The Guardian
Thailand’s constitutional court on Wednesday dismissed the prime minister, Srettha Thavisin, for appointing to his cabinet a former lawyer who served jail time, raising the spectre of more political upheaval and a reset of the governing alliance.
Srettha, a real-estate tycoon, becomes the fourth Thai prime minister in 16 years to be removed by verdicts of the same court, after it ruled he had violated the constitution by appointing a minister who did not meet ethical standards.
Srettha’s removal after less than a year in power means parliament must convene to choose a new premier, with the prospect of more uncertainty in a country dogged for two decades by coups and court rulings that have brought down multiple governments and political parties.
The same court last week dissolved the anti-establishment Move Forward party, the hugely popular opposition, ruling its campaign to reform a law against insulting the crown risked undermining the constitutional monarchy. Move Forward regrouped on Friday under a new party.
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