On June 30th, Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha responded to concerns about being ordered to step down. The Constitutional Court of Thailand is set to review the case filed by 36 MPs on July 1st, accusing Prayuth of violating ethical standards. Should the court accept the case, it could potentially suspend Prayuth’s duties. In response, Prayuth stated that he indeed has some concerns, but first and foremost, he wants to focus on his government duties. He mentioned that reorganizing the cabinet and planning to serve as the Minister of Culture is not due to fear of being suspended, but rather a recognition of soft power. Previously, the leaked call records between Prayuth and the Cambodian Senate President Hun Sen have plunged the Prayuth government into political crisis.
The “Callgate” scandal in Thailand has led thousands of people in Bangkok to protest demanding the Prime Minister’s resignation (The Paper).
Recently, a recording of a phone call between Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha and former Cambodian leader Hun Sen was leaked, causing a major stir in Thailand. On June 28th, thousands of protesters gathered in Bangkok, demanding Prayuth’s resignation.
On June 19, 2025, in Bangkok, Thailand, Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha held a meeting to apologize to the Thai people for the audio leak of his conversation with Hun Sen. Photo by Visual China.
According to reports, on June 23rd, the National Anti-Corruption Commission of Thailand convened a meeting where all participants unanimously decided to further investigate the content of the phone call between Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha and the current Senate President of Cambodia, Hun Sen, to determine whether Prayuth had seriously violated ethical standards.
As reported by Agence France-Presse, around 4,000 protesters gathered around the victory monument in Bangkok on June 28th, waving Thai flags and shouting slogans, interspersed with music and speeches. The main participants were elderly individuals, led by activists from the “Yellow Shirt Army” movement, which initiated a campaign against his father, Thaksin Shinawatra, in the 2000s.
“I came here to defend Thailand’s sovereignty and express the position that ‘the Prime Minister is incompetent’,” said a 70-year-old protester who took a night train from northern Thailand to Bangkok, according to Agence France-Presse. “After hearing that phone call, I knew I could no longer trust her.”
For years, Thailand has been caught in political turmoil, with the “Yellow Shirt Army” defending the royal family and the military, while the “Red Shirt Army” supports Heng Sanh, viewing him as a representative of social change. The former Thai Prime Minister was seen by the “Yellow Shirt Army” as a threat to traditional social order in Thailand.
At the rally site, a 64-year-old protester stated that she had once been a member of the “Red Shirt Army,” but now she “has changed colors,” demanding that Pran Thinong step down. “When I see a Thai person not loving his country like me, I feel very sad,” she said.
The Thai government stated that more than 1,000 police officers and 100 municipal officials were deployed on site to ensure the safety of the protest activities. As of the afternoon of the 28th, the events remained peaceful. On the same day, Pran Thinong was visiting the northern regions severely affected by the floods in Thailand. Before leaving, she told the media in Bangkok: “As long as it’s peaceful protests, they have this right.”
Recently, amid escalating disputes between Thailand and Cambodia, Cambodian and Thai media reported a recording of a conversation between Pran Thinong and Hun Sen on the 18th. In the conversation, Pran Thinong requested Hun Sen’s assistance in alleviating tensions at the border between the two countries. In the recording, Pran Thinong referred to Hun Sen as “Uncle” and herself as “niece,” smilingly asking for Hun Sen’s sympathy for her “niece.” She also described the so-called plan by Thailand to cut off water and electricity to Cambodia as merely a measure in place and would not be implemented, and apologized to Hun Sen for this.