 | The Rotary Club of Bangkok joins the Thai people and the international community in mourning the passing of Her Royal Highness Princess Bajrakitiyabha. Known throughout Thailand and the wider world as “the Lawyer Princess,” Her Royal Highness devoted her life to justice, human dignity, and service to the vulnerable. Her passing marks the loss of an exceptional person whose life embodied the spirit of Service Above Self. |
1978 – 2026
The Rotary Club of Bangkok joins the Thai people and the international community in mourning the passing of Her Royal Highness Princess Bajrakitiyabha Narendiradebyavati Kromluangrajasarinisiribajra Mahavajrarajadhita, as announced by the Bureau of the Royal Household on 12 June 2026. She was 47 years old.
Known throughout Thailand and the wider world as “the Lawyer Princess,” Her Royal Highness devoted her life to the campaign for justice, the dignity of the vulnerable, and the reform of systems that too often failed those who needed them most. Her passing marks the loss of an exceptional person whose life embodied, in the fullest sense, the spirit of Service Above Self.
Born on 7 December 1978 in Bangkok, Her Royal Highness was the eldest daughter of His Majesty King Maha Vajiralongkorn and Her Royal Highness Princess Soamsawali, and the first grandchild of the late His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej the Great and Her Majesty Queen Sirikit The Queen Mother.
Her Royal Highness pursued an outstanding academic career, graduating with degrees in Law from Thammasat University and Political Science, International Relations, from Sukhothai Thammathirat University, before earning a Master of Laws and a Doctor of Juridical Science from Cornell Law School in the United States. She also held a barrister-at-law certificate from the Thai Bar Association and was later awarded an honorary doctorate from Chicago-Kent College of Law.
Following her studies, she joined the Office of the Attorney General as a public prosecutor in Bangkok, a role that placed her at the heart of the Thai justice system and exposed her to the realities confronted by those caught within it, particularly women.
It was this experience which formed her life’s most enduring work. In 2006, Her Royal Highness launched the Kamlangjai, or “Inspire,” Project, a trailblazing initiative to respond to the specific needs of female inmates, including pregnant women and mothers with children in detention, with a focus on rehabilitation and their return to society.
Her work reached the international stage when, through Thailand’s submission to the United Nations Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, she helped set in motion the process that led to the adoption in 2010 of the UN Rules for the Treatment of Women Prisoners and Non-custodial Measures for Women Offenders, known around the world as the Bangkok Rules.
In recognition of her work, the United Nations appointed her UNIFEM Goodwill Ambassador in 2008, awarded her the UNODC Medal of Recognition in 2009, and named her UNODC Goodwill Ambassador on the Rule of Law for Southeast Asia in 2017. She also served as Thailand’s Ambassador to Austria, Slovakia, and Slovenia, and as Permanent Representative to the United Nations Office at Vienna.
Over and above her official roles, Her Royal Highness founded the Nabha Foundation to provide vocational training and opportunities to the underprivileged and former inmates, and chaired the Friends in Need (of “PA”) Volunteers Foundation under the Thai Red Cross, which has delivered disaster relief to communities across Thailand for more than two decades.
“Many people from different parts of the world have different opinions on things, but if we all join together, we can all make the world better.”
Her words, spoken at Cornell Law School in 2012, will echo strongly with every Rotarian.
On behalf of the President, Board of Directors, and all members of the Rotary Club of Bangkok, we send our deepest condolences to His Majesty the King, Her Majesty the Queen, and all Members of the Royal Family.
We are honoured to have called Bangkok home throughout a life of such consequence, and we will carry the memory of Her Royal Highness’s compassion and dedication with us as we continue our own work in service to this city and its people.
Members who wish to pay their respects may do so at the Sahathai Samakhom Pavilion, the Grand Palace, daily from 08:30 to 16:00. From Saturday, 27 June, the public may pay respects to the Royal Body at the Phiman Rattaya Throne Hall, daily from 09:00 to 21:00.
May Her Royal Highness rest in peace.