Thousands of protesters gathered in Bangkok on Saturday to demand the resignation of Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, following the leak of a phone call with former Cambodian leader Hun Sen. The demonstration, the largest since her Pheu Thai party took office in 2023, reflected growing nationalist anger over her handling of a border dispute with Cambodia.
The crisis erupted after a recording emerged of Paetongtarn discussing a May border clash with Hun Sen, in which a Cambodian soldier was killed. In the call, she criticised a senior Thai military officer and addressed Hun Sen as “uncle”, promising to “take care of” anything he wanted. Thai nationalists accused her of kowtowing to Cambodia.
Protesters waved Thai flags and chanted “Ung Ing, get out”, using the prime minister’s nickname. Some held signs calling her a “traitor PM” and “sell out PM”. Police estimated 6,000 attendees by the afternoon, with the Bangkok Post reporting the crowd could exceed 10,000 by evening. Legal scholar Jade Donavanik told the crowd: “We are united here to safeguard our national and territorial integrity, to protect our sovereignty and to set the country right.”
The rally, organised by the nationalist group United Force of the Land, drew many associated with movements that previously opposed Paetongtarn’s father, Thaksin Shinawatra, ousted in a 2006 coup, and her aunt Yingluck, removed in 2014. The group has called for all parties to withdraw from her coalition. A coalition partner quit earlier this month over the leaked call, leaving her with a slim majority. Paetongtarn also faces judicial petitions accusing her of ethical and constitutional violations; the constitutional court will meet on Tuesday to decide whether to accept a case that could suspend her from office.
The border dispute dates back over a century to French colonial mapping. The incident has fuelled nationalist sentiment, with Hun Sen stating on Saturday that the Thai army’s actions were “a serious violation of Cambodia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity”. He added that Cambodia “has risen on an equal face with other countries”. Paetongtarn has apologised for the call, but criticism persists.
