Thailand's Constitutional Court has ordered the dissolution of the opposition Movement for Democracy party, which won the 2023 parliamentary election, over its controversial campaign to amend a law that protects the monarchy from criticism, reports "Reuters", quoted by News.bg.
The decision comes six months after the court ordered the pro-democracy party to abandon its plan to reform the royal insult law, ruling that it was unconstitutional and risked undermining Thailand's system of government with the king as head of state. "Movement for Democracy" does not agree with this decision.
While the dissolution is likely to anger millions of voters who supported "Movement Ahead" in the election, the impact of the decision is expected to be limited. Only the party's 11 current and former leaders will be banned from participating in politics for the next 10 years.
This means that 143 of its MPs will keep their seats and are expected to reorganize into a new party, as they did in 2020, when "Movement Ahead"'s predecessor, "Future Forward" - was dissolved over campaign finance violations.
If all 143 lawmakers join the same party, it will be the largest in parliament and is expected to pursue a progressive agenda that includes military reform and the dismantling of big business monopolies, along with other policies that Move Forward's rivals united to block the formation of a government last year.
The decision comes at a critical time in Thai politics, as cracks also appear in the fragile truce between the royalists and another long-time rival, the populist ruling For Thai party.
Next week, the Constitutional Court will rule on a case brought by 40 conservative former senators seeking to free Prime Minister Sreet Thavisin over a lawyer he appointed who has been in prison. The prime minister denies wrongdoing and says the appointment was inappropriate.
The Tawisin case is among the factors that are increasing political uncertainty and shaking financial markets, with the prospect of political upheaval if he is removed.
A new prime minister would have to be voted in by parliament, potentially pitting the "Pro Thai" against coalition partners and leading to a shake-up of the ruling alliance and a reshuffle of the cabinet and policies.