BANGKOK (AP) — Thailand on Wednesday welcomed a new Cabinet after King Maha Vajiralongkorn approved the appointment of 35 members to serve under Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra.
Paetongtarn took office on Aug. 16, after her predecessor, Srettha Thavisin was forced out of office by a court ruling that he had violated an ethics law by appointing a Cabinet member who had served time in prison in connection with a bribery case. She is the daughter of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who was ousted by a military coup in 2006 but remains politically influential.
Paetongtarn is leader of the Pheu Thai Party, which took power after last year’s general election. It formed a government after members of the conservative Senate refused to endorse the prime minister nominated by the progressive Move Forward Party, which won the most seats in the poll.
The new Cabinet is substantially the same as Srettha’s, with five of the deputy prime ministers retaining their jobs. Also keeping their jobs are Interior Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, and Finance Minister Pichai Chunhavajira, who are both also deputy prime ministers, as well as Foreign Minister Maris Sangiampongsa.
The new Cabinet’s royal endorsement, published in the government gazette, followed weeks of speculation over its composition after the pro-military Palang Pracharath Party was removed from the ruling coalition that Srettha had formed. The party and its leader, retired General Prawit Wongsuwan, were widely believed to be behind the ethics case brought before the Constitutional Court that cost Srettha his job before he completed a full year in office.
Paetongtarn’s Pheu Thai party invited its long-time rival, the Democrat Party, to join the governing coalition, with party leader Chalermchai Sri-on appointed Minister of Natural Resources, a post previously held by Prawit’s brother.
Pheu Thai’s predecessor, the Thai Rak Thai Party, ended years of Democrat domination of electoral politics in 2001 when its billionaire founder and leader, Thaksin, became prime minister. After Thaksin was ousted in 2006, the Democrats linked up with other conservative forces in Thai society to try to thwart a comeback of his political machine. Thaksin’s ouster triggered years of struggle between his supporters and his opponents, in the streets, in the courts and at the ballot box.
Because Srettha lost his position over an ethics issue involving a Cabinet minister, Paetongtarn’s appointments were vetted to ensure they were free of legal problems.
Srettha’s Deputy Interior Minister Chada Thaised, once accused of ordering two murders in the early 2000s, was replaced by his daughter Sabida, while Agriculture and Cooperatives Minister Thammanat Prompao, who was jailed in Australia for heroin trafficking in 1994, also lost his seat.
“There’s a lot of openings in the constitution for all sorts of ethics probes, and the Constitutional Court has great power in interpreting the constitution,” commented Prinya Thaewanarumitkul, a law professor at Thailand's Thammasat University. Terms used by the court, such as “evidently honest” and “ethical standards,” are entirely subjective, he told The Associated Press.
“It’s all systemic. When you have vengeful people and a court with power to rule over entirely subjective matters, the Pheu Thai party won’t have any problems with the opposition in Parliament. It would have problems with all the people they’ve upset, launching petitions that put them into the courts’ hands," he said.
FILE - Thailand's new Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra talks to media members after receiving a royal letter of endorsement for the post at the Pheu Thai party headquarters in Bangkok, Thailand, on Aug. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit, File)
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — Sri Lankans began voting Saturday in a presidential election that will determine the course of the country's recovery from its worst economic crisis and resulting political upheaval.
The election, contested by 38 candidates, is largely a three-way race among incumbent liberal President Ranil Wickremesinghe, Marxist-leaning lawmaker Anura Kumara Dissanayake, and opposition leader Sajith Premadasa.
There are 17 million eligible voters, and final results are expected Sunday.
The results will show whether Sri Lankans approve of Wickremesinghe's leadership over the country's fragile recovery, including restructuring its debt under an International Monetary Fund program after it defaulted in 2022.
The government announced Thursday that it passed the final hurdle in debt restructuring by reaching an agreement in principle with private bond holders.
Sri Lanka’s local and foreign debt totaled $83 billion at the time it defaulted, and the government says it has now restructured more than $17 billion.
Despite a significant improvement in key economic figures, Sri Lankans are struggling under high taxes and living costs.
Both Premadasa and Dissanayake say they will renegotiate the IMF deal to make austerity measures more bearable. Wickremesinghe has warned that any move to alter the basics of the agreement could delay the release of a fourth tranche of nearly $3 billion in assistance pledged by the IMF that's crucial to maintaining stability.
Sri Lanka’s economic crisis resulted largely from excessive borrowing on projects that did not generate revenue. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the government’s insistence on using scarce foreign reserves to prop up the currency, the rupee, contributed to the economy’s free fall.
The economic collapse brought a severe shortage of essentials such as medicine, food, cooking gas and fuel, with people spending days waiting in line to obtain them. It led to rioting in which protesters took over key buildings including the president’s house, his office and the prime minister’s office, forcing then-President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to flee the country and resign.
Wickremesinghe was elected by a parliamentary vote in July 2022 to cover the remainder of Rajapaksa’s five-year term. Now, Wickremesinghe is seeking another term to strengthen the gains.
However, many people accuse him of protecting members of the Rajapaksa family, whom they blame for the economic crisis.
Wickremesinghe, who was the only member of his party in Parliament, was elected mainly with the votes of Rajapaksa loyalists. They also supported him as members of his Cabinet and in voting for the reforms he proposed.
Polling officers set up their booth in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Saturday, Sept. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh)
A police officer stands guard as polling officers set up their booth in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Saturday, Sept. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh)
People wait in a queue to casts their votes at a polling station in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Saturday, Sept. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh)
People wait in a queue to casts their votes at a polling station in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Saturday, Sept. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh)
Sri Lankan president and independent presidential candidate Ranil Wickremesinghe shows indelible mark on his baby finger after casting his vote, in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Saturday, Sept. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh)
Sri Lankan president and independent presidential candidate Ranil Wickremesinghe reacts after casting his vote, in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Saturday, Sept. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh)
Sri Lankan president and independent presidential candidate Ranil Wickremesinghe arrives to cast his vote in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Saturday, Sept. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh)
Sri Lankan police officer stands guard as voters queue to cast their vote at a polling center for presidential election in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Saturday, Sept. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh)
Sri Lankan police officer stands guard as voters queue to cast their vote at a polling center for presidential election in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Saturday, Sept. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh)
Sri Lankan show their baby fingers marked with an indelible ink after casting their vote at a polling center for presidential election in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Saturday, Sept. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh)
A person shows indelible mark on his finger after casting his vote in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Saturday, Sept. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardane)
People stand in a queue to cast their votes in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Saturday, Sept. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardane)
Election officials leave a distribution center after collecting polling material for the upcoming presidential election, in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Friday, Sept. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
Police officers wait for transport to travel to polling stations ahead of the upcoming presidential election, in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Friday, Sept. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
A police officer stands guard outside a polling material distribution center ahead of the presidential election, in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Friday, Sept. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
Sri Lanka's opposition leader and presidential candidate Sajith Premadasa speaks to his supporters during a public rally in Thalawakele, Sri Lanka, Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
Leader and the presidential candidate of National People's Power Anura Kumara Dissanayake speaks to supporters during the final public rally ahead of the election in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
Sri Lanka's president Ranil Wickremesinghe speaks during a public rally in Colombo, Sri Lanka, on Aug. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
Women election officials walk past security personnel outside a distribution center before collecting polling materials for the upcoming presidential election, in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Friday, Sept. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
