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Thailand's Neighbors Denounce Court's Opposition Party Ban

VOA News

   Thailand's neighbors in Southeast Asia are condemning Bangkok for
   dissolving an opposition party Friday, which critics view as the latest
   sign democracy is in retreat in the region.

   The Constitutional Court in Thailand has ordered the Future Forward
   Party to disband after ruling it violated campaign finance laws, which
   the party has called trumped up political charges. The court decision,
   which effectively returns Thailand to a two-party system of red shirts
   versus white shirts, was swiftly condemned by officials around the
   region.

   "The Future Forward Party is the latest in a long line of opposition
   political parties in Thailand to be banned," according to Francisca
   Castro, a member of the House of Representatives in the Philippines.
   "It is increasingly apparent that any party that seeks to threaten the
   military and the establishment's political hegemony will not be
   tolerated."

   She said the ruling proves the Thai military has not surrendered some
   of its power for the sake of democracy as it had promised to do.

   The military took over the government in a coup in 2014 and did not
   hold a political election again until 2019. The poll was supposed to
   pave the way for Thailand to return to representative democracy, but
   election observers said it was rigged in favor of the military.

   Despite the slim odds, the Future Forward Party formed in 2018 and
   garnered 6 million votes in 2019, becoming known for its gesture of
   dissent, the three-finger salute taken from the dystopian Hunger Games
   books and movies.

   The Thai court also said the party's leaders were banned from politics
   for 10 years.

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