<p>Community rights and indigenous rights activists in Chiang Mai were blocked by crowd control police today (24 August) during their march to submit a petition to an APEC leaders meeting at the Le Meridien Hotel.</p>

<div>The headline-generating leader of the fledgling Future Forward Party (FFP) is prompting established parties to present younger faces, and progressive values as the general election is expected to be held in February next year. </div> <div> </div> <div>The buzz and optimism surrounding Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit, leader of FFP, drew a packed house to a panel discussion on Wednesday night at the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Thailand (FCCT) between the charismatic auto tycoon and new generation representatives from the three established political parties. </div>