Thai opposition leader defends Taiwan, slams Prayuth for moving closer to China 

 Thailand’s prominent opposition leader and the disbanded Future Progress Party leader Thanathorn has spoken out in defense of Taiwan, and criticized Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha and Myanmar’s military junta for their increasing aggressiveness. China moves closer.

Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit, who was in Taipei last week for the Oslo Freedom Forum, an international human rights conference, said in an interview with Nikkei Asia that he stands with the people of Taiwan.

“If you want to be part of a country, that’s your opinion. If you want to be independent, that’s your opinion,” Thanathorn said in an interview.

He added that no country should take control of other lands by force or without consent. He said, “You can’t do that. I mean, isn’t our war enough?”

Thanathorn’s grandparents were from Fujian province in southeastern China, but he also had relatives in Taiwan.

In 2018, he established the Future Forward Party (Future Forward Party) with a reformist platform manifesto, which won the support of a large number of voters, especially young people in Thailand. The Future Forward Party achieved outstanding results in the general election the following year, winning 81 of the 500 seats in the House of Representatives.

The Future Forward Party’s call to practice democracy and reform Thailand’s monarchy poses a serious challenge to the military junta that has been in power since a coup in 2014. Although the party was ordered to dissolve and the original MPs and members had to be reorganized to remain in politics, Thanathorn said he was optimistic that the opposition would win next year’s election.

He also expressed confidence that the Thai authorities would not try to prevent opposition politicians from winning the election, saying doing so would only spark public outrage. “I believe that the next government will be a coalition of the current opposition,” he said.

Nikkei Asia reported that it is unusual for a leading Southeast Asian politician to defend Taiwan because doing so would anger China. This summer, none of the Southeast Asian governments spoke out to criticize the Chinese People’s Liberation Army for a series of military exercises around Taiwan, and the Myanmar military’s proxy party even accused U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of destabilizing East Asia by visiting Taiwan.

But Thanathorn’s public involvement may encourage other progressive politicians in the region, including ministers of the National Unity Government, formed by Myanmar’s anti-military bloc, to speak out for democracy.

Thanathorn believes that Prayuth is leading Thailand closer to China diplomatically, economically and militarily.

“Our submarines are from China, and we are the first country to buy them from China,” said Thanathorn, 43. “Our high-speed rails are from China, and we are opening up our economy to China. There are Chinese footprints everywhere… Myanmar Also, look at what’s happening in Myanmar right now.”

If his allies can join the ruling coalition after elections in May, Thailand will be able to help Myanmar move from military rule to democracy, he said, and has pledged to take refugees and allow international aid to be delivered to the border.