The pro-democracy Progressive Party, which became the leading party in Thailand's general election held last year with reforms to the monarchy, has been dissolved by the Election Commission, accusing it of attempting to overthrow the system with the king as its head of state. We have decided to ask the Constitutional Court to issue an order.
If the party is to be dissolved, it is expected that there will be a strong backlash from its supporters, and future court decisions will be the focus.
Thailand's Election Commission announced on the 12th that it has unanimously decided to ask the Constitutional Court to order the pro-democracy Forward Party to be dissolved.
Regarding the reason for the decision, the Election Commission stated, ``There is sufficient evidence to believe that the Forward Party attempted to overthrow the democratic system with the king as the head of state.''
The Progressive Party rose to become the largest party in last May's general election with promises such as amending the lese majeste law, which prohibits defamation of the royal family, but was excluded from the coalition government framework and became an opposition party. There were calls from some conservatives for the party to be dissolved.
The Constitutional Court already ruled in January that the Forward Party's policies violate the constitution, but following this decision, the Constitutional Court will decide whether to dissolve the party.
A spokesperson for the Forward Party stated, ``We will do our best to avoid dissolution of the party.'' However, if the party were to be disbanded, it is expected that it would provoke a fierce backlash from its supporters, including young people, and the Constitutional Court will The focus will be on whether the party will order the dissolution of the party.