https://www.scmp.com/rss/500795/feed en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Thailand’s General Prayuth Cha-ocha has been returned for another term as prime minister after beating his anti-military rival Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit in this week’s joint parliamentary ballot, 500 votes to 244. While Prayuth far surpassed the 376 votes needed out of the 750 from the lower House of Representatives and the Senate combined, his victory came after a long and heated parliamentary debate over the pro-military candidate’s suitability for the top job, the military’s opaque... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/opinion/article/3013366/reality-bites-thailand-political-cobras-return-prime-minister?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/opinion/article/3013366/reality-bites-thailand-political-cobras-return-prime-minister?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 06 Jun 2019 06:30:07 +0000 A strong electoral showing by the junta-backed Palang Pracharat Party in Thailand’s general elections in March can be attributed, for the most part, to extensive electoral rigging afforded by the undemocratic constitution and election laws which gave a huge advantage to the parties allied to the military. Be that as it may, the 7.9 million votes received by the pro-military Palang Pracharat Party – the most of any party nationwide – also attests to the wide popular support that it enjoys among... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/opinion/article/3011079/thailands-emerging-new-right-political-movement-seeks-suppress?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/opinion/article/3011079/thailands-emerging-new-right-political-movement-seeks-suppress?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 21 May 2019 05:00:16 +0000 With almost one and a half months since Thailand’s general election on March 24, Prime Minister General Prayuth Chan-ocha, leader of the military junta that usurped power from Yingluck Shinawatra’s government in 2014, seems a step closer to serving another term. On the May 7 and 8, the Election Commission (EC) certified 95 per cent of the election results on constituency MPs and party-list MPs respectively. The remaining 5 per cent will be tabulated when the cases involving possible... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3009681/thai-election-political-laundering-junta-earn-legitimacy?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3009681/thai-election-political-laundering-junta-earn-legitimacy?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 10 May 2019 06:01:36 +0000