And the party faithful put up with it.
In Phrae, a green, mountainous province in northern Thailand a number of hundred kilometers from the Shinawatra clan’s hometown, Yingluck was mobbed at every stop on Saturday by legions of selfie-taking fans – lots of them wearing the “red shirts” synonymous along with her family.
There were tears, cheers and red roses from supporters, lots of whom attributed their affection to Yingluck’s feminine qualities in a rustic where politics were generally dominated by rowdy, middle-aged men.
“She is beautiful and has a good heart. I am very happy to see her, hug her and take photos with her,” said Siriporn Thammawongsa, 59, during her lunch break.
“I like the way she ran the country as prime minister. If she manages to rule the country again, she will achieve a lot,” she added.
No, this is not a political moment. I am banned from entering politics for five years. All I can do is help people as much as I can, like this tour promoting culture and travel
But this is not expected in the near future.
Yingluck was indicted retroactively after the May 22, 2014 coup and is banned from engaging in politics for five years.
She faces a 10-year prison sentence in the ongoing negligence case against her over an expensive rice subsidy policy that funneled money to poor farmers in Shinawatra.
The new constitution written by the junta will also constrain any politician who emerges in future elections.
It will be put to the Thai public in a referendum on August 7, although campaigning against it is banned in the bitterly divided country.
In this context, Yingluck’s “yim su” tour – or fight against smiles, as her collaborators call it – carries a message of rebellion against the heavily oppressed northern part of the country.
Not that she could admit it.
“No, this is not a political moment,” the previous prime minister told reporters after a series of photos with party faithful in an ornate village temple.
“I am banned from entering politics for five years. All I can do is help people as much as I can, like this tour promoting culture and travel.”
The wealthy Shinawatra family is gaining votes within the northern a part of Thailand. Their parties have won every election since 2001.
This has infuriated the Bangkok establishment, with its deep military and judicial connections, and arch-royalist supporters within the south, who accuse the family of poisoning Thai politics with nepotism and populist policies resembling the rice program.
They responded strongly.
Billionaire former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra – Yingluck’s older brother – was forced from office in a 2006 coup, later convicted of bribery, and has been in exile since 2008.
The courts excluded two deputy prime ministers. Then in 2010, protests by Shinawatra-aligned Red Shirts against the designated government were suppressed by the military, leading to over 90 deaths and over a thousand injuries in central Bangkok.
Yingluck won the election the next 12 months, but was overthrown by the courts in early May 2014, and two weeks later the remainder of her administration was worn out in a coup.
The family and their Peau Thai group at the moment are circling the wagons.
Yingluck, initially ridiculed by critics as a political athlete and a kitsch prime minister on behalf of her exiled brother, looks to the longer term because the Thai junta digs into the economy and irritates the general public with restrictions on freedom.
“It looks like the country is at peace, but we don’t know what people really think,” she said.
Former lawmakers traveling with Yingluck say her political travails have brought a brand new resolve that rivals the gracious public demeanor of Thailand’s first female prime minister.
They hope these features will help bridge sharp political divisions in the dominion which have deepened uncertainty in regards to the future after the tip of the ailing 88-year-old monarch’s reign.
“I have been following her since day one,” said former MP Khattiya Sawasdipol.
“She modified lots. It’s difficult to face in her shoes, but she does it and offers us all strength.”
