Thailand outraged

Most important opposition figure removed from politics

Pita Limjaroenrat

(Bild: APA/AFP/Chanakarn Laosarakham)

In Thailand, the judiciary has banned the main opposition politician Pita Limjaroenrat from politics for ten years and dissolved his Move Forward Party (MFP). The MFP had won the most seats in the 2023 parliamentary elections, but was not allowed to join the government.

The Constitutional Court in Bangkok made the decision unanimously, explained Judge Punya Udchachon on Wednesday. Accordingly, the reform-oriented Pita cannot hold political office until 2034.

Pita resigned as MFP leader in September. In March, the electoral commission applied to the country's supreme court to dissolve the largest opposition party. The MFP had already been prevented from forming a government.

Party wanted to take action against abuse of the law
Before the parliamentary elections, Pita's popularity had skyrocketed, particularly among young voters. During the election campaign, his party campaigned on the promise to reform Thailand's criminal law to punish lèse majesté, which is considered one of the strictest in the world. Thailand's King Maha Vajiralongkorn enjoys a quasi-divine status. According to critics, however, the laws are being misused to suppress political debate.

In January, Thailand's Constitutional Court ruled that the MFP's reform plans were unconstitutional and declared that they amounted to an attempt to overthrow the constitutional monarchy.

The EU described the dissolution of the largest opposition party as a "setback for political pluralism in Thailand". "No democratic system can function without a variety of parties and candidates," an EU spokesperson said on Wednesday. The Thai authorities must ensure "that all duly elected members of parliament are able to continue to fulfill their parliamentary mandate".

Thailand's King Rama X enjoys a quasi-divine status.

(Bild: APA/AFP/Jewel SAMAD)

"Good people always end up being victimized"
 After the court decision was announced, a few dozen supporters gathered in front of the MFP party headquarters in Bangkok. Sakhorn Kamtalang, 60, said that the court did not have the right to dissolve the party. "For me, Pita is my head of government," she emphasized. 69-year-old Hua Jaidee complained: "Good people always end up being victimized."

Before the verdict, the reform politician had expressed optimism. "We are very confident about the facts we have presented and the arguments about the illegality of the (...) trial requested," he said on Wednesday. "We hope the court will seriously consider the arguments and believe that the rule of law exists in Thailand."

"Our ideas will survive"
 The 43-year-old former businessman appeared in good spirits at parliament in Bangkok on Wednesday morning. He told MPs that he had confidence in the Kingdom's legal system. During his appearance in parliament, Pita warned against instrumentalizing the Thai judicial system. He pointed out that 33 parties had been dissolved in the past two decades, including "four major ones that were elected by the people". "The question is not what we will do if we are dissolved - that has already been taken care of and our ideas will survive," Pita said combatively. The board of the MFP, which has 148 seats in the 500-seat parliament, will form a new body if the party is dissolved, he assured.

Instead, it is now a matter of paying attention to the "pattern of instrumentalizing the judiciary and independent bodies". "We should not normalize this behavior or accept that a politicized court is used as a weapon to destroy political parties," emphasized the reform politician.