Guest fountainhall Posted December 2, 2008 Posted December 2, 2008 The Constitutional Court announced this morning that it had found the Ruling Party and some smaller parties guilty of vote buying at the last election. The government must now disband and the Prime Minister and some his colleagues are banned from politics for 5 years. So, having got the country into this mess, the PM can now return to Bangkok and let others sort out the horrendous problems he has left behind. Quote
Gaybutton Posted December 2, 2008 Posted December 2, 2008 The next logical question is who, exactly, is in charge now? According to THE NATION: Chaovarat Becomes Caretaker PM No-1 Deputy Prime Minister Chaovarat Chanweerakul will become caretaker prime minister pending a meeting of the caretaker Cabinet, former PM's Office Ministers Sukhumpong Ngonkham said Tuesday. He said the caretaker Cabinet would make a former decision as to who should be caretaker prime minister replacing disqualified Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat. ____________________ The following appears in THE NATION: _____ People Power, Chart Thai and Matchima Thipataya Parties Disbanded By The Nation The Constitution Court on Tuesday ruled to disband three coalition parties, People Power, Chart Thai and Matchima Thipataya, and banned the three's party executives from electoral process for five years. The high court held the three parties for accountability on electoral fraud involving party executives, Yongyuth Tiyapairat of People Power, Monthien Songpracha of Chart Thai and Sunthorn Wilawan of Matchima Thipataya. In the fraud case linked to People Power Party, the high court cited the Yongyuth conviction by the Supreme Court as the ground to penalise the ruling party. For cases linked to Chart Thai and Matchima Thipataya, it invoked the rulings by the Election Commission as the basis to punish the two parties. The nine presiding judges reached unanimous decisions against People Power and Matchima Thipataya parties. And they formed the eight-to-one decision to punish Chart Thai. The high court opined that the punishment by disbandment was mandatory as sanctioned by Article 237 of the Constitution and that it had no leeway to selectively punish the party executives on the individual basis. ____________________ The following appears in the BANGKOK POST: _____ PPP Dissolved The Constitution Court on Tuesday banned Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat from politics for five years and dissolved the ruling People Power party (PPP) and two other coalition parties, Chart Thai and Matchimathipataya, over voting fraud cases. "As the court unanimously decided to dissolve the PPP, therefore the leader of the party and party executives must be banned from politics for five years," said Chat Chonlaworn, head of the nine-judge court panel. "The court had no other option," he said. The verdict came amid a confrontation between Somchai, the brother-in-law of ousted former premier Thaksin Shinawatra, and anti-government protesters occupying Suvarnabhumi and Don Mueang airports. Somchai was elected by parliament on September 17 after his predecessor, Samak Sundaravej, was forced from office last month for appearing in television cooking shows. The judge, wearing a black robe with a scarlet collar, read the order live on national television. "No matter whether you are satisfied or not with the verdict, we ask you to accept it," he said. The verdict said the party must be disbanded because PPP executives had been convicted of vote fraud after elections in December 2007. "Although some party executives had no knowledge of the election fraud, the law stipulates clearly... the party must scrutinise its executives thus the party cannot deny responsibility," Chat said. The court banned 109 PPP, Chart Thai and Matchimathipataya executives from politics for five years. ____________________ And this, from CNN _____ BANGKOK, Thailand (CNN) -- Thailand's Constitutional Court ordered the ruling People Power Party dissolved Tuesday for electoral fraud, banning Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat and more than 30 party officials from politics for five years. The ruling follows months of opposition protests, including a week-old siege of Bangkok's international airport and sparked angry counter-protests by Somchai's supporters outside the court. The court also banned at least one of the PPP's ruling coalition partners, effectively dismantling the government over allegations of vote-rigging. There was no immediate reaction from Somchai or his party to the ruling. Demonstrators have occupied Thailand's Government House since August, forcing lawmakers to meet elsewhere. They said Monday that they would end the sit-in and move to Suvarnabhumi international airport, where they have left flights grounded and countless passengers stranded since November 25. "We wish we hadn't come here at all," said Keri Gannam, a visitor from the United States, who was honeymooning in Thailand. "It's just stressful. It's taken away everything... I'm supposed to have job interviews. I missed them." "Money isn't flowing in for us," said her husband, Andy. "And we came here to take a couple of relaxing weeks -- something both of us had earned. And it's turned out being a disaster, basically." The opposition People's Alliance for Democracy accuses Somchai of leading a proxy government for his brother-in-law, ex-Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who was ousted in a 2006 coup. Thaksin returned to Thailand after the PPP victory in 2007, but fled the country again just as he was to appear in a corruption case against him. The anti-government protesters want Thaksin extradited and tried on those charges. It also accuses the PPP government of wanting to amend the constitution so Thaksin does not have to face charges. About 60,000 tourists arrive at Suvarnabhumi every day, and the airport siege has had a devastating effect on Thailand's vital tourism industry. Protesters at Suvarnabhumi granted two small concessions on Monday to help alleviate the misery of thousands of travelers. By Monday afternoon, 37 aircraft had left Suvarnabhumi. All but one airplane, which flew empty to Shanghai, landed at the U-Tapao Royal Thai Navy Airfield, about 140 kilometers (90 miles) southeast of Bangkok, airport spokeswoman Monrudee Gettuphan said. From there, travelers can try to catch a flight home. A convoy of buses, carrying Muslim pilgrims stranded at Suvarnabhumi since last Tuesday, was also allowed to leave for the naval base. From there they can make their trip to Saudi Arabia for the Hajj, a pilgrimage that Islam requires all able-bodied Muslims to make at least once in their lifetime. Authorities have estimated 100,000 passengers have been stranded at Suvarnabhumi since protesters began the siege, which has had a devastating impact on Thailand's tourism industry. Agencies reported Monday that the French government was sending a Boeing 747 to Thailand to help bring its citizens home. Frederic Desagneaux, a French foreign ministry spokesman, told reporters that the plane would take around 500 people and give priority to those with small children, people with health issues and senior citizens, The Associated Press reported. Protesters have shut down a second, smaller airport that the government had been using as its temporary office after being shut out of its headquarters, and demonstrations have occasionally turned violent. A pair of explosions injured 49 people -- three of them seriously -- when what was believed to be a grenade was launched at protesters at Government House early Sunday. Later, police said there was another blast in a road in front of Don Muang. Police say they do not know who carried out the attacks. But PAD blamed pro-government supporters. At the arrivals area of Suvarnabhumi on Monday, a CNN cameraman recorded a group of protesters leading a man outside. The man, his clothes in tatters and too weak to walk on his own, appeared to have been beaten. Somchai declared a state of emergency at the two airports last week, but it is not certain what powers the declaration gives the government. Somchai himself has been avoiding the capital, choosing instead to stay in the northern city of Chiang Mai. Quote
Guest MonkeySee Posted December 2, 2008 Posted December 2, 2008 The party is disbanded but the players are all the same. Looks like they will probably just have a new party name and a new prime minister. Same same but different, in my opinion. If this solves the airport crisis, I am all for it. Quote
Guest Geezer Posted December 2, 2008 Posted December 2, 2008 Questions arise as dissolutions put electoral system in a vacuum By Somroutai Sapsomboon The Nation It appears we are far from being out of the woods yet. If the law is followed the new government could very well be a reincarnation of the old one. Can you see the yellow shirts tolerating that? This article is a bit long, but if you want a look into the future it is a must read. http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2008/12/03...cs_30090062.php Quote
Guest luvthai Posted December 2, 2008 Posted December 2, 2008 The PAD may have won a victory but they should be held accountable for the damage to the economy and thailands image. We shall see how the courts handle this. Quote
