Thailand’s Constitutional Court will rule on May 12, 2026 on whether the country’s 1954 Military Service Act violates constitutional rights. The case centers on activist Netiwit Chotiphatphaisal, who refused to take part in the military draft lottery at a Samut Prakan conscription center in April 2024, turning his civil disobedience into a constitutional challenge to compulsory service.
The petition asks whether key provisions of the Military Service Act, including Sections 27 and 45, conflict with constitutional protections of rights, liberties, and freedom of belief. The court said it has enough evidence to rule, making the case a rare legal test of Thailand’s draft system.
