Princess Bajrakitiyabha remembered as a princess of the people

Thailand remembers Princess Bajrakitiyabha’s royal work in justice reform, the Bangkok Rules, and disaster relief through the Friends in Need (of “Pa”).

The Thai people have been plunged into profound grief following the Bureau of the Royal Household’s announcement that Her Royal Highness Princess Bajrakitiyabha Narendiradebyavati Kromluangrajasarinisiribajra Mahavajrarajadhita passed away on 11 June 2026.  

Amid the sorrow, people across the country are remembering Her Royal Highness’s gracious bearing, compassion and lifelong dedication to public service. For many Thais, Her Royal Highness remains a Princess whose work helped shape a more caring modern society, guided by legal knowledge, perseverance, and deep concern for those left behind.

Throughout Her Royal Highness’s royal duties, the people were placed at the centre of her service. Her Royal Highness devoted her legal ability, compassion, and sense of justice to helping disadvantaged groups regain dignity, opportunity, and the chance of a better future.

Royal inspiration and words remembered by the people

The roots of this devotion may be traced to Her Royal Highness’s early experience of accompanying His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej The Great on royal visits. Her Royal Highness once reflected on the inspiration behind her social work:

“When I accompanied my grandfather to different places and saw him working for the people throughout his life, it left a deep impression on me. I thought that when I grew up, I wanted to do work that would benefit the people and the nation.”

That inspiration, combined with Her Royal Highness’s legal expertise and widely recognized ability as the “Law Princess,” led to a path of royal work focused on equality and access to justice, especially for those with limited opportunities within the justice system.

After completing her legal studies, Her Royal Highness visited the Central Women’s Correctional Institution and was deeply moved by the hardships faced by female inmates and the children living with imprisoned mothers.

Her Royal Highness later provided 300,000 baht from her private funds as seed money to establish the Kamlangjai, or Inspire, Project on 31 October 2006. The project was created to extend opportunities and support where state mechanisms had not yet fully reached.

At the ceremony marking the 10th anniversary of the project in 2016, Her Royal Highness expressed her royal aspiration:

“I began this project partly because I was inspired by His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who worked to help disadvantaged people in Thai society. Another reason was that, after studying law and later working in related fields, I saw that disadvantaged groups could not access the justice system. This became the origin of my work to help disadvantaged people in the justice process, beginning with prisoners.”

From Kamlangjai to the Bangkok Rules

Her Royal Highness placed particular importance on pregnant inmates, female prisoners, and young children in correctional facilities, emphasizing basic rights and opportunities for innocent children. In one royal remark, Her Royal Highness observed:

“Children born in prison have done nothing wrong. They should have the opportunity to grow up with quality care and receive proper treatment in line with hygiene principles.”

During a visit to monitor the work of the Kamlangjai Project at Khae Noi Temporary Prison in Phetchabun, Her Royal Highness observed behavioural development programmes and the application of the Sufficiency Economy Philosophy. The Princess spoke closely with inmates, listened to them, and offered encouragement:

“I am glad to meet everyone today. The work here may be hard, but it is not overcrowded. If, in the future, you can learn vocational skills and use them to build good livelihoods, you may become role models for the project.”

Her Royal Highness’s perseverance not only helped those who had made mistakes in Thailand, but also helped the country advance international justice standards through the United Nations Rules for the Treatment of Women Prisoners and Non-custodial Measures for Women Offenders, widely known as the Bangkok Rules.

“Punishing offenders is necessary under the law. But returning good people to society and giving them the opportunity to begin their lives again is also important in helping build a safe and sustainable society.”

Friends in Need (of “Pa”) in times of hardship

Her Royal Highness’s compassion is also deeply remembered through her work with the Friends in Need (of “Pa”) Volunteers Foundation, Thai Red Cross Society, especially during natural disasters and times of hardship.

Her Royal Highness played a leading role in fundraising, sorting relief supplies, and personally visiting flood victims in remote areas. However difficult the journey, Her Royal Highness would make her way through water and mud to deliver survival bags and relief to affected people in time.

On every occasion, Her Royal Highness reminded officials and volunteers of the heart of disaster-relief work. In one royal message, Her Royal Highness emphasised:

“Helping disaster victims must be done quickly and thoroughly, because the suffering of the people cannot wait. We must pay attention to every detail so that the items sent to them can truly ease their hardship.”

On another occasion, while mobilising assistance and receiving donations, Her Royal Highness spoke with clarity and sincerity before the people to reassure donors:

“When we receive money, we do not use it for anything else. Every baht goes to the Friends in Need (of ‘Pa’) Volunteers Foundation, Thai Red Cross Society, to help our brothers and sisters who are truly suffering.”

The passing of Her Royal Highness Princess Bajrakitiyabha has brought tears and profound sorrow to the Thai people. Yet Her Royal Highness’s royal work, compassion and dedication to justice, opportunity and relief for those in hardship will remain in the hearts of the people for generations to come.