Coup Leaders Ready to Submit Temporary Constitution to King for Approval

[Gaybutton]

BANGKOK, Sept 26 (TNA)

 

A draft temporary constitution for Thailand's interim government to serve the country has been completed and is expected to be submitted for royal endorsement this weekend, Thailand's Council for Democratic Reform under Constitutional Monarchy (CDRM) head Gen. Sonthi Boonyaratkalin said Tuesday.

 

A draft containing 39 articles was to be viewed at its final stage Tuesday (September 26) by a group of academics and other civilians specially invited for this matter before being forwarded to His Majesty the King either on Saturday (September 30) or Sunday(October 1), he said.

 

Gen. Sonthi did not elaborate on details of the temporary charter.

 

Overthrowing the former government by a bloodless coup last Tuesday, the military leaders pledged to hand over power within two weeks to an interim civilian government which is expected to govern the country for about one year under the temporary constitution.

 

During the one-year rule, a new constitution will be drafted and a general election will be held after that to return sovereignty to the Thai people.

 

Gen. Sonthi said the council has not made a decision regarding the prime ministership of the interim government, but affirmed that the council would make its choice based on the democratic principle of a majority vote.

 

The coup leader said also that the council is keeping the public need in mind, so that past mistakes are not repeated.

 

As the interim government will run the country for a comparatively short period, the prime minister should be someone who can respond well to the problems the nation is currently facing.

 

The new premier must have outstanding qualifications including known honesty, a readiness to rebuild a deeply divided society in a spirit of reconciliation and unity, and most importantly, being acceptable to all sides.

 

Asked whether the council still believes that the prime minister must be a civilian, the coup leader said the word "civilian" has varied definitions, and that it can refer to a military officer who has retired from military service.

 

The CDRM chief neither admitted nor denied a speculation that privy councillor Gen. Surayud Chulanond, former army commander, is one among strong candidates for the post of prime minister.

 

Asked whether in the meeting with Privy Council president Gen. Prem Tinsulanonda on Monday the chief privy counsellor had contributed to selecting the prime minister, Gen. Sonthi said his meeting with the nation's leading senior statesman had nothing to do with this matter.

 

Gen. Sonthi said the interim government will comprise 36 cabinet members including the prime minister. The prime minister will have full authority in choosing the cabinet members, with no involvement or interference from the CDRM.

 

He affirmed that the interim government will be free from military Council influence, and that the Council has no intention to dominate or control the new government.

 

None of the CDRM leaders has such an intent, Gen. Sonthi said.

 

(TNA)-E009

[Bob]

Each country or region has its own point of view regarding a constitution and/or a system of rules and laws and it's probably fair to say that outsiders can't be entirely objective given their individual cultural and historical background clouding their view. There have been many interesting disussions on message boards about the "Thai" way of doing things and, admittedly, gaining a little insight about the "Thai" way probably helps us understand these things a bit.

 

Being from the US, I've been benefitted (and/or been saddled?) with a constitution that is over 200 years old and, other than some actually minor changes in the overall scheme of things (with the system designed to make any changes very difficult), it's remained the rule of law. With that history, I just understand as a basic given the notion of permanency of a constitution. And, while the events of the day or year swing left or right, there's this sense of a foundation that will ultimately guide the long term back to the immutable principles found in the constitution.

 

It would be interesting to try to understand what the "Thai" view of a constitution might be. I suspect, given the history (14 constitutions created and revoked in the last 74 years?), their view is quite different than mine. Given that each Thai constitution [except, perhaps, the one first created as a result of the 1932 events (which effectively destroyed the absolute monarchy and created the concept of a constitutional monarchy in Thailand)] was endorsed by the King, it seems surprising to the outsider that the King keeps endorsing newer versions. And, given the viewed permanence of the King's wisdom and power and rulings, it seems strange that the constitution can be revoked without first seeking the King's permission to do so. Just a bit of a paradox from the outsider's point of view.

 

Still, if the powers that be would be willing to discuss the whole notion of a constitition, it would be fun (intellectually) to do it. And, if the discussion were had and humor was allowed, perhaps the outsider might suggest that the next version be in Word format due to the ease of subsequent editing.

 

I understand the press is indicating that the constitution being readied for this weekend is only a "termporary one." Will the next one be sorta "permanent?"

[Guest YardenUK]

 

 

......or you could come from a Kingdom which has no written consitution like the UK.....a "democracy" that allows for a party with 35.2% of the vote at the last general election to have a majority in the lower House of Parliament.

 

No system is perfect and no system is truly democratic in the original sense of the word. Hence, I am all for the Thais doing things their way - and the vast majority of Thais are supporting the plans of the CDR, including redrafting the Constitution.

 

As Lt Gen Winai Phattiyakul said on the BBC yesterday, it must be difficult for non-Thais looking at what is happening in Thailand to fully understand the Thai way of dealing with situations like these. I think on that, he rightly rests his case.