Thailand lese majeste

The ruling is part of a long war of attrition against the progressive opposition by conservative forces trying to maintain their grip on power.

The Constitutional Court is set to hand down its ruling in a case that could result in the dissolution of the party, which won the most votes in last year's election.

The popular opposition party faces dissolution over its pledge to amend the country's severe lese-majeste law.

The pact between Thaksin's camp and the royalist establishment, which allowed the former leader to return from self-exile last year, may be starting to fray.

Both were granted bail pending an appeal, following the recent death of a monarchy-reform activist in custody.

The death of Netiporn “Bung” Sanesangkhom has drawn attention to the Thai government's cruel use of pretrial detention to silence peaceful critics of the monarchy.

If disbanded over its pledge to reform the country's "sacred" institution, the Move Forward Party will simply re-emerge in new form.

The 25-year jail term came just days after the Election Commission ordered the disbanding of a major opposition party for advocating the reform of the lese-majeste law.

In an interview, the opposition MP discusses his political future and the way forward for Thailand.

The charges follow an incident over the weekend in which monarchy reform activists and ultra-royalists engaged in a public brawl in Bangkok.

Thaksin Shinawatra's name is on a list of 930 elderly inmates, who have been approved for parole due to ill health.