Piyabutr Saengkanokkul


Piyabutr Saengkanokkul is a Thai academic and politician. He served as a member of the Thai House of Representatives and was the first and only Secretary-General for the Future Forward Party, which he co-founded in 2018. Prior to his political career, Piyabut was an associate professor at the Faculty of Law, Thammasat University. He has worked as a constitutional law professor for more than 16 years.

Early life and academic career

Piyabutr was born on 23 October 1979 into a middle-class Thai Chinese family, the third of four children. Piyabutr graduated secondary school at Assumption College and studied for his bachelor's degree at the Faculty of Law, Thammasat University, graduating with second class honors. He received a scholarship from the French government to study for his master's and doctoral degrees. Piyabutr graduated with a master's degree in public law and environmental law from the University of Nantes and a PhD with Très honorable avec félicitations honours from the University of Toulouse.
Piyabutr became an assistant professor at the Faculty of Law, Thammasat University. He was also a member of Nitirat, a group of Thammasat law professors who campaigned for various ideas considered radical in Thai politics, such as amending the country's lèse majesté laws.

Political career

Piyabutr resigned from his academic career at Thammasat University to create, with Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit, the Future Forward Party, with an aim towards promoting democracy in Thailand and opposing the military junta. During the party's first meeting, he was elected secretary-general. In the 2019 Thai general election, Piyabutr was second on the Future Forward's list of party-list candidates and became a member of the lower house as Future Forward were allocated fifty party-list seats.
In his mandatory disclosure of assets to the National Anti-Corruption Commission, Piyabutr reported assets of 7.7 million baht.

Personal life

Piyabutr is married to Eugénie Mérieau, a French academic.