kingdom
of evils, i.e. to topple the Shinawatra-led government.
Meanwhile, the election commission looks ready to prepare a royal decree for
elections on July 20th, to be presented to the king to for his endorsement. Ms
Yingluck 5
Yinglucks Pheu Thai party won a poll on February 2nd. But it wasnt much of a fight;
the opposition Democrats had boycotted it and the constitutional court subsequently
annulled it. Under the constitution a party that boycotts two consecutive polls faces
the prospect of being disbanded. Since the most recent poll was annulled however,
the Democrats can have another go at boycotting. They may well wish to. Parties loyal
to Mr Thaksin have won six consecutive elections (2001, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2011 and
2013).
The Democrat party, what the reds call the kings party, says that this is not a battle
over royal succession nor is it a case of the army, courts and bureaucracy defending
the old order. Instead, on their view, it is about the abuse of parliamentary power,
majoritarianism and corruption, in the words of a former finance minister and
Democrat politician, Korn Chatikavanij.
They have a point. The government must confront corruption, stop treating the state
as its cash tilland instead use its electoral mandate for the good of the country.
But the idea that majoritarianism lies at the heart of the mess in Thailand is silly.
Majoritarianism typically involvesan elected government that captures the courts,
silences media critics and tinkers with the constitution to perpetuate its rule. In
Thailand the opposite is true: the courts, the media, the bureaucracy, and the
universities are extensions of the old Thai establishment, with the palace at its centre.
The kings advisers on the Privy Council are powerful. They oversee military
appointments and then use their appointees to bless coups. After the coup in 2006 a
military government abolished the constitution, which the advisers felt had made Mr
Thaksins power unassailable. In its place they put a charter that gives the courts
tremendous powers, making it possible for them to remove the head of an elected
government on the slightest of technicalities.
Despite the expectation of Ms Yinglucks imminent ousting, there is a whiff of futility
about the larger effort to cement the old order in place. The Democrats, who were
founded as a party on April 6th, 1946 (the coronation day of King Rama I, who
established the Chakri dynasty in 1782) are looking oddly out of touch. Former
military heavyweights have openly lobbied the Privy Council, the body Mr Thaksin
refers to derisively as the help, to step in. Many of them were, like the men on the
Privy Council, born in the days when Thailands army chose to support the losing side
in the second world war. The consequence of that decision still looms large: unlike
Japan or Germany, who were defeated by the Allies, for Thailand democracy is still a
shaky concept.
Yingluck 6
So why now? Some supporters of the Shinawatras say this represents the old orders
last chance to secure its privileges and prevent royal wealth falling into public coffers.
Many would have preferred the crown princess to her brother. But the palace recently
made a decision that matters a great dealand counts as a snub to the Privy Council.
It named the crown prince as the new commander of the Royal Guards 1st Army
Division and their 2nd Cavalry. These units, both headquartered in Bangkok, have
determined the success of past coups and continue to be seen as indispensable for the
pulling off of any future coup dtat. To give them to the crown prince is to pre-empt
any fiddling with the royal succession. An adviser in Ms Yinglucks government
reckons this has made a coup in Thailand less likely than at any time in history.
The crown princes strengthened position, in effect an insurance policy against coups
and meddling, was only made official in April. It had been initiated much earlier,
before Mr Suthep began his shutdown of the capital. For as long as Mr Sutheps
sputtering revolution filled the streets of Bangkok, the military establishment held
out hope that the government might be made to fallwhile the possibilities for
succession were vague. Now it is hard to see any way in which the crown princes path
to the throne might be subverted. Which should make Mr Sutheps antics that much
less appealing.
Mr Thaksin, holding court in Singapore last month, summarised the state of play:
the help is trying to egg on the king, to take down this government. Whatever
happens next to Mr Thaksins sister, the Germans early hunch looks spot on.
Thailands future seems to have begun in Bavaria.
http://www.economist.com/node/21601755/print







Yingluck 7

The Dark, Sordid
History of the Court
That Ousted Thailands
Prime Minister
BY JAKE SCOBEY-THAL
MAY 7, 2014 - 06:59 PM


Yingluck 8

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Yingluck 9
Thailand's Constitutional Court may have finally done what months of anti-
government demonstrations failed to do -- unseat Prime Minister Yingluck
Shinawatra.
In a ruling Wednesday, the court ordered Yingluck to step down, finding her guilty of
abusing her power by transferring a senior civil servant to a new position in 2011 and
freeing up another job for a relative, an accusation she denies. The court also ordered
nine cabinet ministers to resign. The remaining members quickly appointed Deputy
Prime Minister Niwattumrong Boonsongpaisan as interim leader.
The roots of Thailand's political crisis come down to simple math: Thailand's
opposition Democratic Party does not have the votes to compete against Yingluck's
Pheu Thai party, comprised primarily by rural and lower class voters from the north, at
the polls. The Democrats, who led the demonstrations against Yingluck, have not won
an election in almost 20 years.
In place of free and fair elections, opposition politicians have leaned on elite
bureaucratic institutions -- the courts, the army, the crown -- to maintain their power.
These institutions form the backbone of Thailand's traditional political establishment,
whose authority is threatened by Yingluck's electoral majority.
For Yingluck's supporters, the ruling represents the latest effort by the opposition to
oust the democratically-elected leader by underhanded means. Anti-government
demonstrators, comprised primarily of southerners and urban elites, took to the streets
in November 2013 in an attempt to unseat Yingluck and have battled the government
in the streets for the better part of the last six months. But until now, they have had
little success in achieving their goal of removing the Shinawatra family from the Thai
political scene.
Few among these institutions have played such an outsized role in the current political
crisis as the Constitutional Court. The court, as Dominic J. Nardi, an expert on
Southeast Asian politics and a Ph.D candidate at the University of Michigan, writes,
Yingluck 10
"was not necessarily created with the altruistic goal of protecting fundamental rights.
Rather, constitutional court justices serve to enforce the policy preferences of the
political elites who appointed them -- a sort of insurance policy' against populism or
electoral defeat."
Indeed, the ouster of Prime Minister Yingluck is only the latest example of the type of
politicized judicial activism that has come to define the bench. The Constitutional
Court, established in 1997 as an additional check on Thailand's various government
branches, had a mixed record in its early years. It initially took an aggressive tack in
combating official corruption, removing a number of politicians in graft probes during
the late 1990s. The court actually exonerated Thaksin Shinawatra, Yingluck's brother,
in a corruption case after he came to power in 2001 behind the same coalition of rural,
lower-class voters who support his sister.
Yet in the mid-2000s the court became increasingly aligned with Thailand's traditional
political power brokers. In 2006, after opposition politicians boycotted the vote, the
court invalidated the electoral victory of then-Prime Minister Thaksin. Later that year,
the army seized control of the government in a bloodless coup. Facing corruption
charges, Thaksin left Thailand in self-imposed exile.
Thailand's military leaders established a new Constitutional Tribunal in the wake of
their ascension to power. In 2007, the tribunal dissolved Thaksin's Thai Rak Thai
party, alleging fraud in the 2006 election.
These decisions were only the beginning of a judicial effort to dismantle Thaksin's
political machine. In 2008, the court removed Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej, a
Thaksin ally, because he allegedly accepted payments to be on a cooking show.
High-profile acquittals of leaders of the Democrat Party, the main opponents of the
Shinawatra political dynasty, have hardly helped the court's reputation for issuing one-
sided rulings. In 2010, the court dropped electoral fraud charges against then-Prime
Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and his ruling Democrat Party.
Yingluck 11
In November 2013, the court ruled against a proposed constitutional amendment that
would have changed the structure of the Senate. As currently structured, one half of
the legislators in the 150-member body are appointed by judges and civil servants. The
measure would have converted the chamber to a fully elected 200-member institution.
The opposition Democrat Party petitioned the court to review the bill on the grounds
that it gave too much power to Yingluck's Pheu Thai party, which maintains greater
popular support.
After the decision, Supot Kaimook, one of the nine judges of the Constitutional
Court, claimed the court was concerned about the rights of the minority. "Thailand's
democratic system allows the majority to set the standard," he wrote. "But once it uses
its power arbitrarily and suppresses the minority without listening to reason, this
makes the majority lose its legitimacy."
This system, he asserted, could no longer be called "democratic." "It results in the
tyranny of the majority," he said.
The court, it seems, can always be counted on to combat tyranny -- the kind of tyranny
that will strip the Bangkok elite of their power, anyway.
Borja Sanchez-Trillo/Getty Images
http://blog.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2014/05/07/the_dark_sordid_history_of_the_court_th
at_ousted_thailand_s_prime_minister

5/10/2014 Thai Prime Minister Ordered Removed From Office - NYTimes.com
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/08/world/asia/court-orders-thai-leader-removed-from-office.html 1/4
http://nyti.ms/1kKJefC
ASIA PACIFIC | NYT NOW
Thai Prime Minister Ordered Removed From
Office
By THOMAS FULLER MAY 7, 2014
BANGKOK A Thai court on Wednesday ordered Prime Minister
Yingluck Shinawatra removed from office, a highly divisive move and a
victory for a powerful opposition movement that for six months has
sought to overthrow the government.
The Constitutional Court ruled that Ms. Yingluck abused her power
when she transferred a civil servant to another post more than three
years ago. The court ordered her to step down immediately along with
all members of her cabinet who were in office at the time of the
transfer.
Ms. Yinglucks party called the decision a new form of coup
dtat.
Leaders of Ms. Yinglucks party quickly announced that a deputy
prime minister, Niwattumrong Boonsongpaisan, would become acting
prime minister.
It was the third time since 2006 that a prime minister representing
the political movement founded by Ms. Yinglucks brother Thaksin
Shinawatra has been removed by court order. The movement, which
has its power base in the provinces, has won every election since 2001
but has antagonized the Bangkok establishment, a struggle that is at
the heart of Thailands eight years of political crisis.
Thailand for decades was considered an island of pluralism,
freedom and strong economic growth especially in contrast with its
neighbors but its economy has suffered during the recent turmoil,
and leaders have warned of civil war.
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The courts decision, which highlights its overtly political role,
throws into question elections announced for July 20, which the
governing party was expected to win because of its strong support in the
northern provinces.
Bhokin Bhalakula, a member of the governing party, Pheu Thai,
told reporters at the partys headquarters that the court decision was
part of a new form of coup dtat in order to establish a new regime
and destroy the hope of the people who want to see the country progress
democratically and with rule of law.
Mr. Niwattumrong, the commerce minister who was named acting
prime minister, is a former executive in Mr. Thaksins corporate
empire. His appointment is likely to exacerbate tensions with the
antigovernment movement, which wants to eradicate Mr. Thaksins
influence from the country.
Verapat Pariyawong, a lawyer and prominent commentator, said
the courts removal of Ms. Yingluck raised the prospect of more
violence. At least 20 people have been killed in political violence since
the governing party set off protests in November by trying to ram
through a bill giving political amnesty to Mr. Thaksin that would erase
corruption cases against him and allow him to return from self-imposed
exile.
The antigovernment movement, which is armed, continues to block
access to the prime ministers office and a number of other government
facilities in Bangkok. Pro-government red shirts, who in the past have
also been allied with shadowy armed groups, are planning a show of
force on the outskirts of Bangkok on Saturday.
Highlighting concerns about violence, the Thai news media
reported Wednesday that for security reasons, the judges and staff
members of the Constitutional Court would not return to work until
Tuesday.
Ms. Yingluck, 46, was the countrys first female prime minister but
was loathed by the opposition and called a proxy for Mr. Thaksin, who
has lived abroad since a 2006 military coup and a subsequent
conviction for abuse of power in a highly politicized trial.
5/10/2014 Thai Prime Minister Ordered Removed From Office - NYTimes.com
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I am so sorry that I no longer have the opportunity to serve the
people, Ms. Yingluck said on national television after the court
decision, adding that she was proud that she became prime minister
through democratic means.
Ms. Yingluck could face further legal proceedings on charges that
she mismanaged the governments costly subsidy program for rice
farmers, charges that could lead to a prison term and a ban from
politics. The countrys countercorruption commission is to decide
Thursday whether to press the case.
The courts verdict was unanimous and was reached with unusual
speed. It was delivered just one day after Ms. Yingluck gave evidence at
the court.
The antigovernment movement, which is supported by some of
Thailands wealthiest families, has called for an appointed prime
minister and described Wednesdays court verdict as a partial victory. It
turned to the courts after unsuccessfully trying to force Ms. Yingluck
out.
The Constitutional Court has backed the protest movement, saying
in previous rulings that protesters, who also led a campaign to block
elections, had the right to exercise their rights and liberty. A lower
court barred the government from dispersing protesters.
As the antigovernment movement cheered the decision to remove
Ms. Yingluck, independent legal experts despaired over what they
described as the crusading role of the courts and the damage to the
prestige of the judiciary.
The decision to remove Ms. Yingluck is total nonsense in a
democratic society, said Ekachai Chainuvati, the deputy dean of the
law faculty at Siam University in Bangkok.
This is what I would call a juristocracy a system of government
governed by judges, Mr. Ekachai said.
In one of its most notable decisions, the Constitutional Court in
2008 removed another prime minister, also from Mr. Thaksins political
movement, because he had appeared on a televised cooking show. On
Wednesday the court cited the cooking show case as precedent in its
5/10/2014 Thai Prime Minister Ordered Removed From Office - NYTimes.com
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decision.
The grounds for Ms. Yinglucks ouster were that she did not give
sufficient justification when she transferred the secretary general of the
National Security Council, Thawil Pliensri, to another post in 2011. The
court said that Ms. Yingluck was within her rights to remove Mr.
Thawil but that the move was rushed, intended to free up another job
for a relative of Ms. Yinglucks and not done according to moral
principles.
In a stark symbol of the dysfunction of the Thai government, Mr.
Thawil was reinstated, on court order, last week, and he told the news
media that even while in office, he would continue to support the
movement to remove the government.
Poypiti Amatatham contributed reporting.
A version of this article appears in print on May 8, 2014, on page A5 of the New York edition
with the headline: Thai Prime Minister Ordered Removed From Office.
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1/4


PM's dismissal shakes Thai
political scene
Constitutional Court's ruling against Yingluck Shinawatra sets stage
for fresh round of political bickering and unrest.
Robert Kennedy Last updated: 08 May 2014 07:13
5/10/2014
2/4
Yingluck is the third elected leader with ties to Thaksin Shinawatra to be removed from office [Reuters]
Thailand's political scene looks set for a new round of unrest after the country's Constitutional Court ordered
caretaker Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra out of office on Wednesday, six months after a wave of violent
demonstrations demanding her resignation took place.
It was the third time that the court had removed an elected Thai leader with ties to former Prime Minister Thaksin
Shinawatra, Yingluck's billionaire brother, who was expelled from power in a bloodless 2006 coup.
Critics have accused Thaksin of using Yingluck and other former prime ministers as his proxy, while he pulls the
political strings from exile in Dubai.
The court's decision is the latest event in a long-running power struggle between the traditional political elite and their
middle- and upper-class base in the capital Bangkok and Thaksin's so-called Red Shirt supporters - mostly rural
villagers living in impoverished areas in the country's north and northeast.
The Red Shirts and their political organisation - the United Front for Democracy Against Dictatorship - could
mobilise in large numbers to protest against the court's decision, as they did in 2010 when they took over Bangkok's
central business district for months, before the military launched a bloody crackdown.
They announced on Thursday that they were preparing mass rallies to take place over the weekend.
For their part, Yingluck's opponents said they would stage a "final offensive" on Thursday to remove her allies still in
power.
The Constitutional Court ruling "prolongs the vicious political divisions that are tearing Thailand apart", Rajiv Biswas,
an economist and Asia-Pacific analyst for IHS Global, told Al Jazeera.
"The standoff looks set to continue, with extremely negative implications for the economy."
Election 'crucial'
The Shinawatra clan enjoys the support of the majority of Thais, who have overwhelmingly voted their political parties
into power in every election since 2001.
A new vote is expected in late July - one that would in all likelihood return a government made up of Thaksin allies.
Speaking to Al Jazeera from Bangkok, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, director of the Institute of Security and International
Studies at Chulalongkorn University, said it was crucial for an election to take place.
"The only way out and the ultimate way forward in this flawed electoral democracy is still to stick to the popular
5/10/2014
3/4
All eyes will be on the pro-government camp's ability to bring out
its supporters to the streets in large numbers [Reuters]
"The only way out and the ultimate way forward in this flawed electoral democracy is still to stick to the popular
mandate as the least problematic of all options," he said.
"An unelected outcome is likely to bring more tumult and turmoil."
Thursday's ruling was not the first time the Constitutional Court had waded into Thailand's murky political waters.
Other prime ministers linked to Thaksin and removed by the court include Samak Sundaravej and Thaksin's brother-
in-law Somchai Wongsawat.
Two political parties with Thaksin ties - Thai Rak Thai and People's Power Party - have also been banned by the
court.
In a nationally televised address, Constitutional Court Judge Jaroon Intachan said Yingluck "committed what is
prohibited in the constitution" by transferring a senior civil servant in the National Security Council three years ago to
an inactive post.
Yingluck said she was not guilty of any wrongdoing. "I insist that we used honesty to administer the country, and we
have never done anything that conveyed any dishonest action as accused," she said.
Yingluck, 46, was Thailand's youngest prime minister and its first female leader. She served exactly 1,000 days in
office. Niwatthamrong Boonsongphaisan, the commerce minister, takes over from Thaksin as the caretaker prime
minister.
A member of Yingluck's Pheu Thai party challenged the court's decision to remove her.
"The party has been supporting democracy in the country, but there is a group of people and institutions that have
been working systematically to destroy it," Bhokin Bhalukula, Pheu Thai's legal adviser, said.
"The court has disbanded two parties and removed three elected prime ministers, including Yingluck Shinawatra. We
call for the caretaker government and the Election Commission to keep working to hold the election on July 20."
Opposite response
The reaction was very different from people on the other side of the political divide.
"She has never shown any responsibility as a prime minister," said Thanida Yuthanet, 45, who had participated in
anti-government demonstrations. "She should have left a long time ago."
Violence over the past six months has killed at least 23 people and injured hundreds.
While there are fears the court ruling could intensify the
political crisis, some pundits say the time could also be ripe
for political reconciliation.
Kriengsak Chareonwongsak is a senior fellow at Harvard
University and former adviser to Thai prime ministers from
both sides of the political divide.
He says that while the court ruling leaves the country in a
"political vacuum", it could nevertheless bring the rival sides
together for the common good of the country.
"You can't eliminate a very powerful side without giving it
some standing room," Kriengsak told Al Jazeera.
"All of this is setting the scene for negotiation."
Supong Limtanakool, chairman of the Centre for Strategic Studies at Bangkok University, also expressed hope that
the long-warring factions will finally find common ground.
"I think there will come a time when both sides will come together to find a way out and an amicable solution that is
acceptable to both parties," Supong said.
"I'm quite optimistic. In the past both sides were overconfident. ... This time the rhetoric will be toned down, and
they're willing to speak right now."
Subsidy scheme ruling
Kriengsak noted that Thailand is awaiting another ruling by the National Anti-Corruption Commission over the
government's much-criticised rice subsidy programme, which benefited farmers but has been linked to corruption.
5/10/2014
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Source: Al Jazeera
government's much-criticised rice subsidy programme, which benefited farmers but has been linked to corruption.
Once the world's largest rice exporter, the subsidy cost Thailand billions of dollars.
"It seems a verdict is coming against the government, and that will knock out the remaining cabinet members. It will
be a final blow to this government," Kriengsak said, referring to the impending ruling.
He says government supporters would probably protest, but it remains to be seen how significant their numbers will
be.
"The government's rallying power will be tested now," Kriengsak said.
"There will be some reaction, no doubt. Part of the Red Shirts will come forward, but some parts will not. The
government has had a hard time rallying the Red Shirts in recent months. This is the most pivotal testing ground, and
we'll see over the next few days how it plays out."
Biswas of IHS says Thailand's economy is suffering heavily due to the political turbulence, and could be further
affected if demonstrations erupt and violence breaks out again.
He said GDP growth is expected to be just 1.9 percent in 2014, far below the nation's potential annual growth rate of
4-5 percent.
Cost of turmoil
The political turmoil is estimated to have cost the Thai economy between $8bn and $10bn in lost GDP growth this
year, Biswas said.
"The tourism sector, which plays a key role in the economy, was hit badly in early 2014 due to political protests and
incidents of violence in Bangkok. Foreign investors are also increasingly concerned about the impact on the Thai
economy," he said.
Concerns have also been voiced that the planned July 20 election may be shelved.
The anti-Thaksin People's Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC), the spearhead of the protests against Yingluck's
government, has demanded electoral reform before any new vote, and its ally, the main opposition Democrat Party,
boycotted a parliamentary election won by Pheu Thai in February.
That election was later annulled by the same Constitutional Court which ruled against Yingluck on Wednesday.
Thitinan, the Bangkok-based political analyst, says what remains to be seen is whether the anti-Thaksin movement
"packs up after Yingluck's political demise", and whether the Democrat Party agrees to participate in the July vote.
"If the PDRC maintains its line and logic of not allowing an election until its reforms are enacted, then we will have
more crises and confrontation," he told Al Jazeera.
"With the election at a dead end, the temptation for a non-elected outcome will grow. This option would raise political
risks immeasurably."
Al Jazeera correspondent Florence Looi in Bangkok contributed to this report.
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The rice-subsidy scheme was popular in Thailand's rural north and helped Yingluck Shinawatra win votes of millions
of farmers. Photograph: Borja Sanchez Trillo/Getty Images
Thailand's anti-corruption commission has voted to impeach the former prime
minister Yingluck Shinawatra over a botched rice-pledging scheme, one day after she
was forced out of office on abuse-of-power charges.
The seven-member commission found that Yingluck had failed to suspend the flagship
rice-subsidy programme despite being aware that it was haemorrhaging money, with
costs estimated at about 800 billion baht (14.5bn) over her tenure.
The anti-graft body's chief, Panthep Klanarongran, told reporters the commission had
voted unanimously that there were enough grounds to indict her.
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Thai anti-corruption body votes to
impeach Yingluck Shinawatra
Ex-PM faces indictment over rice-subsidy programme a day after
being forced from office by court
Kate Hodal in Bangkok
theguardian.com, Thursday 8 May 2014 06.43 EDT
5/10/2014 Thai anti-corruption body votes to impeach Yingluck Shinawatra | World news | theguardian.com
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/may/08/thai-anti-corruption-impeach-yingluck-shinawatra/print 2/4
The national anti-corruption commission investigated Yingluck, who chaired the
national rice policy committee, as well as another 15 officials allegedly involved in
government-to-government rice contracts. The case will now go to the Thai Senate,
where a three-fifths majority will be required to impeach the former premier. If found
guilty, the nation's first female leader could be banned from politics for five years.
The rice-subsidy scheme was a popular policy in Thailand's rural north and helped
Yingluck win the votes of millions of farmers when she came to power in 2011. But
reports of corruption and mismanagement, along with thousands of tonnes of rice that
failed to sell and sat rotting in silos, plunged the policy into problems, with reports
circulating of bankrupted farmers killing themselves.
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Thai court orders PM to step down,
prolonging political crisis

Wed, May 7 2014
By Amy Sawitta Lefevre
BANGKOK (Reuters) - A Thai court ordered Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra to step down on Wednesday
after finding her guilty of abusing her power, prolonging a political crisis that has led to violent protests and
brought the economy close to recession.
The decision is bound to anger supporters of Yingluck, but the court did allow ministers not implicated in the case
against her to stay in office, a decision that could take some of the sting out of any backlash on the streets.
After the ruling, the cabinet said Commerce Minister Niwatthamrong Boonsongphaisan, who is also a deputy
prime minister, would replace Yingluck, and the caretaker government would press ahead with plans for a July 20
election.
"The caretaker government's responsibility now is to organise an election as soon as possible," said
Niwatthamrong, a former executive in a company owned by Thaksin Shinawatra, Yingluck's brother and himself a
former prime minister who was ousted by the military in 2006.
"I hope the political situation will not heat up after this," Niwatthamrong said of the court ruling.
Thailand's protracted political crisis broadly pits Bangkok's middle class and royalist establishment against mainly
poor, rural supporters of Yingluck and Thaksin, who lives in exile to avoid a 2008 jail sentence for abuse of power.
Yingluck, who faced six months of sometimes deadly protests in the capital, Bangkok, aimed at toppling her
government and ending the considerable political influence of her brother, thanked the Thai people in a televised
news conference.
"Throughout my time as prime minister I have given my all to my work for the benefit of my countrymen ... I have
never committed any unlawful acts as I have been accused of doing," Yingluck said, smiling and outwardly
upbeat.
"From now on, no matter what situation I am in, I will walk on the path of democracy. I am sad that I will not be
able to serve you after this."
Despite her removal from power, there is no obvious end in sight to the turmoil in Thailand, with protesters
opposed to Yingluck and her government still pushing for political reforms before new elections.
The judge who delivered the verdict at the Constitutional Court said Yingluck had abused her position by
transferring a security chief to another post in 2011 so that a relative could benefit from subsequent job moves.
The court ruled that nine ministers linked to the case should step down but others could remain, leaving
Yingluck's ruling party in charge of a caretaker government.
Yingluck, a businesswoman until entering politics to lead her party to victory in a 2011 election, was not in court
on Wednesday. Thaksin, based in Dubai, was unavailable for comment.
Financial markets took the ruling in their stride. The stock market .SETI had fallen as much as 1.1 percent early
on as investors worried about unrest if Yingluck's whole cabinet had been forced out, but the index ended down
just 0.1 percent. The baht was barely changed at 32.37 per dollar THB=TH.
PROTESTS WILL GO ON
Yingluck's supporters accuse the Constitutional Court of bias in ruling against governments loyal to Thaksin. In
2008, the court forced two prime ministers linked to Thaksin from office.
"We were bracing ourselves for this verdict. Everything our enemies do is to cripple the democratic process," said
Jatuporn Prompan, the leader of pro-Shinawatra "red shirt" activists. "The court chose a middle way today."
Asked about a vow to resist Yingluck's removal that had raised fears of violence, Jatuporn replied: "There is no
reason why we should take up arms. We will rally peacefully as planned on May 10."
In Thailand, the prime minister is normally elected by the lower house of parliament, but that was dissolved in
December when Yingluck called a snap election to try to defuse protests.
From that point, she headed a caretaker administration with limited powers. The election in February was
disrupted and later declared void by the Constitutional Court.
Yingluck and the Election Commission agreed last week a new ballot should be held on July 20, but the date has
not been formally approved and it is bound to be opposed by protesters.
Thaksin or his loyalists have won every election since 2001 and would probably win again.
The former telecoms tycoon won huge support in rural areas and among the urban poor with populist policies
such as cheap healthcare and loans. But his enemies say he is a corrupt crony capitalist who buys elections and
harbours republican sympathies, which he denies.
The anti-government protesters say they want to end Thaksin's hold over politics and are demanding reform of
the electoral system before new polls.
A leader of the anti-government protesters, who are based in a Bangkok park, welcomed the court's decision to
remove Yingluck but said their campaign would go on.
"Of course, there is celebration here today but we still have not completed our goals, which are reforms and a
delayed general election," said Samdin Lertbutr, adding that a big rally planned for May 14 would go ahead.
Ongoing turmoil would make matters worse for Southeast Asia's second-largest economy, already suffering from
weak exports, a year-long slump in industrial output, a drop in tourism and a caretaker government with curtailed
powers.
The army, which has staged numerous coups since the end of absolute monarchy in 1932, has stayed out of the
turmoil, as has King Bhumibol Adulyadej. The king, who is 86, has intervened to defuse previous crises but has
not commented since this one blew up late last year.
The divide between the poor and what they see as the establishment elite represents a collapse of a traditional
order in Thailand at a time when people have begun to broach the hitherto taboo topic of succession.
Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn does not command the same devotion as his father, the world's longest-reigning
monarch.
(Writing by Alan Raybould and Martin Petty; Editing by Robert Birsel, Nick Macfie and Mike Collet-White)
Thomson Reuters 2014. All rights reserved. Users may download and print extracts of content from this website
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Thailand court ousts PM, deepening political
divisions

Thailand's Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra gives a Thai traditional greeting gesture of 'wai' during a press
conference in Bangkok, Thailand, Wednesday, May 7, 2014. (AP / Sakchai Lalit)
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Thanyarat Doksone, The Associated Press
Published Wednesday, May 7, 2014 4:16AM EDT
Last Updated Wednesday, May 7, 2014 3:19PM EDT
BANGKOK, Thailand -- A court ousted Thailand's prime minister on Wednesday for abuse of
power, accomplishing what anti-government demonstrators have sought to do for the past six
months and further widening the country's sharp political divide.
Supporters of deposed Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra called for a huge rally Saturday to
protest the ruling by the constitutional Court, which exercised powers laid out in a constitution
written by a military government after a coup in 2006.
The leader of the anti-government protesters, Suthep Thaugsuban, meanwhile, told his followers
that they would stage a "final offensive" on Friday and would achieve their goal of fully ousting the
government.
RELATED STORIES
Thai PM sends representatives to hear charges of negligence
PHOTOS


Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra shakes hands with her supporters in Bangkok, Thailand, Wednesday, May 7,
2014. (AP / Sakchai Lalit)


Supporters cheer Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra in Bangkok, Thailand, Wednesday, May 7, 2014. (AP /
Sakchai Lalit)


Thailand's Deputy Prime Minister Niwattumrong Boonsongpaisan, listens to Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra at a
press conference in Bangkok, Thailand, Wednesday, May 7, 2014. (AP / Sakchai Lalit)
The court found Yingluck guilty of abusing her power by transferring the National Security Council
chief in 2011 to another position. It ruled that the transfer was carried out to benefit her politically
powerful family and, therefore, violated the constitution -- an accusation she has denied.
The ruling also forced out nine Cabinet members but left nearly two dozen others in their posts,
including Deputy Prime Minister Niwattumrong Boonsongpaisan, who was appointed the new
acting leader.
Yingluck appeared on television two hours after the verdict to thank her supporters, emphasize
that she was an elected leader and assert her innocence.
"We held true to the principles of honesty in running the country, and never acted corruptly, as we
were accused," said Yingluck, 46, who swept to power nearly three years ago as the country's
first female prime minister.
During the past six months, Yingluck's supporters, the Red Shirts, have generally steered clear of
provoking her opponents, who have been blocking government ministries and conducting street
protests in the capital. Still, more than 20 people have been killed and hundreds injured since
November in sporadic gunbattles, drive-by shootings and grenade attacks.
Red Shirt leader Jatuporn Prompan said Saturday's rally will be a show of strength, but that
further attempts to dislodge the government will be met with force.
"Our stance has been clear," he said. "If an illegal prime minister steps in, we will fight. If there's a
coup, we will fight."
Thailand's long-running political crisis began in 2006 when Yingluck's brother, Thaksin
Shinawatra, was ousted by a military coup after protests that accused him of corruption, abuse of
power and disrespect for King Bhumibol Adulyadej.
A military government after the coup rewrote the constitution, giving extensive powers to the
courts and to agencies outside the Cabinet's authority in an attempt to reduce executive and
legislative power.
Thailand's courts, like its military, are seen as bastions of anti-Thaksin conservatism, and have a
record of hostile rulings toward Thaksin's political machine, which is fueled by billions of dollars
that he made as a telecommunications tycoon.
Analysts said Wednesday's ruling further sullied the courts' reputation.
"The credibility of the justice system has vaporized," said Thongchai Winichakul, a professor of
Southeast Asian history at the University of Wisconsin. "The royalist conservatives may celebrate
this judicial coup. But the world will mourn over the death of another democracy."
The United States, a long-standing ally of Thailand, urged all sides to resolve the political
tensions peacefully and democratically.
"In keeping with Thailand's democratic ideals, a resolution should include elections and an
elected government. We urge all sides to exercise restraint and reaffirm that violence is not an
acceptable means of resolving political differences," State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki
told reporters in Washington on Wednesday.
Yingluck is despised by Bangkok's elite and middle class as a puppet of her brother. But she and
her Pheu Thai party remain highly popular among the country's poor majority, particularly in the
north and northeast.
Her opponents have been demanding that she step down to make way for an interim unelected
government that would remove her family's influence from politics.
Thaksin's supporters say the Thai establishment opposes him because their position of privilege
has been threatened by his electoral popularity, cemented by populist programs that benefited
the less well-off in the countryside.
Wednesday's ruling casts doubts on whether new elections planned for July will be held, following
polls in February that were disrupted by the protesters and then invalidated by the court.
In 2007, the constitutional Court made a landmark ruling dissolving Thaksin's original Thai Rak
Thai party for fraud in a 2006 election, and banned its executives from politics for five years.
Thaksin went into self-imposed exile in 2008 to escape a two-year jail sentence for conflict of
interest while prime minister.
Thaksin's allies in late 2007 handily won the first post-coup election, but the constitutional Court
in 2008 kicked out two successive pro-Thaksin prime ministers in rulings on controversial legal
grounds.
A coalition government then cobbled together by the opposition Democrat Party had to use the
army to put down pro-Thaksin demonstrations in 2010 that left more than 90 people dead in
street battles, but Yingluck and her Pheu Thai party won a sweeping majority in a mid-2011
general election.
Opposition senators lodged Wednesday's case with the constitutional Court over the transfer of
National Security Council chief Thawil Pliensri. He was replaced by the national police chief, who
in turn was replaced by a Thaksin relative.
"Transferring government officials must be done in accordance with moral principle," the court
said in its ruling, read aloud on live television for almost 90 minutes. "Transferring with a hidden
agenda is not acceptable."
Yingluck's fortunes plunged late last year when her party used shady legislative tactics to try to
ram through a law that would have given an amnesty to political offenders of the previous eight
years, including Thaksin. The move ignited mass anti-government demonstrations.
Seeking to ease the pressure, Yingluck in December dissolved the lower house and called
elections for Feb. 2. But her opponents on the street disrupted the polls.
Associated Press writers Grant Peck and Jocelyn Gecker in Bangkok and Matthew Pennington in
Washington contributed to this report.


Read more: http://www.ctvnews.ca/world/thailand-court-ousts-pm-deepening-
political-divisions-1.1809796#ixzz31Kc8reoE


Thailand ex-PM Yingluck faces corruption charge
Ms Yingluck was
ousted by the Constitutional Court on Wednesday
Continue reading the main story
Related Stories
Thailand court ousts PM Yingluck
Why Thailand is in political turmoil
Ousting of Thai PM: Your views
Thailand's anti-graft body has indicted ousted leader Yingluck Shinawatra over a
controversial rice subsidy scheme.
The case will now be voted on at the Senate. If impeached, Ms Yingluck will be barred from
politics for five years.
On Wednesday, a Thai court ordered Ms Yingluck and several cabinet ministers to step
down over separate charges.
Thailand has been in political turmoil since anti-government protests erupted in November
2013. In February, snap elections were annulled.
'Enough evidence'
Continue reading the main story
Thailand's troubles
Sep 2006: Army ousts Thaksin Shinawatra
Dec 2007: Pro-Thaksin party wins election
Aug 2008: Thaksin flees Thailand
Dec 2008: Huge anti-Thaksin protests; court bans ruling party; Abhisit Vejjajiva
comes to power
Mar-May 2010: Huge pro-Thaksin protests; more than 90 killed over 10-week period
Jul 2011: Yingluck Shinawatra elected PM
Nov 2013: Anti-government protests
Feb 2014: Snap election held, but protesters disrupt polls; court rules polls invalid
May 2014: PM ordered to step down
Why Thailand is in political turmoil
The National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) unanimously voted to indict Ms Yingluck,
the commission's chief said on Thursday.
"The committee has investigated and there is enough evidence to make a case ... We will
now forward it to the Senate," Panthep Klanarong said.
The NACC is also considering whether to file criminal charges against Ms Yingluck.
Ms Yingluck has previously said she was only in charge of formulating the policy, not the
day-to-day running of the scheme, and has said that the commission treated her unfairly.
Under the rice subsidy scheme, the government bought rice from Thai farmers at a much
higher price than on the global market.
However, it resulted in the accumulation of huge stockpiles of rice and hit Thailand's rice
exports hard.
Critics said the scheme was too expensive and vulnerable to corruption.
Anti-
government demonstrations have called for Ms Yingluck's removal since November
Thailand's
rice exports suffered after the government stockpiled supplies as part of its subsidy
scheme
Government supporters, known as "red shirts", have planned a mass rally on
Saturday
Separately, on Wednesday, Thailand's Constitutional Court ruled that Ms Yingluck acted
illegally when she transferred her national security head to another position in 2011.
Ms Yingluck stepped down, and Commerce Minister Niwatthamrong Boonsongphaisan
replaced her as prime minister.
Ms Yingluck's supporters believe the courts are biased against her.
Clashes feared
Ms Yingluck leads the ruling Pheu Thai Party, which won elections in 2011.
It commands strong support from rural voters, especially in Thailand's north and north-east.
However, anti-government protesters, who tend to be urban and middle-class voters, have
protested against Ms Yingluck's administration for months, occupying official buildings and
disrupting elections in February.
They say ousted former leader Thaksin Shinawatra, who is also Ms Yingluck's brother, is still
controlling the government, and that the ruling party has been buying votes with irresponsible
spending pledges aimed at its support base.
Both sides have planned rallies this week, and there are fears that clashes could occur.
The government has scheduled elections for 20 July after the February vote was declared
unconstitutional.
However, the opposition says it will not contest the polls and that political reforms need to be
introduced first.
More on This Story
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Thailand court ousts PM Yingluck
07 MAY 2014, ASIA
Why Thailand is in political turmoil
07 MAY 2014, ASIA
Ousting of Thai PM: Your views
07 MAY 2014, ASIA