Thai Princess Bajrakitiyabha dies at 47 after three years in coma

Princess Bajrakitiyabha Mahidol of Thailand, who was in a coma for three years following an illness, has died at the age of 47.

The eldest of King Maha Vajiralongkorn’s seven children, the princess died on Thursday evening at a hospital in Bangkok, where she had been cared for since she fell unconscious, said a statement on Friday by the Bureau of the Royal Household.

In a televised speech, Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said the late princess was “a pride of Thailand,” and that her “commitment to building a society of kindness, justice and equality will forever remain as a moral legacy for the nation, a guiding light for generations of Thais”.

Princess Bajrakitiyabha was popular among Thais for her public service and justice reform projects, particularly her Kamlangjai or “Inspire” campaign, which helped rehabilitate imprisoned Thai women before their release.

Her work set her apart from other royals seen as distant from the Thai people, analysts say.

Although males are favoured in the royal succession line, a recent change to the constitution meant the princess could have become Thailand’s first female traditional ruler, said Al Jazeera’s Tony Cheng, reporting from Bangkok.

“She was active working for many charities,” Kasidit Ananthanathorn, a lecturer at Ramkhamhaeng University, told Al Jazeera. “I think her highness positioned herself very well among the people … She made people feel like the royal family can at least be useful to the people.”

Thailand’s Princess Bajrakitiyabha greets supporters at the Grand Palace in Bangkok, Thailand, on October 23, 2020 [File: Athit Perawongmetha/Reuters]

A life of service

The late princess was born on December 7, 1978, to Vajiralongkorn, who was the crown prince at the time, and his then-wife, Princess Soamsawali. Her full royal name and title were Princess Bajrakitiyabha Narendiradebyavati, but she was fondly called Bha or Patty by many.

Trained as a lawyer at Cornell University, Princess Bajrakitiyabha served briefly at the Thai Permanent Mission to the United Nations in New York in the early 2000s before returning home to serve as attorney general of the country’s Udon Thani Province.

From 2012 to 2014, she was Thailand’s ambassador to Austria. She was appointed as a goodwill ambassador for the UN Office on Drugs and Crime in 2017.

Due to her efforts, the UN General Assembly adopted the “Bangkok Rules” on care and conditions for female prisoners in 2010.