Thaksin’s daughter Paetongtarn Shinawatra becomes Thailand’s youngest prime minister
GuardianJUL 30 2024
Paetongtarn Shinawatra Elected as Thai PM
Image copyright: Lauren DiCicca/Stringer/Getty Images News via Getty Images
The Spin
Left narrative
This is pure nepotism, and Pheu Thai is nothing but a mouthpiece for Thaksin. The royalist courts dissolved the country's popular progressive opposition before parliament appointed an inexperienced figurehead to helm the nation in an arrangement that was surely forged in a smoke-filled room. The establishment cannot ignore the voice of Thai voters forever.
Right narrative
In a country hungry for change, Pheu Thai has struck a middle path between the status quo and the radically progressive agenda of groups such as Move Forward. The fact that there was consensus around a member of the Shinawatra family, which has never had a good relationship with the establishment, points to the potential of prudent government and compromise, and will hopefully bring stability to Thailand.