Tanwarin Sukkhapisit

Tanwarin Sukkhapisit (Thai: ธัญญ์วาริน สุขะพิสิษฐ์, RTGS: Thanwarin Sukkhaphisit, Thai pronunciation: [tʰān.wāː.rīn sùk.kʰà.pʰí.sìt]) is a Thai filmmaker and politician. In the 2019 Thai general election, they were elected to the Thai parliament representing the Future Forward Party. Tanwarin is a kathoey, and became the first ever openly transgender member of parliament in Thailand's House of Representatives.^{[2][3][4][5][6]}

Tanwarin Sukkhapisit
ธัญญ์วาริน สุขะพิสิษฐ์
Tanwarin in 2019
Member of the House of Representatives for the Future Forward Party List
In office 24 March 2019 – 28 October 2020
Personal details
Born	(1973-10-23) October 23, 1973 (age 51) Nakhon Ratchasima Province, Thailand
Political party	Move Forward Party[1]
Other political affiliations	Future Forward Party (2018–2020)
Occupation	Filmmaker politician

Biography

Tanwarin was born October 23, 1973, in the Nakhon Ratchasima Province. They graduated from Khon Kaen University. After working as an English teacher, Tanwarin entered the entertainment industry as a writer and director.

Removal from office

In October 2020, the Constitutional Court of Thailand removed Tanwarin from power, finding them guilty of rules barring lawmakers from owning stock in media companies.^[7] Tanwarin's removal has been tied to a broader crackdown on Thailand's pro-democracy movement,^[8] with one commentator in the Bangkok Post writing that they were "unjustly removed" in a "huge blow to the Thai LGBTI community".^[9]