Thai prince divorces wife beset by family scandals amid anxiety over monarchy’s future
PUBLISHED : Saturday, 13 December, 2014, 10:00am
UPDATED : Sunday, 14 December, 2014, 2:01am
Agence France-Presse in Bangkok
Srirasmi is seen with Maha Vajiralongkorn. Photo: Reuters
Thailand's crown prince has divorced his wife, in a dramatic fall from grace for a senior princess at a time of heightened anxiety over the health of the country's revered but ailing monarch.
A statement published by the palace early yesterday in the Royal Gazette said Princess Srirasmi had relinquished her royal status, a move that ends her 13-year marriage to Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn.
Several of the princess' relatives have been arrested recently in a high-profile corruption scandal that has sent shock waves through Thailand's elite.
"The king has granted permission to announce that Princess Srirasmi, the wife of Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn, has informed in a written document that she has resigned from her royal status," the palace said, signalling an end to the marriage.
Analysts said the 62-year-old crown prince's split from his wife would deepen fears for the monarchy's future as Thailand's 87-year-old King Bhumibol Adulyadej enters the twilight of his reign.
In May, Thailand's military seized power after months of occasionally violent street protests, saying it needed to protect the monarchy and restore order to the politically divided nation.
The king has been largely confined to hospital this year and pulled out of plans to hold a public audience this month during his birthday celebrations.
Srirasmi married the crown prince in 2001 and had been expected to become queen. The couple have a nine-year-old son who was thought to be Prince Vajiralongkorn's most likely heir.
"This announcement will add a greater sense of uncertainty and anxiety among Thais over the future of their monarchy - not just with the current generation, but with later generations too," said Pavin Chachavalpongpun, a Thailand expert at Japan's Kyoto University.
Thailand has been awash with rumours of Srirasmi's fate for weeks after a slew of her relatives were caught up in a widening police corruption scandal.
Several high-profile figures have been arrested including a host of senior policemen and military officers, while one of Thailand's richest men is on the run from police on charges relating to the probe.
