Constitutional Court To Rule In MFP Dissolution Case On August 7

Thailand's Constitutional Court announced that it will rule in the dissolution case against the main opposition Move Forward Party (MFP) on August 7 after gathering a sufficient amount of evidence and resolving disputes over technical matters.

• The top court resumed its deliberations on the petition submitted by the Election Commission (EC), which accused the MFP of behaving in a manner that amounts to an attempt to topple the country's constitutional monarchy.
• The EC and the MFP may now submit their closing statements until July 24. The Constitutional Court will convene on August 7 at 03:30BST/09:30ICT and will deliver the verdict at 09:00BST/15:00ICT.
• The MFP captured the largest proportion of the vote in last year's general election but was prevented from forming government as the junta-appointed Senate overwhelmingly voted against its PM candidate Pita Limjaroenrat.
• Several parties were dissolved in Thailand's recent history and these precedents allow to make informed guesses about what could happen if the largest opposition party is disbanded, although the details would depend on the specific verdict:
  • It is likely that a new party would be set up to accommodate former MFP members and act as a new vehicle for its policy agenda. The MFP is itself an heir to the disbanded Future Forward Party.
  • The party's senior executive could be banned from politics, which would create a leadership vacuum in the progressive movement and necessitate the appointment of new leaders who could uphold the party's profile.
  • Furthermore, all 44 MPs who supported amending the lese-majeste law could be banned from politics for life. This could entail a significant reshuffle of the composition of the Thai legislature.