The Cabinet’s plan for constitutional amendments will not involve sections concerning the monarchy to avoid conflict, according to Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Commerce Phumtham Wechayachai.

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The Move Forward Party (MFP) will be filing an urgent motion asking parliament to call a referendum on whether the entire Constitution should be amended by an elected Constituent Assembly.

<p>A network of women human rights defenders has called for a more inclusive constitution and proposed amendments to the constitution which included the protection of women&rsquo;s rights, decentralization, and state welfare.</p>

<p>Just hours after a parliamentary vote to reduce the power of the appointed Senate failed, a relentless Move Forward Party (MFP) launched a campaign to obtain the 50,000 signatures necessary to hold a public referendum on whether the country should draft a new Constitution.</p>

<p>A joint parliamentary session has dismissed a draft constitutional amendment, proposed by the Re-Solution group and related networks.&nbsp; The draft was backed by over 135,000 voters.</p>

<p>The 89th anniversary of the democratic revolution that toppled the absolute monarchy of Siam resonated with demands for political and monarchy reform as the commemoration coincided with a parliamentary debate over motions to amend the constitution.</p>

<p>With the next general election in 2023, Thai politicians from all sides are becoming more serious about constitutional amendments to advance their political interest.</p>

<p>In an era of political tension and ideological conflict, Thai society has reached a turning point. While the military government has paved its way to maintaining power, a new pro-democracy movement is trying to put rights and power back into the hands of the people.</p>

<p>On 9 February, the upper and lower houses of parliament together voted 366-316 to petition the Constitutional Court over the constitutionality of the constitutional amendment bill, casting aside the regular amendment process.</p>

<p>The Constitution Advocacy Alliance (CALL), a civil society network campaigning for constitutional amendments, has condemned the constitutional amendment committee for barring them from conducting a Facebook live recording of their meetings and having security officers take them away.</p>

<p>After parliamentary scrutiny of constitutional amendments was delayed for a month, only 2 out of 7 drafts passed the first reading: the proposal by the government coalition and one of those by the opposition to amend Section 256 allowing the establishment of a Constitution Drafting Assembly.</p>