Thailand’s Constitutional Court has declared unconstitutional the opposition Progressive Party’s plans to reform the country’s strict lese majeste law. The party’s actions amounted to an attempt to “overthrow the monarchy,” the judges said on Wednesday.
It also said the plan indicated an intention to “separate the monarchy from the Thai nation, which poses a significant threat to the security of the state.” The court ordered the Progressive Party (MFP) and its former leader Pita Limjaroenrat to immediately stop any attempts to change or abolish the law. The nine judges’ unanimous ruling could pave the way for the dissolution of the MFP under political party laws.
“Missed opportunity”
Reform politician Pita, who resigned as MFP leader in September but continues to advise the party, called the decision a “missed opportunity” to discuss an important issue. His party did not want to overthrow Thailand’s constitutional order, he said after the court ruling.
Thailand’s lese majeste law is considered one of the strictest of its kind in the world and punishes insults against Maha Vajiralongkorn and his family with up to 15 years in prison. However, the law is often applied to any criticism of the monarchy – for example in contributions to online services. In mid-January, a man was sentenced to a record 50 years in prison for several Facebook posts deemed lèse-majesté.
Minors also convicted
The law known in Thailand as Article 112 has been used hundreds of times to suppress any protests during the 2020 and 2021 pro-democracy demonstrations, according to human rights activists. According to the legal collective Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (THLR), more than 250 people, including minors, have been convicted of alleged lèse majesté as a result of the protests.
MFP won the elections with promises of reforms
Pita’s MFP clearly won the parliamentary elections in Thailand last May. So voters clearly rejected a decade of military-backed governments. The MFP took office, among other things, with a clear promise to reform the strict criminal law that punishes lese majeste.
This was met with strong resistance in conservative, military and pro-royalist circles; several parties refused to cooperate with the MFP and explicitly opposed party leader Pita as head of government. The second-place Pheu Thai Party then took over the formation of a government.
Source: Krone
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