May 14 election: the youth battles for the future of Thailand

12.May

On 14 May, Thailand will hold its general election and young voters are set to make their voices heard again as they oppose the strict rule of Prayuth Chan-ocha’s military-backed government, which formed after the coup in 2014. 

This is hardly the first time young voters express their discontent with the government. Thailand’s general election in 2019 saw over 7.3 million first-time voters who overwhelmingly supported the progressive Future Forward Party that shared the calls for reform and was critical of the Chan-ocha government. The party was subsequently dissolved in a move largely viewed as politically motivated.

Later in 2020, Thai students held protests calling for the reforms of the monarchy, the military and education. Their starkest fight is perhaps the call to end compulsory student uniforms and hairstyles. Styling themselves sarcastically as “bad students,” Thailand’s youth fight for full autonomy over their bodies and appearances, arguing that no teachers can violate their rights.

This year’s election sees a new generation of pro-democracy leaders like Pita Limjaroenrat, leader of the Move Forward Party, and Paetongtarn Shinawatra, the daughter of the self-exiled former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, contending for a seat against several retired generals including Prime Minister Chan-ocha. Over 52 million Thais are eligible to vote and four million of them aged 18-22 will do so for the first time.

Polls suggest this is a tight race between Limjaroenrat and Shinawatra, who are receiving higher popular support than the military generals, showing that the Thai people value democratic values and are demanding for a government that addresses the modern issues affecting the country.

In 2019, Thailand was ranked as having the highest income inequality rate in the East Asia and Pacific region; in education, children from poverty backgrounds have lower completion rates as they progress through the education system. The country is also logistically positioned in one of the world’s most crucial supply chain nodes and an outdated education system will not help its workforce navigate the changing geopolitical terrain in the next decades. 

While political parties are now proposing a range of education policies such as fair access to quality multilingual education, improved teacher welfare, increased budgets for school lunch and more courses on coding, a yearning for a whole new way of thinking will be felt on 14 May. After nearly a decade of the Chan-ocha rule, even parties with progressive policies will be supported by other segments of voters, not just the youth, according to polls and critics.

Thailand owes it to its youth to provide them with the right environment to thrive. This week’s election will tell whether they are alone in their fight.

Image by Kitthitorn Chaiyuthapoom