US ‘Deeply Concerned’ as Thai Court Dissolves Opposition Party

Former Thai prime ministerial candidate and former Move Forward Party (MFP) leader Pita Limjaroenrat (C) leaves the Constitutional Court, after it ruled to ban him from politics for 10 years and dissolve his party over his attempt to reform Thailand's royal defamation laws, in Bangkok on Aug. 7, 2024. (Lillian Suwanrumpha/AFP via Getty Images)

A nine-judge Constitutional Court in Thailand on Aug. 7 ordered the dissolution of the country’s main political opposition party over its advocating for changes to the kingdom’s harsh lese majeste law, a move the U.S. State Department says has left it “deeply concerned.”

The court delivered its ruling on a petition submitted by the Election Commission of Thailand (ECT) requesting to dissolve the Move Forward Party (MFP) due to its campaign calling for reforming the law, which outlaws criticizing the country’s monarchy under penalty of jail time.

In its campaigning, the MFP advocated for less severe punishments for lese majeste cases and a more thorough process for filing charges.

Along with the party’s dissolution, 11 of its executives have been banned from running for political office for 10 years. Among those banned is the party’s former leader, 43-year-old Pita Limjaroenrat.

MFP leaders said the remaining 143 lawmakers will establish a new party.

The verdict follows a January court ruling that found the MFP’s campaign promise to change the law was unconstitutional and undermined the system of governance with the king as head of state.

Mathew Miller, U.S. Department of State spokesman, said in an Aug. 7 statement that the ruling to dissolve the party and the ban on 11 of its leaders is “deeply concerning.”

“As a close ally and friend, we urge Thailand to ensure fully inclusive political participation and the freedoms of association and expression,” he said.

Miller said the move “disenfranchises” the more than 14 million citizens who voted for the MFP in the May 2023 national elections and raises questions “about their representation within Thailand’s electoral system.”

He further said it could also jeopardize “Thailand’s democratic progress” and “runs counter to the aspirations of the Thai people for a strong, democratic future.”

“The United States does not take a position in support of any political party, but as a close ally and friend with deep and enduring ties, we urge Thailand to take actions to ensure fully inclusive political participation, and to protect democracy and the freedoms of association and expression,” Miller said.

The anti-establishment MFP won the most seats in the 2023 Thailand election, 151 out of 500 in the parliament’s lower house. However, the party could not form a government because it did not receive enough votes in the military-appointed senate.

In February 2020, the Constitutional Court also dissolved the reformist Future Forward Party, the predecessor to the MFP, over allegations the party took an illegal loan from its leader.