Srikcir

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How many more millions of dollars is the USA going to spend to keep them at the negotiation tables? This an old ploy done time after time. Isn't anyone wise to this game being carried out. What happened in North Korea with their Nuclear program. Didn't we say we will never allow them to have Nukes? What happened to that strategy ?

Iran will go the same way, after sucking hundreds of Millions of dollars from us. They will have Nukes despite our opposition. What will sanctions do? We had sanctions on Cuba for over 60 years, and now we are just lifting them up. Soon Miami Florida will loose out on the tourist trade with Cuba, once they open up casinos again.

Those millions of dollars came from confiscation of Iranian funds through the various sanctions.

One has to admire the stupendous circular thinking of the Junta-led government.

"Regarding restriction of rights, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs has said that authorities are willing to invite all interested parties to jointly monitor the situation."

Okay, the UN will send a human rights commission watchgroup to Thailand to monitor use of Article 44.

BUT

"Due to this, clarification to the international community is not required."

So interested parties visits are not required to be accepted. They already understand so what's the point of any visit?

It's a sad tribute to the death of democracy in Thailand when a member of staff from the Judge Advocate-General's Department supports the use of a military court to try civilians. Every person in the Thai judicial system should resign in protest to the usurption of civilian justice by military decree. But they originated from previous coups and love their positions above the sovereignty of the Thai people.

A military court is not independent under Article 44. NCPO has the power and right to circumvent any military court procedure, including any court ruling. Civilians are essentially treated as enemy combatants with no right to fair and equal representation, access to government evidence, bail, or right to appeal. The standard of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt does not apply. Military trials can be held in secret and try defendents in absentia.

Who will defend Thai sovereignty? Who will defend Thais rights, and liberties? It certainly will not be the "reformed" Thai judicial system nor the NCPO. It will depend solely on the Thais themselves as to whether they care enough to change their future or be led willingly to the slaughterhouse of subjugation. I can imagine 4 million Malay-Thais chuckling at the conquest of 60 million Thai people with which they have had to endure for decades. It might be especially ironic to see the military apply their Thung Yang Daeng model throughout all Thailand.

I haven't seen anything which would support the proposition that the results from trials before the Thai military justice courts are in any way inferior to the results from the Thai civilian court system. For the most part, the Thai civilian court judges make the law up by themselves, because the nation lacks a national reporter system. A national case reporter system is an indispensable part of stare decisis, or court precedent. How is a judge supposed to determine prior Supreme Court precedent where there is no reporter system or indexing system by which applicable prior court decision can be researched? Moreover, the judges don't have clerks to do the intensive research required to have a firm grasp of prior precedent. The civilian courts decisions are completely random, that's why you have rulings such as the injunction prohibiting the screening of Fast and Furious 7. The civilian judges just do what they want, regardless of common sense or prior binding appellate rulings.

Everything you say is true as it applies to a judicial system that follows case law such as found in the USA.

Thailand judiciary does not follow case law but rather common law such as found in the UK. Common law is influenced by tradition, custom, and current practices that may or may not relate to precedential court decisions. Therefore, a national case reporter system is NOT an indispensable part of judicial decisions. In some ways use of common law allows more precise and modern rulings than those pinned to a generation of outdated and inapporpriate court decisions.

77 senators elected out of 200 or 38.5%

It was bad enough that previously it was 50% elected senators. Now we see a further step backwards away from a democratic participatory government. Prayut's roadmap to democracy seems to have a lot of "turnarounds."

An election campaign promise that she HAD TO honour ?

Politicians around the world will be shaking their heads and muttering under their breath " thank God that won't catch on here. "

Like Obama care? ??

A mirror image of the rice scheme.

Perhaps thailand should mirror image their remedy.

And file charges against Suthep, for holding the banks at ransom to stop the elected government from aquiring funds that fulfil it's responsibility to care for it's poorest people.

Which resulted in the deaths of 16 people.

Are banks' main fiduciary duty to depositors or to a caretaker government who is prevent by law to put the country into more debts?

The banks were in fact OVER CAPITALIZED and needed borrowers to sustain profits from loan interest charges. There was no economic reason for the banks to reject government loans other than the threat of physical harm by the PDRC.

How about :

"Law breakers should be wary of all laws"

Those who don't break the law should have no problems at all.

Add to that, "Those who break laws but can grant themselves amnesty, should have no problems at all."

We can thank the Interim Charter and draft 2015 Constitution for that.

Now that Prayut has moved to full imposition of Article 44, people need to think twice about where they TP.

Article 44 legitimizes PM Prayut's power?

It's a historical event.

Article 44 as well as the rest of the Interm Charter including draconian Article 17 was endorsed in July 2014 as the nation's rule of law. It has since then been entirely Prayut's decision as to when and to what extent he CHOOSES to personally impose laws under Article 44. Prayut doesn't need any further authority to act under Article 44.

"As of now there is a royal order to lift martial law across the kingdom," said an announcement on military television, adding that the law will be replaced with new rules under the controversial Section 44 of the interim constitution.

The royal order comes a day after junta chief and premier Prayut Chan-O-Cha said he had asked the 87-year-old King Bhumibol Adulyadej for permission to lift the law.

__________________________

I don't quite get this bit. A royal order to lift martial law, yet Prayut had to ask His Majesty for permission to lift the law? alt=w00t.gif>

Does this mean that when Prayut undertook the coup and imposed martial law it was by royal decree? I'm confused.

The Junta's abolishment of the 2007 Constitution (with exception of Article 1 with the King as Head of State) and imposition of martial law was done without any apparent official endorsement. However, the Junta's Interim Charter that replaced the 2007 Constitution as the rule of law was endorsed on July 22, 2014. It is the Interim Charter that under Articles 17 and 44 that gives the Junta absolute power over Thais rights and liberties.

You should understand that Thailand is a constitutional monarchy much like the UK. Since 1932 when the Thai military overthrew the absolute powers of the King, the King of Thailand serves as Head of State like Queen Elizabeth II and spiritual leader of the country, but wields no outright political authority. As such, the role of a constitutional monarchy is often viewed as ceremonial.

I hope that helps.

This is the second round of debt assistance and forgiveness. The message it sends is that there will be further rounds of support.

Who needs to grow anything for revenue? The government will just keep bailing people out of debt in ad nauseum.

The bottom line is that the government has no sustainable agricultural program.

Government also plans to use Article 44 to:

- raise rice prices 2x market

- raise rubber prices 2x market

- increase GDP growth to 5%

- make it rain where there is drought

- make a drought where is flooding

- put a Thai on the moon by 2016

- make the EU beg for Thai seafood

- make the US beg for Thai seafood

- make all political parties disappear

It's like a book of magic spells.

"The foreign criminals come in many forms, and the target for us tonight is colored people,"

I can't wait when police decide to target brown-skinned people. They'll need buses to take them to police stations.

But wait. If the police are also brown-skinned, do they also arrest themselves as well?

Do the police have a skin color chart for each race? You know so there's no confusion about how to recognize targets.

"loitering with intent to commit crime."

Sheer unprofessional conduct and corruption collecting bt100 fines.

Police might as well arrest every tourist on the beaches and wandering through the markets. You never know what's on their minds just loitering.

It's pretty cool to see Jaa grow into a global actor and maybe producer. He doesn't confine himself to Thai or Asian productions but takes risks outside a familiar environment to grow his talents. His experience with Sahamongkol Film is painful but an important lesson to many apsiring Asian actors who may easily get trapped in their culture with dead-in roles.

Why can't the Thai government approach the migration issue for the Rohingya hoping to enter Malaysia with a proactive policy?

Myanmar doesn't want them and Malaysia does. Thailand doesn't like to find them. So the Thai embassy in Myanmar arranges transfer to Malaysia through Thailand with secure and safe passage after verification of ID. The Rohingya pay for the documentation and passage that should be minimal compared to what they pay traffickers.

Thailand documents their arrival in Malaysia. End of issue.

Check the plentiful new and existing gated home and townhouse communities south and east of Bangkok. DD does cover many of these projects. However, I found many that have a variety of amentities require extra fees. If you have little time for research, see if you can find another condo unit in an area of your interest for a short-term period. I expect before the end of 2015 a surplus in the Bangkok housing market that will present some bargain purchases, especially with used homes where owners cannot meet their mortages.

The ARMY needs a lot of budget. ......

Amazing post from a newbie ??? Target the army---I wonder why ?? another one joins the bashers.

Of course it is the army that created this mess---ha ha ha-----go and have a strong coffee.

The Thai military budget has never suffered from a poor economy.

And it was the combination of the 1-2 years of PRCD/Democrat anti-government protests and the military coup that adversely affected the Thai economy beginning in mid-2013 to now. Compare the military budget to Thailand's Annual GDP rate. Where do you see the military taking cuts in its budget?

Disgraceful!

Once again when the Junta-led government has the opportunity to diversify away from fossil-fueled transportation and towards clean electric transportation, it seems to revert to the past.

2014-09-12

"PEA's [Provincial Electricity Authority] technological research and development fund and Suranaree University of Technology jointly produced the electric bus with 43 seats....The PEA will test the bus during the next six months. If results are satisfactory, it will deploy the vehicle to serve its staff next year....Later the PEA will promote the commercial use of such buses that can halve energy costs compared with oil-powered buses."

2015-03-02

"The Minister of Transport [ACM Prajin Juntong] has appointed related agencies to study the possibilities of replacing the current diesel and NGV buses with electric buses, in wake of the NGV price hike....[he] addressed the Bangkok Mass Transit Authority (BMTA)’s NGV bus procuring project of the 2,694 pending purchases of buses, that the BMTA should consider feedback from all related sectors on whether these new buses should operate on NGV gas."

But BMTA is forging ahead with procurement of NGV buses.

What happened to a sustainable energy program?

Is anyone in the government in control of its energy policy?

I really do not understand how this procurement is working, it seems to be flip flopping all over the place.

First there was a handful of bidders both Thai and Foregin, then a couple dropped out.

Then there were more strange stipulations.

Now we are in the 3rd stage of bidding and suddenly another 11 contenders seem to have appeared from nowhere.

I was under the impression, that normally bids would be received, those bids assessed, and perhaps a couple move on to more detail analysis.

It seems here that anyone can just come piling in whenever they feel like it.

Yes, better transparency in government procurement appears to be a fantasy.

- 1st round were 23 interested bidders for 498 NGV buses out of a total 3,183 buses.

- Only 2 make bids

- Pranee says she will continue procurement with the 2 bidders as procurement requires ONLY 1 bidder

- Pranee says she will begin negotiaions with the two

- 3rd round (2nd round being negotiations with 2 bidders?) Pranee says there are now 11 more bidders

- Deal Winner chosen and will get bt3.65 million for each bus.

Only Swiss cheese has more holes than this procurement process!

The Thug Dang Dung model is dead.

The military saw what it thought was a chance at a stunning military defeat of a large number of insurgents and went in guns blazing as an oppotunity to force insurgent leadership to the peace table. This action was in contravention to the military's Thung Yang Daeng model. Instead, the military fell back on its tried and failed policy of force.

The outcome of any review of this military action will not matter. Military creditability has been irreversibly damaged - it cannot change its tactics. As Prayut promised peace in the South by end of 2015, I expect more desparate military actions to occur. They are the only actions the military is capable of supporting as Prayut gave Malaysia the responsibility to get the insurgents to the peace table. Since that pronouncement in 2014 ("Malaysia is the One"), Malaysia has been silent on any progress.

"It is obvious that the charter will go through a referendum even if some provisions are not favoured by the public"

It is NOT OBVIOUS.

I have never gotten the impression that any part of the charter will go to a public referendum. The Junta has clarified several times a referendum is not required by the Interim Charter.

The Junta in fact threatened that if the charter is not approved within the Junta's current timetable that excludes a referendum, it will restart the whole process over and continue military rule of Thailand for an unforseeable future.

A higher minimum wage is well justified in Thailand.

BUT unlikely to happen :

- The country is entering into an economic depression with likely zero GDP growth rate and further devaluation of the baht to 35-38/USD by 2015Q3.

- The Junta has spent much of the treasury on quick cash handouts to quell protests by coup supporters.

- The Junta has given pay raises to government employees

- The Junta government is bloated with nonproductive "reformers"

- Junta appointed officers receiving double/triple pay filling both military and civilian roles

- Junta clone organizations are employing family members for noncritical duties

- Junta is throwing low income people out of work with "reforms"

- Abuse of Article 44 powers may drive foreign businesses and capital out of Thailand

- Thailand's agricultural industry is not cost effective

- Government tax collections are failing

- The Junta will allow LESS than minimum wages to be paid in special development zones.

The economic damage brought to the Thai economy in 2013-2015 by anti-government protests and military coup will take several years to recover. In that time the poor and low income may find better opportunity outside of Thailand.

"I need to use power under Article 44 of the provisional constitution to allow the authorities quickly to conduct searches and arrests without having to wait for a court warrant."

Same-same under martial law. Only the words change but not the power.

The Thai people remain a conquered people under Article 44. The 4 million Malay-Thais in South Thailand might find some irony in that given their own subjugation by the Thai authorities for the past several decades.

Issues in eight areas include personnel licensing and training, airworthiness assessment and certification, accident investigation and airline operations oversight. Thai Airways may have to be recertified!

These issues can't be addressed and resolved in a month, possibly not even in a year any more than the Junta can make rain. A rushed mishmash of actions under Article 44 will not give Thailand a pass on the issues. Thai airports better get used to seeing more foreign carriers that comply with aviation safety standards to take up the passenger load lost by Thai airlines. I'm sure the foreign carriers will appreciate the revenue boost.