A supporter of Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit, leader of the pro-democracy Future Forward Party, displays a placard at Constitutional Court in Bangkok on Nov. 20, 2019. © AP
Critics complain courts are biased in favor of ultraconservatives
BANGKOK -- Thailand's politically influential Constitutional Court will soon display its power once again as it considers the fate of the Future Forward Party, a new political grouping that has given a voice to millions of young voters at odds with the pro-military government.
The nine-member bench is scheduled to take up two FFP cases on Jan. 21, which could see the party dissolved barely a year after its impressive debut. In the general election last March that ended nearly five years of military rule, the FFP won 81 seats, becoming the third-largest party in parliament.
The political temperature in Thailand has risen since the court agreed to hear the cases last year, prompting speculation in progressive political circles that the FFP will meet the same end as earlier pro-democracy parties that were abolished amid protests from supporters.
Those rulings fueled anger among millions of disenfranchised voters, with critics accusing the courts of applying double standards and staging "judicial coups." The decisions also triggered deep political divisions that have lasted more than a decade.
The atmosphere of defiance in the face of flawed justice was palpable at a mini-marathon held on Sunday in Bangkok. The "Run Against Dictatorship" event attracted thousands of young FFP supporters. "The FFP dissolution will inflame their passions against the system," said Nuttaa Mahattana, one of the coordinators of the 6 km run held to demand the end to the Prayuth regime. "They are enraged at the way FFP is being treated by the authorities," she said.
The FFP cases stem from a complaint about the 191 million baht ($6.3 million) it received from its charismatic leader, Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit, before the March elections. The party is also accused of ties to the Illuminati, a fictitious secret society viewed in ultraroyalist circles as a threat to the Thai monarchy.
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In the wake of these decisions, critics have seized on what they see as favoritism toward the anti-democratic, ultraconservative camp. The Democrat Party -- whose name belies its ultraconservative leanings -- was spared dissolution despite what critics said were violations similar to those that brought the parties of the Thaksin camp to an untimely end.
But criticism of the Constitutional Court has become risky. Laws introduced by Prayuth's military government "limit criticism of the court, in addition to [maintaining] strong penalties for contempt of court," said one legal scholar who asked not to be named.
But some of those subject to the harsh rulings continue to speak out. "A system has been developed just to destroy political parties that are against coup-makers and the elite," said Chaturon Chaisang, a veteran politician who was acting leader of Thai Rak Thai when it was dissolved. "It is collective punishment that is disproportionate and unfair, and ends up weakening the political party system," he said.
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ถ้าวันที่ 21 มกราคม 2563 ศาลรัฐธรรมนูญตัดสินยุบพรรคอนาคตใหม่ในข้อหาล้มเจ้า
ชนชั้นนำฝ่ายอำมาตย์ควรสร้างอนสาวรีย์ให้ณฐพร โตประยูร ผู้ต้องหาคดีฟอกเงินขายที่ดินคลองจั่นฯ 477 ล้านบาท
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ทำความรู้จัก‘ณฐพร โตประยูร’คนยื่นยุบ อนค.-ถูกสอบคดีฟอกเงินขายที่ดินคลองจั่นฯ 477 ล.?
https://www.isranews.org/isranews…/78631-isranews-78631.html
