Thailand dissolves parliament amid Cambodia border clash
Thailand’s Parliament was dissolved on Friday to pave the way for new elections early next year, as the country faces deadly fighting with Cambodia.
Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul dissolved the House of Representatives after receiving approval from King Maha Vajiralongkorn, News.Az reports, citing foreign media.
The royal endorsement became official on Friday with its publication in the Royal Gazette.
Anutin had hinted at the decision in a Facebook post late Thursday, stating: “I’d like to return power to the people.”
Under Thai law, elections must take place 45 to 60 days after the royal endorsement. During this period, Anutin will lead a caretaker government with limited authority, which cannot approve a new budget.
The dissolution occurs at a sensitive political time, as Thailand engages in large-scale combat with Cambodia over a long-standing border dispute.
Anutin has been prime minister for just three months, succeeding Paetongtarn Shinawatra, who served only a year in office before losing office over a scandal that erupted out of a previous round of border tensions.
Anutin won the September vote in Parliament with support from the main opposition People’s Party in exchange for a promise to dissolve Parliament within four months and organize a referendum on the drafting of a new constitution by an elected constituent assembly.
The party, which runs on progressive platforms, has long sought changes to the constitution, imposed during a military government, saying they want to make it more democratic.
The issue of constitutional change appeared to trigger the dissolution, after the People’s Party prepared to call a no-confidence vote Thursday. That threat came after lawmakers from Anutin’s Bhumjaithai Party voted in favor of a bill to amend the constitution that the opposition party felt ran against the spirit of the agreement they had reached in September.
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