Ex-PM says he's wary of 'merchants of conflict'
Ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra has predicted that national reconciliation will figure prominently in the political picture next year but that "merchants of conflict" will do their utmost to thwart peace efforts.
Thaksin told the Bangkok Post in an exclusive phone interview from Dubai that politics next year will enter a reconciliation mode with compensation paid to victims of the political unrest.
The charter amendment drive will press ahead to ensure democratically-elected representatives of the people will not be toppled so easily and that small independent organisations set up under the present constitution will not wield too much power over others like in the past, he said.
Thaksin said a constitution must truly adhere to the principles of democracy by emphasising the importance of those who are elected by the people and the importance of checks and balances.
He said the Thai Rak Thai, the People Power and Pheu Thai parties all won in past elections.
In particular, the outcome of this year's election after the political unrest last year, shows the people want reconciliation and for the country to move forward, Thaksin said.
He said the charter change drive, the push for legislation to bring about national reconciliation and the compensation process should run in parallel to achieve results more swiftly.
If the three issues are dealt with one at a time, there could be problems, he said. This is because there are certain elements with political influence and holding key positions who do not want peace in the country.
These people will try to thwart peace efforts because they still want to benefit from being the merchants of conflict in the country, Thaksin said.
He said the merchants of conflict include people holding important positions and some members of the media.
Thaksin said if these people succeed in obstructing national reconciliation, political violence could ensue.
Thaksin stressed the importance of the charter amendment move. He said that in Thai culture, people tend to get around the rules and regulations and some of them condone actions that violate the constitution and support the overthrow of elected representatives of the people.
"After the [previous 1997] constitution was torn up, the new constitution was drawn up and strewn with landmines. As a result, the poor and the underprivileged always have to step on these mines. This is the weak point of the [present] charter," Thaksin said.
He insisted he has not and will not influence the present government and parliament where the Pheu Thai Party commands a majority.
He said he was only trying to point out problems as an observer who sees what the problems are.
"Those who are not brutal and not self-centred had better get into reconciliation mode now," Thaksin said.
Meanwhile, the Pheu Thai Party yesterday held a meeting to prepare for the next House session which will begin today. The meeting was attended by several key party MPs and the party's cabinet ministers.
Pheu Thai spokesman Prompong Nopparit said after the meeting that party members discussed charter amendment and many agreed with the party's move to amend the constitution which was a key part of its election campaign pledges.
Mr Prompong said the party has not yet reached a decision on the matter, although it agreed in principle that with the plan to amend Section 291 to allow the set-up of a new constitution drafting assembly (CDA).
Details of the proposed amendments will be discussed later, probably after New Year, Mr Prompong said.
Previously, Pheu Thai list MP and red shirt co-leader Weng Tojirakarn said the party's legal team had completed a bill to amend Section 291.
The provision allows only ministers and MPs to put forward proposed amendments to the charter, rather than a CDA.
Under the proposed amendment, the CDA would comprise 97 members _ 77 elected from each of the existing provinces and 20 appointed academics.
A Pheu Thai source said possible changes would be made to provisions covering the dissolution of political parties and the five-year political ban.
The source also said some MPs in the dovish wing of the party suggested it adopt as a model the famous PM's Office Order 66/23 issued by the Prem Tinsulanonda government in 1980 to win over communist insurgents by granting them a general amnesty.
Then army chief Chavalit Yongchaiyudh was the chief architect of the policy, which took a political approach to ending the communist threat instead of a military one.
As a result of that order, many insurgents turned themselves in which eventually led to the end of the communist insurgency and peace bing restored.
But the source said a referendum should also be held for the public to decide if they agree with the amnesty model based on the 66/23 order.
Bangkok Post
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