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In Thailand, at three days of the coronation ceremonies of the new king, Maha Vajiralongkorn, he has just announced his surprise wedding with Suthida Tidjai, his long-time companion.
From our correspondent in Bangkok, Carol Isoux
Suthida Tidjai will now be Queen Suthida. She is a former stewardess for the Thai Airways company, elevated to the rank of general of the army, in charge of the security of the king. She has shared the life of the monarch between Germany and Thailand for at least eight years. Until now it was the mother of the sovereign who held this title but she at 86 years; it is today in a state of worrying health.
Fourth wife
Wednesday, May 1, in a quick ceremony in front of the cameras of the royal palace, dressed in traditional pink silk, the future queen prostrated on the ground in front of her fiance to offer flowers. In return, the king made her sit on the throne and promulgated the official edict that makes Suthida, 40, the new ruler of the Kingdom of Thailand. It is the fourth wife of the king, aged 67 years.
It is now protected by Article 112 of the Penal Code on lèse-majesté, which states that anyone who criticizes the king, queen or heir to the throne faces up to 15 years in prison.
An extraordinary new king
Is Maha Vajiralongkorn on the throne? The question arises since his adolescence. In 1981, he was 19 years old, his mother, Queen Sirikit, described him as a don Juan more interested in women than in the obligations of the royal house. Today it's 67, but not much has changed. Four marriages, three divorces, seven children. He lives most of the time in Munich, Germany. And when he returns to Thailand, he drives his own Boeing 737.
He is a trained soldier, an officer of the Thai army. And you are with him or against him. Several of his relatives ended up in prison, accused of lèse-majesté under one of the most severe laws in the world.
His style ? We saw him wading in tank top, belly in the air and jeans too wide. There is this video that leaked in which Vajiralongkorn poses for the birthday of his poodle Foo-Foo, with, at his feet, his companion in thong.
He was also given links with the mafia, traffic of all kinds. He denied. His reign begins with a certainty: he will do what he wants in the secret of the royal palace.
► See also: Thailand: the king does not want his sister to go to the legislative elections