That was the week that was, beginning on May 14, 2023, Thailand's monumental and momentous national election day. The results of the election were historically in favour of democratic change, with the Move Forward Party (MFP) gaining the most seats in the Lower House. It is leading a coalition of parties, aspiring to form the next government and winning over 310 seats in total, despite shenanigans from arch-conservatives.
By the end of the week, two other key developments had taken place. The Constitutional Court invalidated an executive decree which had purported to suspend the application of significant provisions of the new law against torture. On another front, the Juvenile Court granted bail release of a minor in relation to a lese majeste case.
In a way, all those developments are interlinked and they concern the issue of the legitimacy of people-based power versus the illegitimacy of abuse of power premised on superimposition.
