Senior members of Thailand’s Move Forward Party have announced they are launching a new party and will pursue their activities toward democracy. This comes after the Thai Constitutional Court ordered that Move Forward be dissolved.
Pita Limjaroenrat, the former leader of Move Forward, announced the plan on Wednesday. He said “I am absolutely proud of what we have achieved. We have no intention of treason or trying to separate monarchy from the nation, the country of Thailand, by any means”.
The Court ruled that the pro-democratic party’s pledge to amend the royal defamation law threatened to undermine the role of the monarchy and could lead to the overthrow of the democratic regime headed by the king. The law makes it illegal to insult the royal family.
Pita and several other party leaders have been barred from any political activities for 10 years. The new party will be established by the remaining members. In last year’s general election, the Move Forward Party took the most seats and remains popular.
Meanwhile, the US, the UK and the EU have issued a series of statements expressing concern about the dissolution of Move Forward. The US State Department says the move jeopardizes Thailand’s democratic development.