https://www.scmp.com/rss/521496/feed en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Aidan Jones Aidan Jones Thailand’s former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra was released on parole on Monday after serving eight months in jail for an abuse of power conviction, a return to the spotlight for a tycoon formerly at the fulcrum of Thai politics but whose two-decade spell over the electorate appears to have evaporated. Looking slimmer with a short trimmed haircut, the 76-year-old was greeted with hugs by his three children, including daughter and former prime minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, and roses from... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3353074/thailands-former-prime-minister-thaksin-released-parole?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3353074/thailands-former-prime-minister-thaksin-released-parole?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 11 May 2026 01:00:53 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones Anutin Charnvirakul sailed through a lower house vote on Thursday to become Thailand’s new prime minister, as the conservative establishment emerges on top after years of bitter struggle with pro-democrats. But Anutin’s vow to reset from years of slumping growth and political crisis has been complicated by the US-Israeli war on Iran, which is costing Thailand tens of millions of dollars each day to prop up fuel prices, with ominous queues forming at petrol stations. Addressing lawmakers before... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3347127/pm-anutin-takes-charge-thailand-mideast-chaos-pressures-economy?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3347127/pm-anutin-takes-charge-thailand-mideast-chaos-pressures-economy?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 19 Mar 2026 06:16:20 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones Two weeks after an election that was called to cut through Thailand’s political stalemate, much is still in doubt. The threat of annulment hangs over the entire vote, while the final shape of Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul’s governing coalition is still being formed. The February 8 poll, called by Anutin’s caretaker government to seek a fresh mandate, aimed to halt the revolving door at Government House that saw three prime ministers come and go in just two years. In that time, an economy... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3344188/will-thailands-election-be-voided-bar-code-blunder-threatens-tear-results?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3344188/will-thailands-election-be-voided-bar-code-blunder-threatens-tear-results?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 21 Feb 2026 03:00:28 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Thai caretaker Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul’s conservative party, which won a stunning election victory at the weekend, agreed to form a coalition with jailed ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra’s party, both announced on Friday. Anutin’s pro-military and pro-monarchy party had its best electoral performance ever in polls that took place after two rounds of deadly border clashes with Cambodia last year. Thailand’s most successful party of the 21st century, Pheu Thai had its worst election result... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3343502/thai-pms-winning-party-form-coalition-thaksin-backed-pheu-thai?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3343502/thai-pms-winning-party-form-coalition-thaksin-backed-pheu-thai?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 13 Feb 2026 10:09:29 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones Nationalism, a deep network of local patronage and a promise to safeguard Thailand’s faltering economy catapulted Anutin Charnvirakul back into the prime minister’s office. By his own admission, the win exceeded expectations. His Bhumjaithai Party secured 193 of the 500 parliamentary seats, according to early unofficial tallies late on Monday – “even more than I asked for”, Anutin told reporters – albeit from what looks likely to be one of Thailand’s lowest voter turnouts in decades. Analysts... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3343006/thailand-rejects-radical-change-anutins-right-wing-turn?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3343006/thailand-rejects-radical-change-anutins-right-wing-turn?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 10 Feb 2026 04:08:15 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones Thailand’s conservative Bhumjaithai Party won Sunday’s election as its stability message cut through with the electorate, while the reformist People’s Party failed to convince voters it had the remedy to years of economic drift and political turbulence. Caretaker prime minister Anutin Charnvirakul’s Bhumjaithai was forecast to win nearly 200 seats by Channel 3 on the basis of results from the parties. The progressive People’s Party trailed far behind, just above 100 seats, ahead of jailed former... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3342794/thailand-votes-reformists-challenge-conservatives-amid-political-turmoil?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3342794/thailand-votes-reformists-challenge-conservatives-amid-political-turmoil?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 08 Feb 2026 02:10:53 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones Thailand’s rival parties held final rallies late on Friday in a last-ditch push to win over undecided voters among a public craving change but still deeply split over the remedy for years of ulcerous political and economic decline. The People’s Party and Pheu Thai packed out their respective stadium venues in Bangkok on Friday, pumping music to encourage supporters as leaders delivered appeals for every last vote. In contrast, the Bhumjaithai Party’s rally in a convention centre in the capital,... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3342662/thailand-prepares-vote-can-election-deliver-change-it-needs?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3342662/thailand-prepares-vote-can-election-deliver-change-it-needs?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 06 Feb 2026 09:05:56 +0000 Reuters Reuters Passersby stopped Thailand’s former prime minister Abhisit Vejjajiva every now and again to ask for selfies ‌as the salt-and-pepper-haired leader walked through a bustling market in Bangkok, campaigning for general elections on Sunday. “Good to see you again, still handsome just like before,” said ‍one noodle vendor, reflecting voters’ persisting warm feelings for the Oxford-trained economist, who is making an unexpected comeback to frontline politics. Abhisit’s return has fuelled a revival of... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3342303/former-thai-prime-minster-abhisit-vejjajiva-returns-lead-democrat-revival-ahead-poll?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3342303/former-thai-prime-minster-abhisit-vejjajiva-returns-lead-democrat-revival-ahead-poll?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 04 Feb 2026 02:13:58 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones From the principled and the populist to the outright eccentric, Thailand goes to the polls on February 8 with its main prime ministerial candidates wielding lofty promises to turn the country’s flagging fortunes around. Here are the main contenders and some of their policies. Natthaphong Ruengpanyawut – People’s Party Better known as “Teng”, the former tech executive took over leadership of the People’s Party in 2024 aged just 37. He leads them into the election as the most popular candidate to... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3341884/thailand-election-who-are-pm-contenders-vying-lead-nation?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3341884/thailand-election-who-are-pm-contenders-vying-lead-nation?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 01 Feb 2026 04:00:13 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones Thailand’s most popular political figure Pita Limjaroenrat has exhorted the public to fight apathy and vote in droves at a February 8 election for his reformist party, which remains the biggest threat to the power of the country’s entrenched elite. Pita led the reformist People’s Party – then called Move Forward – to win the last election in 2023 on a record 76 per cent voter turnout, stunning the establishment as it gobbled up seats from political dynasties and surged into the heartlands of... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3341222/thai-comeback-kid-pita-urges-decisive-peoples-party-win-break-establishments-grip?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3341222/thai-comeback-kid-pita-urges-decisive-peoples-party-win-break-establishments-grip?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 26 Jan 2026 05:41:48 +0000 Bloomberg Bloomberg Thailand’s ruling party, which is seeking to retain power in next month’s election, has vowed to resolve the country’s conflict with Cambodia and clean up its image as a transit hub for trafficked scam victims. The conservative Bhumjaithai Party, which took power in September, has cast itself as the most suitable defender of Thai sovereignty during the border dispute between the two Southeast Asian countries. Clashes erupted for five days last July and reignited in December before a... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3340252/thai-ruling-party-courts-voters-vowing-end-cambodia-conflict-close-scam-hubs?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3340252/thai-ruling-party-courts-voters-vowing-end-cambodia-conflict-close-scam-hubs?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 17 Jan 2026 07:30:10 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones Campaigning for Thailand’s February 8 general election has begun with a frenetic three-way battle defined by corruption allegations, a tense border conflict with Cambodia and the emergence of a new frontman for the once all-conquering Shinawatra political dynasty. But the caravans of politicians criss-crossing the nation and blitzing social media have so far failed to inspire a public, which has seen its electoral choices repeatedly nullified by courts and coups, as conservatives find ways to... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3338090/thai-election-border-row-aids-anutin-shinawatra-clan-fights-survival-reformists-chase?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3338090/thai-election-border-row-aids-anutin-shinawatra-clan-fights-survival-reformists-chase?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 30 Dec 2025 04:30:08 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Political parties in Thailand on Sunday registered their candidates for the next prime minister, marking the unofficial start of campaigning for the February 8, 2026 general election. Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul dissolved Parliament earlier this month to call early polls, after the main opposition party prepared to seek a no-confidence vote over constitutional change. Calling a new election allows Anutin and his Bhumjaithai Party to build up their numbers in the House of Representatives... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3337947/who-running-thai-pm-unofficial-campaign-starts-parties-name-candidates?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3337947/who-running-thai-pm-unofficial-campaign-starts-parties-name-candidates?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 28 Dec 2025 11:41:09 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones It was a year defined by war with Cambodia, but also the unravelling of cyber scams around Thailand’s borders, the rise and demise of political dynasties and another period of musical chairs in the prime minister’s office. There was also national mourning with the death of Queen Mother Sirikit, a towering figure over recent Thai history, and the omnipresence of Lalisa Manobal – or Lisa of South Korean girl group Blackpink – who rapped, acted, gyrated and produced content that seized the... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3337879/thailands-2025-turmoil-border-war-scam-crackdowns-and-pm-musical-chairs?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3337879/thailands-2025-turmoil-border-war-scam-crackdowns-and-pm-musical-chairs?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 28 Dec 2025 05:30:07 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones Economic and political stakes continue to rise from the Thai-Cambodian border conflict as the crucial high season for tourism begins for both countries. Thailand has imposed an overnight curfew in parts of Trat, the southern Thai province abutting Cambodia and a gateway to several popular resort islands. Late on Monday, Thai immigration police also announced extra screening of all air arrivals to prevent foreign “mercenaries” from slipping into the country. Meanwhile, Cambodia alleged the Thai... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3336604/thai-cambodian-border-conflict-disrupts-holiday-high-season-tourists-shy-away?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3336604/thai-cambodian-border-conflict-disrupts-holiday-high-season-tourists-shy-away?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 16 Dec 2025 07:21:21 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones As the pieces of Thailand’s political puzzle begin to fall into place ahead of an election set for early next year, the third incarnation of a reformist party that won the most votes last time around is seeking a repeat performance. But the People’s Party, whose predecessor was not only denied the chance to govern but ultimately dissolved by the Constitutional Court last year for attempting to reform the country’s royal defamation law, has a steep hill to climb. Conservative forces and the... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3334561/thailands-sidelined-reformists-battle-baan-yai-dynasties-repeat-election-win?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3334561/thailands-sidelined-reformists-battle-baan-yai-dynasties-repeat-election-win?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 30 Nov 2025 00:00:09 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Thailand’s Supreme Court ordered jailed former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra on Monday to pay back taxes over the sale of his telecoms firm, the judiciary said, with reports putting the sum due at around half a billion dollars. In 2006, Thaksin was dogged by corruption allegations and mired in controversy over the tax-free sale of shares in his company, Shin Corporation. Later that year he was ousted as prime minister in a coup and then went into exile for more than a decade. The 76-year-old... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3333153/thai-ex-pm-thaksin-faces-us540-million-bill-over-shin-corporation-sale-singapores-temasek?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3333153/thai-ex-pm-thaksin-faces-us540-million-bill-over-shin-corporation-sale-singapores-temasek?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 17 Nov 2025 22:00:15 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse A Thai court jailed 11 former leaders of the “red-shirt movement” protest on Tuesday over their role in 2010 anti-government demonstrations which culminated in an army crackdown that left scores dead. The supporters of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, were found guilty of violating state of emergency rules imposed during the protests, which sought to oust then prime minister Abhisit Vejjajiva. Tens of thousands of red-shirt movement protesters, known by the colour of their attire, took... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3328126/thai-court-jails-11-thaksin-supporters-over-2010-protests?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3328126/thai-court-jails-11-thaksin-supporters-over-2010-protests?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 07 Oct 2025 10:18:07 +0000 Reuters Reuters Thailand’s influential former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra has submitted a petition for a royal pardon for his one-year jail sentence, his lawyer said on Monday. The former premier was jailed earlier this month after the country’s Supreme Court ruled that he did not serve his initial prison sentence after spending six months in a VIP wing of a hospital following his return from 15 years of self-exile in August 2023. Thaksin, 76, was initially sentenced to eight years in jail for conflicts... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3327247/thailands-ex-pm-thaksin-seeks-royal-pardon-1-year-jail-sentence?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3327247/thailands-ex-pm-thaksin-seeks-royal-pardon-1-year-jail-sentence?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 29 Sep 2025 09:37:39 +0000 SCMP’s Asia desk SCMP’s Asia desk Thailand’s former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra is set to be assigned a role overseeing sewer-cleaning crews from Bangkok’s Klong Prem Central Prison, his daughter Paetongtarn said following a visit to the facility. “The prison director said Dad will be assigned to supervise sewer cleaning,” she told reporters outside the prison on Thursday, according to Thai news outlet The Nation. She added that his health is “OK”. If confirmed by authorities, the position would allow Thaksin, 76, to leave... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3327007/former-thai-prime-minister-thaksin-has-new-job-prison-overseeing-sewer-cleaning?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3327007/former-thai-prime-minister-thaksin-has-new-job-prison-overseeing-sewer-cleaning?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 26 Sep 2025 09:33:19 +0000 Duncan McCargo Duncan McCargo The ascent of Anutin Charnvirakul to the office of Thai prime minister must be a moment of personal celebration. Anutin is well known for piloting his own small plane around Thailand, which must give him a remarkably intimate overview of the country’s landscape and terrain. Yet from a political and indeed moral perspective, that landscape today looks disconcertingly desolate. Few are cheering the abrupt promotion of the leader of the Thai parliament’s third-largest party, who has gained the keys... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/opinion/article/3326169/thai-politics-no-longer-orange-yellow-and-red-anutin-turned-it-blue?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/opinion/article/3326169/thai-politics-no-longer-orange-yellow-and-red-anutin-turned-it-blue?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 21 Sep 2025 05:30:09 +0000 SCMP’s Asia desk SCMP’s Asia desk Thaksin Shinawatra is being held under the same conditions as other inmates and has not received any special privileges during his first week back in prison, his lawyer has said, amid speculation over whether Thailand’s former prime minister may request to serve his sentence outside jail. Attorney Winyat Chartmontree on Monday said Thaksin’s family had not sought any special treatment and that his client had only requested rights afforded to other inmates. “People can say what they like, but... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3325772/thailands-thaksin-detained-under-normal-conditions-no-special-privileges-lawyer?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3325772/thailands-thaksin-detained-under-normal-conditions-no-special-privileges-lawyer?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 16 Sep 2025 14:35:43 +0000 SCMP SCMP We have selected seven stories from the SCMP’s coverage of Asia over the past week that resonated with our readers and shed light on topical issues. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. ‘Do you want a boycott?’: Malaysia’s top mall rolls dice with flag ban Malaysia’s most famous shopping centre edged closer to a damaging boycott after threatening to throw out a second group of pro-Palestinian protesters carrying flags, prompting calls for a mass... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/article/3325633/malaysian-mall-risks-boycott-thailands-thaksin-imprisoned-7-asia-highlights?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/article/3325633/malaysian-mall-risks-boycott-thailands-thaksin-imprisoned-7-asia-highlights?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 16 Sep 2025 04:15:07 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones In Thailand, elections do not necessarily decide who governs. Over the past few weeks, that paradox has played out once more, with a prime minister ousted, the country’s best-known political dynasty sidelined and a new leader taking the reins. For young Thai activist Aitarnik Chitwiset, the endless chaos feels like it has no off-ramp. “I’m disillusioned and exhausted by our politics,” she told This Week in Asia. At just 28, Aitarnik is deeply invested in her country’s future. But like many young... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3325372/whats-next-thailand-unpacking-rise-anutin-charnvirakul?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3325372/whats-next-thailand-unpacking-rise-anutin-charnvirakul?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 13 Sep 2025 00:29:53 +0000 Aidan Jones,Agencies Aidan Jones,Agencies Thaksin Shinawatra, the billionaire tycoon who once dominated Thai politics, spent his first night behind bars on Tuesday after the Supreme Court sentenced him to a year in prison. The verdict was a stunning blow for the former prime minister, whose political dynasty has, for now, been pushed aside. Thailand’s top court found on Tuesday that Thaksin, 76, knowingly exaggerated illness in 2023 to secure a lengthy stay in a VIP ward of a police hospital rather than in a prison cell. Judges ruled... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3324827/thailands-thaksin-shinawatra-ordered-serve-1-year-jail-supreme-court?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3324827/thailands-thaksin-shinawatra-ordered-serve-1-year-jail-supreme-court?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 09 Sep 2025 04:15:44 +0000 Reuters Reuters Thailand’s influential former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra arrived back in the country on Monday, his political party said, a day before a Supreme Court verdict that could potentially send the tycoon to prison. Thaksin left Thailand unannounced on Thursday, prompting frenzied speculation he had fled into exile to avoid possible jail amid a scramble for power. On Friday, the government led by the Pheu Thai party he backs fell after it lost a vote in parliament to a rival party. “He has... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3324709/thailands-thaksin-flies-singapore-all-set-return-bangkok?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3324709/thailands-thaksin-flies-singapore-all-set-return-bangkok?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 08 Sep 2025 05:37:37 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Thailand’s next prime minister on Saturday pledged to make good on his promise to lead the fractured interim government to new polls. Conservative tycoon Anutin Charnvirakul was confirmed by parliament on Friday, ending a week-long power vacuum following the ousting of his predecessor Paetongtarn Shinawatra. The construction magnate cobbled together a coalition of opposition blocs to shut out Pheu Thai, the electoral vehicle of the once-dominant Shinawatra dynasty’s patriarch Thaksin. Anutin... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3324610/thailands-next-pm-anutin-reaffirms-promise-hold-fresh-election?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3324610/thailands-next-pm-anutin-reaffirms-promise-hold-fresh-election?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 06 Sep 2025 11:14:51 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones Anutin Charnvirakul, a prominent construction tycoon and political conservative, has been chosen as Thailand’s next prime minister, capping a week of extraordinary political upheaval that saw the removal of his predecessor and the sudden flight of divisive billionaire Thaksin Shinawatra. Anutin, 58, secured a clear majority in Friday’s parliamentary vote, surpassing the 247-vote threshold required for victory in the lower house. His triumph was bolstered by the unexpected support of the... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3324496/anutin-charnvirakul-elected-thailands-new-pm-ending-political-stalemate?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3324496/anutin-charnvirakul-elected-thailands-new-pm-ending-political-stalemate?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 05 Sep 2025 09:01:11 +0000 SCMP’s Asia desk SCMP’s Asia desk Thailand’s former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra made a sudden and surprising departure from the country on Thursday, just five days before a court ruling that could open him up to a new prison sentence. Thaksin told Thai immigration authorities at Bangkok’s Don Mueang Airport that his private jet was headed for Singapore. A police statement confirmed his plane was allowed to take off shortly after 7pm because he had no arrest warrant or court order preventing him from leaving the... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3324428/thaksin-leaves-thailand-dubai-ahead-court-ruling-could-see-him-jailed?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3324428/thaksin-leaves-thailand-dubai-ahead-court-ruling-could-see-him-jailed?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 05 Sep 2025 03:56:04 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones Thailand’s constitutional court dismissed Paetongtarn Shinawatra as prime minister on Friday for breaching ethics in a call with Cambodia’s former leader, a ruling that tips the country into uncertainty and lands a hammer blow to the ambitions of her political dynasty. Paetongtarn, 39, the daughter of divisive but influential billionaire Thaksin Shinawatra, becomes the second leader in two years from the Pheu Thai-led coalition to be removed for an ethics breach by the same bench. The nine-judge... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3323640/thai-court-ousts-suspended-pm-paetongtarn-shinawatra-over-leaked-cambodia-call?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3323640/thai-court-ousts-suspended-pm-paetongtarn-shinawatra-over-leaked-cambodia-call?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 29 Aug 2025 08:51:12 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra was cleared on Friday of royal defamation charges, relieving one of the threats to his embattled dynasty, which has dominated Thai politics for two decades. Thaksin’s family has long jousted with the nation’s pro-military, pro-monarchy elite, who view their populist movement as a threat to Thailand’s traditional social order. Their tenure as a defining force in Thai politics has unfolded in a saga of coups, street protests and court cases as they... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3322797/thai-ex-pm-thaksin-cleared-royal-insult-charges-political-dynastys-future-uncertain?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3322797/thai-ex-pm-thaksin-cleared-royal-insult-charges-political-dynastys-future-uncertain?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 22 Aug 2025 08:10:28 +0000 Joseph Sipalan,Hadi Azmi Joseph Sipalan,Hadi Azmi Five days of bloodshed on the Thailand-Cambodian border have revealed the limits of Asean’s influence and thrust Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s controversial choice of advisers into the centre of a diplomatic storm. A smiling Anwar announced an unconditional ceasefire on Monday after days of gunfights, artillery barrages and air strikes had left at least 38 people dead and displaced more than 300,000 people on both sides of the border. Each government has accused the other of... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3319925/thai-cambodian-militaries-meet-finesse-ceasefire-amid-claims-truce-violations?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3319925/thai-cambodian-militaries-meet-finesse-ceasefire-amid-claims-truce-violations?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 29 Jul 2025 03:15:27 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones Thailand launched air strikes on Cambodia on Thursday as a simmering border dispute erupted into open conflict, with soldiers on both sides exchanging fire and Cambodian troops unleashing rockets that killed at least 12 Thais, most of them civilians. Both countries traded blame for the clashes, which began at the flashpoint Ta Moan Thom temple in a disputed zone near Thailand’s eastern frontier with Cambodia. With their long shared border closed, the fighting escalated through Thursday... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3319369/thailand-cambodia-trade-blame-clashes-erupt-border-area?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3319369/thailand-cambodia-trade-blame-clashes-erupt-border-area?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 24 Jul 2025 04:11:06 +0000 Maria Siow Maria Siow The suspension of Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra has reignited debate over the Constitutional Court’s growing influence in Thailand’s democratic system, amid concerns electoral mandates risk being curtailed by judicial and conservative power centres. While the court’s decision on Tuesday to suspend Paetongtarn over a leaked phone call with Cambodia’s former leader Hun Sen was framed as a procedural response to an ethics complaint, observers say it fits into a broader trend of... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3317024/how-powerful-thailands-constitutional-court-pms-suspension-reignites-influence-debate?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3317024/how-powerful-thailands-constitutional-court-pms-suspension-reignites-influence-debate?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 04 Jul 2025 12:34:37 +0000 Maria Siow Maria Siow Cambodia’s former leader Hun Sen has launched a flurry of personal attacks on Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra in what analysts say is an attempt to deflect international scrutiny over Cambodia’s role in regional scam operations while amplifying the political turmoil in Bangkok and consolidating his domestic political support. In a heated live stream on Friday, Hun Sen accused Paetongtarn of insulting the Thai king and threatened to reveal damaging information about her politically... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3316366/why-paetongtarns-uncle-hun-sen-attacking-her-amid-thai-cambodian-tensions?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3316366/why-paetongtarns-uncle-hun-sen-attacking-her-amid-thai-cambodian-tensions?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 30 Jun 2025 09:30:12 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Thousands rallied in Thailand’s capital on Saturday to demand the resignation of Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, part of the brewing political turmoil set off by a leaked phone call with former Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen. Paetongtarn faces growing dissatisfaction over her handling of a recent border dispute with Cambodia involving an armed confrontation on May 28. One Cambodian soldier was killed in a relatively small, contested area. The recorded phone call with Hun Sen was at the... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3316198/thai-yellow-shirts-return-demand-paetongtarns-removal-after-leaked-hun-sen-call?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3316198/thai-yellow-shirts-return-demand-paetongtarns-removal-after-leaked-hun-sen-call?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 28 Jun 2025 05:02:00 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones Thailand’s Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra is under mounting pressure from protests, court cases, coalition rifts and a spiralling border dispute with Cambodia – a convergence of crises that could determine whether she remains in office. Paetongtarn, 38, is Thailand’s youngest leader and the daughter of Thaksin Shinawatra, whose two-decade power struggle with the royalist establishment has repeatedly thrown the country into political turmoil. The return of Thaksin from self-imposed exile... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3316121/what-happens-next-thailand-pm-paetongtarn-faces-make-or-break-moment-crisis-deepens?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3316121/what-happens-next-thailand-pm-paetongtarn-faces-make-or-break-moment-crisis-deepens?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Jun 2025 10:30:07 +0000 Bloomberg Bloomberg Thailand and Cambodia have shut several border crossings in tit-for-tat moves, ratcheting up tensions between the two Southeast Asian neighbours as Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra fights to save her government from a political crisis triggered by a leaked phone call over the weeks-long stand-off. The closure of a border crossing in northeastern Buri Ram province was effective from Saturday, according to an order by the Thai army. Cambodia then retaliated with the permanent shutdown of the... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3315399/thailand-cambodia-shut-border-crossings-amid-turmoil-bangkok?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3315399/thailand-cambodia-shut-border-crossings-amid-turmoil-bangkok?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 22 Jun 2025 11:26:08 +0000 Brandon Tan Jun Wen Brandon Tan Jun Wen Since early 2024, users scrolling through their YouTube or TikTok feeds may have encountered Bobby Saputra, a self-proclaimed Chinese-Indonesian billionaire playboy and “professional son”. He claims his father, William Saputra, is the seventh richest man in Asia and owns highly profitable companies like bottled water giant Danone Aqua. Bobby’s content has gone viral repeatedly, amassing over 840 million views on YouTube and over a million followers on both YouTube and TikTok, both of which are... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/opinion/article/3315276/bobby-saputra-hero-southeast-asia-needs-viral-parody-privilege-unpacked?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/opinion/article/3315276/bobby-saputra-hero-southeast-asia-needs-viral-parody-privilege-unpacked?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 22 Jun 2025 02:00:12 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones Thailand’s besieged Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra scrambled on Saturday to shore up her wobbling coalition after a leaked phone call drove defections from her government and rekindled resentments against her family, threatening to end her time in office after less than a year. Compounding her woes, Paetongtarn is set to face a court challenge from Thai senators and planned street protests demanding her ouster. Thailand’s youngest ever leader at 38 and the daughter of divisive two-time... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3315331/thailands-pm-digs-defections-and-legal-challenge-threaten-her-power?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3315331/thailands-pm-digs-defections-and-legal-challenge-threaten-her-power?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 21 Jun 2025 08:44:57 +0000 Reuters Reuters Cambodia’s Defence Ministry confirmed on Sunday that Thailand and Cambodia had agreed to return their troops to previous border positions after a clash in which a Cambodian soldier was killed prompted both to reinforce their military presence. The Cambodian statement, which said both sides wished to ease tensions following the incident in an unmarked area on May 28, came after Thai Defence Minister Phumtham Wechayachai said both countries were in talks to defuse the situation and would revert to... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3313555/thailand-cuts-cambodia-border-crossing-hours-over-security-concerns?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3313555/thailand-cuts-cambodia-border-crossing-hours-over-security-concerns?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 08 Jun 2025 11:56:01 +0000 Reuters Reuters Thailand has reinforced its military presence along a disputed border with Cambodia, following an increase in troops on the other side, Thailand’s defence minister said on Saturday, as tensions simmer following a deadly clash. For days, the two Southeast Asian governments have exchanged carefully worded statements committing to dialogue after a brief skirmish in an unmarked border area on May 28, in which a Cambodian soldier was killed. But Phumtham Wechayachai, who also serves as Thailand’s... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3313475/thailand-take-control-checkpoints-border-cambodia-after-may-skirmish?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3313475/thailand-take-control-checkpoints-border-cambodia-after-may-skirmish?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 07 Jun 2025 06:11:43 +0000 Aidan Jones,Reuters Aidan Jones,Reuters Tensions along the Thailand-Cambodia border escalated on Friday, more than a week after a deadly frontier clash, with the Thai army warning of its readiness to launch a “high-level operation” and nationalists accusing the government of Paetongtarn Shinawatra of being too friendly with Cambodian counterpart Hun Manet. Cambodia has said it will go to the World Court (ICJ) to help resolve a dispute over the so-called Emerald Triangle boundary, after a firefight with Thai troops last week that... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3313311/thai-military-ups-ante-cambodia-border-row-says-its-ready-high-level-operation?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3313311/thai-military-ups-ante-cambodia-border-row-says-its-ready-high-level-operation?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 06 Jun 2025 05:22:10 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones Cambodia’s Prime Minister Hun Manet on Monday said his country would file a complaint with the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to adjudicate over its borders with Thailand, after a skirmish killed one Cambodian soldier and awoke dormant nationalist sentiment in both countries. The flashpoint happened on May 28 as Cambodian troops patrolled in what their government insists was their side of the frontier with eastern Thailand. Thai soldiers opened fire and in a 10-minute gunfight, one... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3312781/cambodia-file-complaint-icj-over-thai-border-dispute-left-1-soldier-dead?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3312781/cambodia-file-complaint-icj-over-thai-border-dispute-left-1-soldier-dead?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 02 Jun 2025 11:45:34 +0000 Hadi Azmi Hadi Azmi Southeast Asian leaders have said they are “deeply concerned” about the violence and deteriorating humanitarian situation in Myanmar, in a statement at the end of the Asean summit in Kuala Lumpur, but significantly held back from further action against a junta that continues to kill civilians four years after it seized power. The junta has continued deadly air strikes against civilian areas held by ethnic armed groups and pro-democracy forces in the weeks following a devastating earthquake in... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3312024/concerned-asean-leaders-fail-issue-fresh-condemnation-myanmars-junta?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3312024/concerned-asean-leaders-fail-issue-fresh-condemnation-myanmars-junta?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 27 May 2025 14:00:37 +0000 Hadi Azmi Hadi Azmi Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s daughter, Nurul Izzah Anwar, has said she will join the race to become the ruling party’s No 2, despite allegations of nepotism and speculation that she will use the post to launch a bid to become the country’s first woman prime minister. Nurul Izzah Anwar, 44, a long-time figure in her father’s reform movement, has received a flurry of endorsements from delegates of Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) this week, with many saying Anwar’s eldest child is the ideal... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3309716/push-malaysias-nurul-izzah-anwar-be-ruling-party-no2-sparks-debate?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3309716/push-malaysias-nurul-izzah-anwar-be-ruling-party-no2-sparks-debate?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 09 May 2025 08:04:00 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Thailand’s Medical Council suspended two doctors on Thursday over alleged ethical violations linked to treatment given to former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra following his return from exile. Thaksin, 75, returned to Thailand in August 2023 after more than a decade overseas and was sentenced to eight years in prison for corruption and abuse of power upon arrival. However, he was transferred almost immediately from a detention centre to a private room in Bangkok’s Police General Hospital for... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3309605/thailand-suspends-2-doctors-over-ex-pm-thaksins-hospital-stay?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3309605/thailand-suspends-2-doctors-over-ex-pm-thaksins-hospital-stay?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 08 May 2025 11:14:58 +0000 Hadi Azmi Hadi Azmi Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on Friday said Myanmar’s junta chief gave an “assurance” that he will extend a ceasefire to allow aid into the earthquake-ravaged country, as the leader of a reviled military seeks to emerge from the diplomatic deep freeze. Myanmar has been cut out from major Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) meetings since October 2021 after the junta ignored a so-called five-point plan agreed with the bloc to end bloodshed in the wake of a coup months... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3307026/malaysians-anwar-meets-myanmar-junta-leader-week-tricky-diplomacy?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3307026/malaysians-anwar-meets-myanmar-junta-leader-week-tricky-diplomacy?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 18 Apr 2025 05:29:00 +0000 Hadi Azmi Hadi Azmi Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim risks helping to legitimise Myanmar’s junta when he meets its leader Min Aung Hlaing in Bangkok on Thursday, analysts warn, in the first visit with the sanctioned military chief by a sitting Asean chair since his 2021 coup. Civil war has ripped Myanmar apart since Min Aung Hlaing seized power from the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi, plunging the economy into crisis, killing thousands of civilians and displacing millions more. Many have poured across... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3306532/how-malaysias-anwar-risks-legitimising-myanmar-junta?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3306532/how-malaysias-anwar-risks-legitimising-myanmar-junta?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 15 Apr 2025 04:06:00 +0000 Amy Sood Amy Sood The head of Indonesia’s new sovereign wealth fund, Danantara, has struck an optimistic tone about its prospects, brushing aside concerns over transparency and political interference – and the market turbulence that followed its launch. Unveiled in February by Prabowo Subianto, Danantara boasts an initial commitment of US$20 billion and is central to the Indonesian president’s ambitious target of 8 per cent economic growth. But the fund’s debut coincided with a sharp decline in the benchmark... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3304508/indonesias-danantara-seeks-silence-doubters-super-transparent-fund?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3304508/indonesias-danantara-seeks-silence-doubters-super-transparent-fund?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 31 Mar 2025 04:00:17 +0000