[Princess Ubolratana Rajakanya Sirivadhana Varnavadi, the 67-year old elder sister of Thailand’s king, was put forward by the Thai Raksa Chart Party of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who was ousted by the military more than a decade ago.]
By
Shibani Mahtani
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Ubolratana
Rajakanya, Princess of Thailand, attends "Thailand Hub of
Entertainment",
a
film and entertainment industry event for investors, in Hong Kong
March
24, 2010. (Bobby Yip/Reuters)
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HONG
KONG — The elder sister of
Thailand’s king was nominated Friday as a candidate for prime minister in
upcoming elections, upending a tradition where the Thai monarchy was seen as
apart from the politics and presenting a serious challenge to the ruling
military junta.
Princess Ubolratana Rajakanya Sirivadhana
Varnavadi, the 67-year old elder sister of Thailand’s king, was put forward by
the Thai Raksa Chart Party of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who was
ousted by the military more than a decade ago.
The surprise move, a major upset to Thai
politics, effectively aligns the princess — and the Thai monarchy — with
Thaksin’s popular political movement, widely seen as anti-royalist and deeply
disliked by the powerful military.
Her nomination poses a serious threat to the
dominance of Thailand’s military junta, which has ruled since 2014 and unseated
forces close to Thaksin.
Ubolratana’s nomination must still be
accepted by the Thai election commission. The princess relinquished her royal
titles in 1972 when she married an American she met in college, and they later
divorced in 1998.
In an Instagram post after her nomination was
announced, she pointed out that she lives “as a commoner” and accepted the
nomination to show her “rights and freedoms without any privileges above fellow
Thai citizens under the constitution.”
Thailand is now led by the military, which
ousted Thaksin in a coup in 2006 and later helped remove his sister, Yingluck
Shinawatra, from the role of prime minister in 2014. Prayuth Chan-ocha, a
retired Thai general and the current prime minister, has also put his candidacy
forward, and will be running against Ubolratana.
Analysts say that the surprise move will pose
the biggest upset to the balance of Thai politics in generations. The election,
which will be held on March 24 after a series of delays, was thought to be a
foregone conclusion that would strengthen the hand of the military junta.
But the monarchy could now be seen as
effectively aligned with Thaksin’s populist political movement, and if
Ubolratana is to become prime minister, it could also pave a path forward for
the return of the Thaksin family to Thailand.
Both Thaksin and his sister, Yingluck, have
lived overseas since their ouster to avoid imprisonment on corruption charges
they say are politically motivated. Thaksin, a telecommunications billionaire,
remains wildly popular outside Thailand’s cities, where he offered cheap
medical care and debt relief.
Under Thailand’s sweeping lèse-majesté laws
which criminalize any criticism of the royal family, it is unclear what the
scope and flavor of a campaign against the princess will look like. It is also
likely to complicate any analysis or media coverage of the Thai election, as
well.
Thailand’s monarchy is deeply revered in
society, and has always been seen as a stabilizing force in the country amid
tumultuous political upheavals including bloody street protests and coups.
Ubolratana is the elder sister of Thailand’s
King Vajiralongkorn and the eldest child of King Bhumibhol Adulyadej, who ruled
from 1946 until his death in 2016. At the time of his death, he was the world’s
longest ruling monarch.
The princess, seen as somewhat of a rebel for
rescinding her privileges after her marriage to an American commoner, has
earned somewhat of a celebrity status in Thailand. She lived in the United
States with her husband Peter Jensen for over two decades, where she took the
name Julie Jensen.
They divorced in 1998 and she continued to
reside in the United States with her three children until they returned to
Thailand in 2001. One of her children died in the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake
and tsunami the day after Christmas that killed hundreds of thousands.
She has adopted a more approachable persona
than other members of the Thai royal family, and has appeared in pop concerts,
singing Christmas carols and acting in movies.
Ubolratana’s political leanings, however,
have been less clear. Rumors about her ties to the Shinawatra family have
circulated in recent months, after she was pictured with Thaksin and his sister
Yingluck last year at the World Cup in Russia.
Her Instagram account, though private, has
over 100,000 followers.
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