Woman in lingerie is freelance Thai model, not young politician from Move Forward Party

"This MP candidate of Move Forward Party wants to show off so much, so we shared her photos to meet her demand," reads a Thai Facebook post on May 11.

"Even some sex workers don't dare to take these kinds of photos," the post adds. It features 28-year-old Rukchanok Srinork's campaign poster alongside photos of a woman wearing orange-coloured lingerie.

Orange is associated with the Move Forward Party, and the party's orange triangle-shaped logo can also be seen in the photos (archived link).

The post circulated days before Rukchanok's progressive Move Forward Party rode a dramatic wave of support in an election pitting a young generation yearning for change against a conservative old guard of septuagenarian generals and backroom billionaires.

The party claimed victory in the May 14 election, as voters turned out in record numbers to deliver a brutal verdict on the near-decade-long rule of former coup leader Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha. Local media reported that Rukchanok also won her race (archived link).

Image

Screenshot of the false post taken on May 18, 2023

Facebook posts here, here and here and private messages on the mobile application Line also shared the photos with a similar false claim.

But a commenter on one of the Facebook posts said the photos are of freelance Thai model Warunee "Yujin" Punsin -- who has more than 165,000 followers on Facebook -- not Rukchanok.

A search on Facebook found Warunee posted the photos on May 6 with a caption that translates as, "I was born in the era of Move Forward Party-led government" (archived link).

Her post has racked up over 27,000 likes and nearly 10,000 shares.

"The woman in the photos wearing an orange bra is me," Warunee told AFP on May 16. "I am not related to Rukchanok in any way."

She added: "Someone used my photos to distort and instigate for political purposes. They also used foul language to insult women, making it go viral immediately."

"After that, I was hit with criticism, which damaged my image and reputation."

Rukchanok separately refuted the posts, writing on Facebook on May 11: "May everyone maintain a creative and fair political atmosphere. Don't use dirty tricks to spread false news to slander your competitors" (archived link).

In another post on the same day, she said she had filed a police complaint regarding the false claim (archived link). The post includes photos of her at the Bang Khun Tian Police Station in the capital Bangkok.

Colonel Payap Somboon, chief of the said police station, told AFP on May 17 they are investigating the case.

"Yes, she filed a complaint with us a few days before the election took place," Payap said.