Burmese people celebrate MFP General Election victory

In astonishing scenes, thousands of Burmese people gathered in Myanmar to celebrate the 2023 General Election victory of the Move Forward Party (MFP). Burmese netizens made known that the MFP triumph will have a positive effect on the rights and well-being of Burmese workers in Thailand.

Local media agencies in Myanmar reported yesterday, May 15, that thousands of Burmese took to the streets proudly wearing orange MFP shirts to celebrate the party’s success.

Pictures of a sea of Burmese people in orange shirts circulated on Thai and Burmese social media. Supporters are seen waving orange flags, wearing orange scarves, or painting their faces orange.

A lot of Burmese netizens offered their heartfelt congratulations to the party and hoped the MFP will also prioritize the welfare of Burmese labourers in Thailand.

MFP member Katenakorn Potjanaworrapong revealed the party’s policy for migrant workers in Thailand during a debate on the topic of “The policy to take care of and protect labour, and the policy against human trafficking in Thailand.”

Kartenakorn emphasised that the MFP regarded migrant workers as equals to Thai workers. The party has four main policies related to labour in Thailand, including labour protection measures for every worker of every nationality, labour protection measures with the International Labour Organization (ILO) standard, labour welfare for everyone, and the simplified migrant worker registration processes.

The South China Morning Post reported recently that democratic political parties such as the MFP and the Pheu Thai Party have garnered popularity among Burmese people, surpassing that of conservative and military parties.

A Singaporean academic, a political observer, and an Australian scholar shared their perspectives on the MFP’s victory with the South China Morning Post. They believe that the victory of the MFP was expected to influence Thailand’s response to the situation in Myanmar. They suggested that the party should make careful steps in Thailand’s relationship with Myanmar’s military rulers.