Bangkok: The Constitutional Court has concluded that the civil society's petition to annul the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU44) between Thailand and Cambodia does not constitute an attempt to overthrow the government. The court rejected the petition, which lacked sufficient evidence to support claims of a coup d'©tat, and called for the movement to be halted.
According to Thai News Agency, the Constitutional Court reached a unanimous decision not to consider the petition filed by Mr. Niyom Nopparat. The petition accused seven groups of engaging in political activities aimed at undermining the democratic regime with the King as Head of State. These activities were related to the 2001 Memorandum of Understanding concerning overlapping continental shelves claimed by both Thailand and Cambodia. Mr. Niyom alleged that these activities could lead to chaos and potentially a coup.
The petition was initially submitted to the Attorney General on January 3 and January 13, 2025, seeking the Constitutional Court's intervention under Section 49 of the Constitution. However, the Attorney General determined that the evidence presented was insufficient to warrant a ruling or cessation of the activities under the same constitutional section. Following this, Mr. Niyom appealed directly to the Constitutional Court.
Upon review, the Constitutional Court found that the actions of the defendants primarily involved the expression of opinions and political activities opposing MOU 2001. Such activities are considered a legitimate exercise of rights and freedoms to scrutinize government actions. The court concluded that there was no substantial evidence to prove that these activities sought to overthrow the democratic regime with the King as Head of State, as stipulated in Section 49, paragraph one of the Constitution.