Thai Princess Bajrakitiyabha has died at the age of 47 after nearly 4 years in a coma, the palace said.
Thailand’s Princess Bajrakitiyabha Narendira Debyavati, the eldest child of Thailand’s King Maha Vajiralongkorn, has died at the age of 47, the royal palace said on Friday, after several health problems and nearly four years in a coma.
The princess was hospitalized in December 2022 after suddenly losing consciousness caused by a heart attack while visiting the northeastern province of Nakhon Ratchasima.
Bajrakitiyabha was flown by helicopter to the capital Bangkok for treatment.
He died on Thursday evening, after his condition worsened due to intra-abdominal infection, colitis, low blood pressure, arrhythmias, and blood clotting disorders, the palace statement said.
Bajrakitiyabha, popularly known as Princess Pa, was born on December 7, 1978, to the then Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn and his first wife, Princess Soamsawali.
In Thailand, she will be remembered for her prominent role in public life, her efforts to improve the livelihood of women prisoners, and her diplomatic work.
He studied law at Cornell University, received his Masters and Doctorate degrees, and worked as a lawyer at the Office of the Attorney General of Thailand between 2006 and 2011.
From 2012 to 2014, he was Thailand’s ambassador to Austria, Slovenia and Slovakia, before returning to the attorney general’s office in Bangkok.
She also founded a charity that promotes the rights of female prisoners, especially those who are pregnant while incarcerated.
In 2017, Bajrakitiyabha was nominated as a good ambassador for the rule of law in Southeast Asia by the United Nations Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice.
He transferred to the army in 2021, where he was promoted to the rank of general and served as chief of staff in the Royal Security Department.
The princess was one of King Vajiralongkorn’s three children with official titles and is eligible to take the throne under the constitution.
In October last year, the Queen Mother of Thailand died at the age of 93.
The palace will hold royal funeral rites, and the government is expected to announce a period of national mourning.
