Thailand election verdict rejects military monarchy, lesson for all dictatorships
Post Date – 12:30 AM, Wednesday – 5/17/23
Thailand election verdict rejects military monarchy, lesson for all dictatorships
Hyderabad: Thailand’s shock election results, which rejected the entrenched military monarchy and explicitly supported the revival of democracy, are a lesson for all authoritarian regimes in the region. General Prayuth Chan-Ocha, who overthrew the civilian government in 2014 and was installed as prime minister with the support of the Thai army, royalists and the monarchy, was battered by Thailand’s two main opposition parties, Pheu Thai and Move Forward, which won the A beautiful election victory. The Move Forward party, led by rising political superstar Pita Limjaroenrat, entered the election with a staggering 151 seats out of 500. Pheu Thai, led by Yingluck Shinawatra, daughter of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, won 141 seats. It was the first general election since the massive student-led pro-democracy protests of 2020. The traditional military royal institution that has controlled national politics for decades now faces a serious existential crisis. An important consequence of having a democratic government in Thailand is that it could help overcome differences among members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) over how to get Myanmar’s military junta to implement its transition plan to democracy, which it agreed to. The most pressing question, however, is whether the two reformist parties will be allowed to form a government despite the mandate for change. A common concern in many countries today is that the ruling forces that lost the election may not accept the election results and try to stay in power.
A decade in power has given Prayut enough time to integrate all institutions, including the Thai judiciary and his supporters. However, he may be wary of turning Thailand into another Myanmar, given popular sentiment. Indeed, Thailand’s election result will be celebrated by pro-democracy forces in Myanmar who have taken up arms against the country’s military junta. The mandate reflects a strong public desire for change. Even a few years ago, it would have been inconceivable that Move Forward, a party calling for sweeping reforms of Thailand’s bureaucracy, the economy, the role of the military, and even the laws protecting the monarchy, would win more seats and votes than any other party its competitors. Thailand is one of the few countries where criticism of the king, queen, crown prince or regent is punishable by up to 15 years in prison. The 2020 protests, however, have challenged the military royal’s stranglehold on the country’s politics and called for reform of the monarchy, which has long been considered out of reach of political parties. Move Forward’s Pita Limjaroenrat, a 43-year-old Harvard graduate who has inspired the country’s youth through his campaign, has declared his aspirations to become prime minister. His party’s alliance with other like-minded parties such as Pheu Thai is expected to give the Democrats an outright majority in parliament.
