[Reported by Ouanchao Network, Shao Yun] According to a report by Thailand’s “National News” and the Thai Public Television on July 9th, former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra publicly apologized for his daughter Pattanaphon’s “call recording scandal” for the first time. He expressed shock at what he perceived as the actions of former Prime Minister Hun Sen towards his daughter, stating that their “brotherly bond” had been irreparably broken.
“I once considered him my brother. But after what happened to my daughter… I am shocked. How could this happen? As for this relationship… let it end. I don’t care anymore,” Thaksin said in an interview with Nation TV.
Following a leaked call recording where Hun Sen discussed the border dispute between Thailand and Cambodia, Pattanaphon, who had just taken office less than a year ago, was suspected of being “pro-Cambodia” and faced an impeachment investigation. On July 1st, she was suspended from her duties as Prime Minister. In response, Thaksin stated on the 9th that Pattanaphon was induced to have a private conversation with Hun Sen without knowing that the latter was recording.
According to Thaksin, tensions escalated over the border issue following the outbreak, and Hun Sen proactively requested the conversation. He mentioned that on the day of the incident, Pattanaphon called him to inform him that she would be meeting with Khleang Huot, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Phnom Penh, in a hotel in Bangkok. Huot arranged for her to have a phone call with Hun Sen. Consequently, Pattanaphon invited then-Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Pran, Foreign Minister Maray, and Prime Minister’s Secretary General Poommanee to accompany her.
However, Thaksin claimed that Pattanaphon’s group waited nearly three hours before Hun Sen’s side never picked up the phone. Khleang Huot, responsible for arranging the connection and translating, explained that Hun Sen was sleeping at the time. Following this, Thaksin suggested that his daughter and her team should disband and return. After the officials left, Hun Sen took the initiative to call Pattanaphon’s personal cellphone.
“This cannot but raise doubts whether Hung Seng is truly asleep or has a pre-planned strategy, waiting for the departure of officials around him before making calls to facilitate recordings?” Heng Seng accused that Hung Seng’s actions were “heartbreaking.”
Heng Seng added that Phatakorn had attempted to compromise because of “private affections between two families,” but given the circumstances, he still felt responsible to apologize to the public. “I admit, dealing with people like him was a mistake,” Thai Public Television pointed out, marking this as Heng Seng’s first public response since the escalation of the situation at the Thai-Cambodian border and Phatakorn’s suspension.
On July 9th, Heng Seng (third from left in the front row) attended a live event at Thailand’s National Television Station, where there was a photo of him and Hung Seng.
When asked if Phatakorn had contacted him after his suspension, Heng Seng said he had sent only one message to Hung Seng, which read, “Your actions have hurt me and you,” to which Hung Seng did not respond.
Heng Seng admitted he never thought the situation would escalate to such an extent. He had repeatedly pondered what went wrong, suspecting it might be due to accidentally offending Hung Seng. The Thai media outlet “New News” website suggested that Heng Seng implied in an interview that the deterioration in relations between the two countries might stem from Thailand’s strict crackdown on fraud activities.
“I used to be very close to Hung Seng, and I never imagined someone so close could do something so drastic,” Heng Seng said, “But when the country faces issues, I put national interests first.”
However, Heng Seng commented that Hung Seng’s actions did not harm Thailand but destroyed his own reputation. “Now no one dares to talk to him anymore, because you can never know whether your conversation will be recorded.” He also reiterated that the border conflict between Thailand and Cambodia would not escalate into a full-scale conflict, “There’s no war between Thailand and Cambodia; it’s just a border conflict. We can still negotiate.”
In May this year, a brief conflict occurred between the Cambodian and Thai military forces in a border dispute area. The exchange of fire lasted for about 10 minutes, resulting in the death of one Cambodian soldier. This incident led to the lowest point in the relationship between Thailand and Cambodia in over a decade, with both countries taking control measures at their borders, restricting people and trade flows.
On June 18th, Cambodian and Thai media reported a recording of a conversation between Phoutthaman and Hun Sen. In the call, Phoutthaman referred to Hun Sen as “Uncle” and requested his assistance in resolving the border issues between the two countries, even criticizing a Thai army frontline commander for exacerbating tensions, which sparked controversy within Thailand.
At that time, Phoutthaman apologized for the recording, stating it was private and aimed at alleviating the situation at the border, not realizing it would be recorded. Prior to the outbreak of the border dispute between Thailand and Cambodia, Hun Sen and Heng Samrin were widely regarded as having a close relationship. Having known each other for over 30 years, they have referred to each other as “brothers,” with rooms named after Heng Samrin and his sister Yingluck being reserved specifically for their stay.
On June 19th, Phoutthaman held a meeting to apologize for the leakage of the audio recording.
Meanwhile, Hun Sen released longer audio clips on social media, stating that he had recorded the conversation “to prevent misunderstandings and misinterpretations, and also to be transparent, following customary practices.” However, Hun Sen denied leaking the audio to the media. He stated that the recording was shared with approximately 80 people, including top officials from the ruling coalition party of Cambodia, as well as from the Senate, Parliament, foreign affairs, education, border affairs, and the military, among others. Among them, “some might not like the Prime Minister of Thailand.”
The night the recording of the conversation leaked out, the second largest party in the Thai ruling coalition, the Party of Sufficiency (Pheu Thai), which had been in conflict with Phoutthaman due to changes in the cabinet plan, announced its withdrawal from the coalition. Several members of the Pheu Thai cabinet, including its leader and Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Home Affairs Anutin, resigned.
自豪泰党表示通话可能对泰国的民主制度、国家利益以及泰国军队造成影响，佩通坦应该为此承担责任。
On June 20th, the Speaker of the Upper House of the Thai Parliament submitted a petition to the Constitutional Court of Thailand, alleging that the conversation between Petontham and Hung Seng violated the constitution and moral standards. On July 1st, the Constitutional Court accepted the petition and decided to suspend Petontham from exercising his duties as Prime Minister immediately. According to the statement, Petontham was required to submit a written defense within 15 days of receiving the petition.
“Petontham underestimated the seriousness of diplomacy and the complexity of politics,” Zhu Zhenming, a researcher at the Yunnan Academy of Social Sciences, analyzed for Observatorist on July 4th. The “phonegate” incident has disappointed many supporters of Petontham. He pointed out that Thai society generally emphasizes national dignity and military honor, and Petontham’s disparaging remarks towards border guards were seen by many as crossing the line.
Yu Haiqiu, director of the Thailand Institute at the Yunnan Academy of Social Sciences, expects that Petontham still has some judicial persuasive space within the 15-day defense period. He noted that Petontham argued that the conversation was a “crisis negotiation strategy” and did not reveal any substantive secrets. If he could provide strong evidence proving the nature of the conversation as “diplomatic mediation” and gain acceptance from the Constitutional Court, then it might be possible to avoid severe punishment.
However, if public trust cannot be restored in time, even with a judicial loophole left, losing public support will further darken Petontham’s political prospects. On June 28th, a large-scale street protest erupted in Bangkok, Thailand, with thousands of protesters demanding Petontham’s resignation. This was the first major rally since the “phonegate” scandal broke out in Thailand, and also the largest gathering since the 2023 election of the Ayutthaya Party to power.
Moreover, the direction of the judiciary is also limited by the deep political maneuvering in Thailand.
The Constitutional Court of Thailand is considered a pillar of the Thai royal family and conservative forces. The conservative camp in Thailand has long opposed the re-election of the Hetchoen family, although the royal family has not directly expressed an opinion, the Privy Council has tacitly approved the Constitutional Court’s jurisdiction over impeachment cases. There have been precedents of political allies of Hetchoen being removed from office due to the court’s rulings.
In this context, the military’s stance may become a decisive factor. Yu Haiqiu stated that although the constitution prohibits the military from interfering with government affairs, in practice, it always plays a significant role in Thai politics. The incident involving Phatakorn and Hung Seng’s phone call not only exposed diplomatic risks but also further intensified their tense relationship with the military. If the military decides to cut off ties, it would not only weaken Phatakorn’s political backing but could also trigger a coup or shift support to the opposition, significantly increasing his likelihood of falling from power.