BANGKOK — 12 June 2026, Grief and disbelief spread among royal supporters gathered outside King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital on Thursday after the Bureau of the Royal Household announced the death of Princess Bajrakitiyabha, ending more than three years of hope that Thailand’s eldest princess would recover from a severe illness.

Among those paying their respects was Nammon, an 8-year-old boy who travelled to the hospital with his grandmother to bid farewell to the Princess.

The young admirer said he first learned about Princess Bajrakitiyabha through stories told by his grandmother and television broadcasts featuring her work.

He recalled becoming interested in the Princess after watching a television report about a project she carried out in collaboration with PTT, which prompted him to learn more about her life and public service.

“I wanted to see Her Royal Highness in person at least once”

Nammon said, adding that he had been determined to come to the hospital to pay his respects and express his condolences.

For many supporters gathered outside the hospital, the announcement came as a devastating shock.

Chorn, 62, originally from Chumphon and now living in Bangkok’s Min Buri district, said she arrived at the hospital at 17:00 on Wednesday after learning that the Princess’s condition had deteriorated.

She said she had travelled there hoping to hear good news and had always believed a miracle would happen.

However, after hearing the official announcement, she struggled to come to terms with the news.

“The hope and miracle I had been waiting for all this time seemed to disappear before my eyes”

Chorn said that whenever the Bureau of the Royal Household issued updates on the Princess’s condition over the past three years, she remained hopeful that the Princess would eventually recover.

She had regularly attended events to welcome Princess Bha. Whenever she learned that the Princess would be visiting an area, she would try to travel there and wait to greet her whenever possible.

She added that she planned to remain at the hospital while awaiting further announcements regarding arrangements following the Princess’s passing.

Jeab, 53, who travelled from Bangkok’s Bang Khun Thian district, said she arrived at the hospital at 22:00 on Wednesday and stayed through the night monitoring developments.

She described Princess Bajrakitiyabha as a dedicated public servant whose work had earned the admiration of many Thais.

“People like us are far more comfortable because Her Royal Highness devoted herself and made sacrifices for the people throughout her life”

Among the Princess’s contributions, she said she particularly admired the Friends in Need (of “Pa”) Volunteers Foundation, noting that the Princess often travelled personally to disaster-hit and disadvantaged communities to provide assistance.

She also praised the Princess’s legal career and anti-drug efforts, describing her as a capable prosecutor who used her position to benefit society.

Despite the announcement of the Princess’s death, Aunt Jeab said she intended to remain at the hospital until further details were released.

Reflecting on a past occasion when she had the opportunity to greet the Princess during a royal engagement, Aunt Jeab said what impressed her most was the Princess’s humility. “Whenever she met elders, she always showed respect. She never overlooked ordinary people,” she said.

“She treated people warmly and naturally — not as a royal addressing subjects, but as one citizen speaking to another”

Primary reporting and photography by Sasinuch Kerratisuntorn

BANGKOK — 12 June 2026, Thailand’s Cabinet observed a moment of silence on Friday in tribute to HRH Princess Bajrakitiyabha, following the announcement of her death, as Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said daily life and economic activities should continue as normal during the mourning period.

Speaking after a special Cabinet meeting at 11:00 on 12 June 2026, Anutin said the session focused solely on preparations for upcoming royal ceremonies.

The prime minister said ministries and relevant government agencies had been instructed to provide full support for the ceremonies and to facilitate members of the public travelling to participate in commemorative events.

He said official mourning arrangements would follow guidance issued by the Royal Household Bureau.

Asked whether upcoming overseas engagements would be affected, Anutin said previously scheduled foreign visits and meetings with world leaders would proceed as planned.

However, he said ministers and government agencies had been advised to focus on essential business during overseas trips, minimise non-essential activities and keep visits as brief as possible.

Responding to questions about public events and everyday activities, Anutin said people should continue their normal lives.

“People should continue their daily lives, work and earn a living as usual,” he said. “Everyone already feels deep sadness and grief, but carrying out duties and making a living should continue normally.”

He added that he was confident the public understood how to conduct themselves appropriately during the mourning period and noted that guidance had already been clearly outlined in the Royal Household Bureau’s announcement.

Asked whether entertainment events and concerts could still take place, Anutin said such activities could continue.

“I believe everything can proceed as normal,” he said. “As during previous periods of mourning, events can still be held. Organisers may begin by observing a tribute or moment of silence. If we do that, it demonstrates our respect and appropriate conduct.”

BANGKOK — 12 June 2026, Former Miss Universe Porntip Nakhirunkanok paid tribute to Her Royal Highness Princess Bajrakitiyabha Narendiradebyavati following the announcement of her passing, recalling private audiences during the Princess’s childhood that left a lasting impression.

The Bureau of the Royal Household announced that Her Royal Highness Princess Bajrakitiyabha Narendiradebyavati passed away peacefully at King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital on 11 June 2026 at 19:48. She was 47 years old.

Porntip, who won the Miss Universe title in 1988, posted a tribute on social media following the announcement.

“Awoke to the heartbreaking news of the passing of Her Royal Highness Princess Bajrakitiyabha Narendiradebyavati.

Her boundless kindness and compassion remain eternal, forever engraved in the hearts of the Thai people.

I had the profound honour of several private audiences with Her Royal Highness when she was a child, seated in my lap. I will always remember her radiant joy, keen intelligence, and natural, commanding grace.

May Her Royal Highness rest in peace.”

In her tribute, Porntip reflected on the Princess’s kindness and grace, saying memories of their encounters during the Princess’s childhood had stayed with her for decades.

​Former prime minister Anand Panyarachun said on Tuesday that Thai diplomacy and its international standing will return to its “rightful place” under Deputy PM and Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow after decades of being lost.

​“We are not a great power. We’re a small-sized power, middle-sized power. But we have to demonstrate our ability… to know how to balance powers,” the 93-year-old Anand told Sihasak and other guests during a 9 June panel at the Foreign Ministry marking the launch of a new biography of the former prime minister.

Wishing Sihasak well, Anand said he was thankful that Thailand now had a foreign minister “who can show the Thai flags proudly”. Sihasak served as Anand’s speechwriter when Anand first became prime minister following the 1991 coup led by Gen. Suchinda Kraprayoon.

​He added that for 20 years, Thailand was “erased from the diplomatic scene” due to political divisions, military coups, and more.

​“We were nowhere to be seen. We disappeared from the screen. We used to be a country to be reckoned with… Our voices may be small, but I would like to see the resurrection of that.”

Drawing on his experience, the former premier and top diplomat said winning trust is crucial in successful diplomacy. ​“If the leaders from the other side say ‘you can’t be trusted’ then there are no negotiations.”

Acknowledging that the ministry had experienced a brain drain among its rank-and-file officials over the past two decades, Anand said he hoped the situation would improve.

​“For the past 20 years, I was worried about the new recruits at the Foreign Ministry. There were recruits with good educations, but many of them encountered difficulties and decided to leave the ministry. I think we lost quite a few. I don’t profess to know what the situation is now.”

​He advised young officials to “persevere” and learn on the job, regardless of whether they were educated at “Oxford, Cambridge, Harvard, or Yale.”

“You have to relearn English because diplomatic language is different,” Anand said, recalling the six formative years he spent as secretary to then-foreign minister Thanat Khoman in the early 1960s. “I learned to write better.”

​Sihasak, meanwhile, cut short an official visit to Vietnam to attend the panel, which was moderated by Pana Janviroj, executive director of the Institute for Strategic Policy.

​“I had to be here,” said Sihasak, describing Anand as a man whom he “admired very much for all that he stands for.”

​Sihasak humbly added that his generation of Thai diplomats cannot compare to that of Anand’s. He recalled how, back in 1991, he was asked by Anand to write a speech for a talk at the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Thailand (FCCT) and how he learned new terms like “good governance”. On another occasion, when Anand was his superior at the ministry, he remembered being told, “Next time, if you haven’t thought something through, don’t bring it to my attention.”

Witthaya Vejjajiva, a retired senior diplomat and author of the biography “Anand the Fearless: A Life of Courage, Character and Conviction” said Anand showed courage by accepting the post of prime minister after the 1991 coup despite having no political connections or interest in politics.

Witthaya said Anand eventually went on to serve as prime minister twice with sincerity, honesty, integrity, and trust.

Anand’s daughter, Nanda Krairiksh, a former director at the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), said her late mother, M.R. Sodsri Panyarachun, was instrumental in her father’s success. She said her mother had endured loneliness while raising the family largely on her own in Ottawa, as Anand was serving concurrently in New York as Thailand’s permanent representative to the United Nations.

Nanda said her father could be “very direct, very blunt too”, as well as “strong and inflexible at times”. By contrast, her mother was soft-spoken and “didn’t really like conflict”.

​To this, Anand acquiesced right after his daughter had spoken.

​“No matter how successful I may have been or seem to be, there’s always a woman behind a successful man… When I get onto a job, I’m totally absorbed. The first one to suffer would be my wife. I think she suffered silently… but not for the lack of love from her husband. I have to thank her for that. She’s behind my every success in my career… If I had listened to her, I would be a wise man, but it’s too late for me now.”

No discussion of Anand, a former diplomat, would have been complete without a turn to foreign affairs. Anand acknowledged that he no longer followed world events as closely as he once had, but he offered a stark assessment of Donald Trump’s second presidency and its impact on the world.

​“The consequence is disastrous. I am really concerned about how long Donald Trump will stay in power… to destroy the world order, to destroy everything built since the end of the Second World War.”

The panel marked the launch of “Anand the Fearless: A Life of Courage, Character and Conviction”, a biography by retired diplomat Witthaya Vejjajiva translated from the original Thai-language edition. Chronicling Anand’s decades in diplomacy and public service, the book revisits many of the themes he spoke about during the discussion — integrity, public duty and Thailand’s place in the world. It is the second English-language biography of Anand, following Dominic Faulder’s “Anand Panyarachun and the Making of Modern Thailand”, published in 2018.