Princess Bajrakitiyabha, the Princess Rajasarini Siribajra (Thai: พัชรกิติยาภา นเรนทิราเทพยวดี, RTGS: Phatchara Kitiyapha Narenthira Thepphayawadi, also known as Princess Bha[1]orPatty,[2] born 7 December 1978) is a Thai princess and diplomat of Thailand, the first grandchild of King Bhumibol Adulyadej and Queen Sirikit of Thailand, and the only one of the seven children of King Vajiralongkorn born to his first wife Princess Soamsawali.
In December 2022, Bajrakitiyabha collapsed as a result of a heart condition while out walking her dogs. As of July 2024, she remains in a coma and is not expected to recover.
Princess Bajrakitiyabha was the only child given the title of Kromma Luang, the 3rd level of the Krom ranks by her father. She was the Princess Rajasarini Siribajra (Krom Luang Rajasarini Siribajra).[6]
In 2002, she was a summer legal intern at Baker McKenzie's Washington, D.C. office.[7] On completion of her legal education Princess Bajrakitiyabha worked briefly at the Thai Permanent Mission to the United Nations, in New York, before returning to Thailand. In September 2006, she was appointed Attorney in the Office of the Attorney General in Bangkok, and was then appointed to Office of the Attorney General of Udon Thani Province.[8]
On 3 February 2021, the princess was transferred from her position as an attorney in the Office of the Attorney General to the Royal Security Command in the position of Chief of Staff of The King's Close Bodyguard Command and bestowed the rank of general.[9][10]
The princess was instrumental in prodding the Thai government to submit a resolution to the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, a subsidiary body of the UN Economic and Social Council, that detailed the vulnerability of women incarcerated in a system built principally for men. Her efforts were to lead to the UN adoption of the "Bangkok Rules",[11] the first set of universal guidelines addressing the treatment of women in the justice system.[12]
Bajrakitiyabha runs the "Kamlangjai" or "Inspire" project, which reaches out to incarcerated Thai women including pregnant inmates and their babies, and intends to assure those female and pregnant inmates are given adequate assistance to prepare them to reenter society upon release.[13][14] She is also working on "Enhancing lives of Female Inmates" (ELFI), a project which proposes new rules for the treatment of women prisoners and non-custodial measures for women offenders as a supplement to the 1955 Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (SMRTP).[15]
In December 2022, the Bureau of the Royal Household announced that the Princess had been hospitalised following a collapse while out walking her dogs on 14 December.[16] The palace confirmed that it was due to a heart condition.[17] She had been training her dogs for the Thailand Working Dog Championship 2022 organised by the Royal Thai Army.[18]
The princess was initially taken to Pak Chong Nana Hospital and then transferred to the King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital.[19] As of May 2024, she remains in a coma with no information on any possible recovery.[20]
Austria: Grand Decoration of Honour in Gold with Sash for Services to the Republic of Austria (7 October 2014)[31][32]
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