Bangkok — Dhondit Limthongkul, a prominent Thai protest leader known for orchestrating mass demonstrations nearly two decades ago that closed Bangkok’s airports and contributed to government ousters, has launched a new political campaign targeting Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul's administration. At 78, Dhondit is seeking to channel public dissatisfaction over rising living costs, corruption, political interference, and foreign criminal networks to pressure the government under a movement called “Take Back Thailand.”

In his first international media interview since unveiling the campaign, Dhondit emphasized that his immediate goal is not to topple Anutin but to ensure the administration faces continuous demands from citizens. “I want to mobilize Thais across the country and provide them the tools to demonstrate and question the government,” he said, describing his effort as a “last mission” aimed at creating a permanent counterweight to whoever governs Thailand.

Dhondit’s campaign marks a resurgence of street politics after several years of relative calm. While it may not spark the large-scale protests that paralyzed Bangkok in the 2000s, his strategy intends to sustain public pressure and build a grassroots network capable of influencing political outcomes beyond individual elections or leaders. He described this approach as creating “bargaining power for the people,” highlighting that any prime minister following Anutin would need to contend with the movement’s presence.

Unlike his earlier campaigns focused chiefly on former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, whose ouster was a central theme of the yellow-shirt protests Dhondit led, the current movement tackles a broad set of grievances. Analysts warn this lack of focus risks diluting the campaign’s impact. Uttpaorn Issarachai, a lecturer at Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University, noted that diffuse issues may hinder mobilization unless the economic situation worsens, potentially fueling wider discontent.

Anutin secured a decisive electoral victory in February, campaigning on stability after years of political turmoil, which has helped restore investor confidence and positioned Thai stocks among the world’s best performers this year. However, Thailand continues to grapple with the legacy of prolonged instability characterized by recurrent protests, court interventions, and military coups that have impeded consistent economic progress.

Dhondit emerged in the 1990s as a powerful media tycoon before leading the royalist yellow-shirt People’s Alliance for Democracy. That group, primarily backed by the middle class and conservative elites, vehemently opposed Thaksin, who was removed in a 2006 military coup. The 2008 airport seizures, which stranded thousands of travelers, were a high point of that movement’s influence. Since then, Thailand’s political landscape has been marked by rivalry between the yellow-shirt royalists and red-shirt Thaksin supporters, contributing to ongoing volatility.

Unlike his earlier campaigns, Dhondit now operates without the robust backing of conservative establishment figures, many of whom presently support Anutin and the Bhumjaithai Party. He has criticized the current government as more dominant politically than Thaksin ever was, stating, “Thaksin only interfered, but Anutin dominates political institutions.” Despite his past as an ultraconservative figure, Dhondit has distanced himself from rigid partisan labels and dismissed the traditional yellow-red political divide as increasingly irrelevant in Thailand’s interconnected elite networks.

With a substantial digital footprint—including over five million Facebook followers and a YouTube channel attracting more than 100 million views monthly—Dhondit acknowledges the challenge of translating online support into street mobilization. In the coming weeks, he plans to tour several provinces to rally support ahead of a September 28 ruling by the Constitutional Court that could annul the results of the February election.

While stopping short of explicitly calling for Anutin’s removal, Dhondit warned that the government’s actions continually fuel public discontent. “The bad things just keep piling up. Every single thing done by the government is like adding fuel to the inside of the house,” he said. “People’s dissatisfaction takes time. But one strike of a match, and it would all go up in flames.”