Wissanu: Amnesty 'not' included in Govt’s reconciliation plan

[webfact]

Wissanu: Amnesty 'not' included in Govt’s reconciliation plan

 

 

BANGKOK, 30th April 2018 (NNT) – Deputy Prime Minister for Legal Affairs Wissanu Krea-ngam has clarified that the government’s national reconciliation plan does not include the granting of pardons to those convicted of political offenses. 

Commenting on the work of a government-appointed committee tasked with mapping out a policy framework for national reform, national reconciliation and national development strategy, Wissanu said the reconciliation effort is making progress despite a slow start, thanks to Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Gen Prawit Wongsuwan who has been at the forefront of the reconciliation process. 

Wissanu also pleaded with the public and the media not to make a connection between reconciliation and amnesty, saying that the former is merely about building peace and unity in the nation and that the current administration has never talked about any issues related to amnesty. 

He admitted that building unity and reconciliation is a herculean task because 90% of the work involves members of the public, and pointed out that such a task would be too great and too difficult without the help and cooperation of the people.

 

-- nnt 2018-04-30

[cornishcarlos]

6 minutes ago, webfact said:

reconciliation effort is making progress despite a slow start

 

Slow start ?? 4 years and no change !! 

 

6 minutes ago, webfact said:

Defense Minister Gen Prawit Wongsuwan who has been at the forefront of the reconciliation process. 

 

 Defense Minister Gen Prawit Wongsuwan who has been at the forefront of the reconciliation corruption process. 

 

6 minutes ago, webfact said:

the current administration has never talked about any issues related to amnesty.

 

Apart from the one they granted themselves upon stealing the country !!

Edited April 29, 2018 by cornishcarlos

[HiSoLowSoNoSo]

3 minutes ago, cornishcarlos said:

Apart from the one they granted themselves upon stealing the country !!

Their self granted amnesty will be worth nothing when they are kicked out.

[cornishcarlos]

6 minutes ago, HiSoLowSoNoSo said:

Their self granted amnesty will be worth nothing when they are kicked out.

 

Who's gonna kick them out !!

[YetAnother]

1 hour ago, webfact said:

He admitted that building unity and reconciliation is a herculean task because 90% of the work involves members of the public, and pointed out that such a task would be too great and too difficult without the help and cooperation of the people.

along with the other rulers who speak publicly, this guy makes me ill; he is saying 'you do it' ,also 'we need your help but we don't allow you to help, much as we consider the public to be stupid and inept (not that we aren't) '

[nikmar]

...."Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Gen Prawit Wongsuwan who has been at the forefront of the reconciliation process. "

 

err......what?????

[HiSoLowSoNoSo]

2 hours ago, cornishcarlos said:

 

Who's gonna kick them out !!

Gandhi had no weapons but he ended the British rule in India, everything is possible.

[mtls2005]

Any successful reconciliation needs to start with an acknowledgment of past problems, and acceptance of responsibility. Universal "amnesty" for all parties is often the next step. Only then can there be true reconciliation.

 

Note that the Junta granted themselves amnesty on nearly day 1 for all "actions" past, present and future.

[Dave67]

What utter nonsense

[baboon]

2 hours ago, HiSoLowSoNoSo said:

Their self granted amnesty will be worth nothing when they are kicked out.

Wishful thinking I'm afraid. It's over. They've won.

The only way they are going to be kicked out and justice served is through a massive public uprising and tremendous violence, which really does not strike me as likely after four years. Look what happened to Suchinda in 1992 - Nothing. Why will it be different this time?

[cornishcarlos]

6 minutes ago, HiSoLowSoNoSo said:

Gandhi had no weapons but he ended the British rule in India, everything is possible.

 

Gandhi had motivation and some energy, things the Thai populace seem to be lacking....

 

i.e they just can't be bothered.. The majority that is, not the little raiding parties that surface occasionally...

[baboon]

27 minutes ago, HiSoLowSoNoSo said:

Gandhi had no weapons but he ended the British rule in India, everything is possible.

I don't want to take anything away from the great man, but Indians had had enough of British imperialism and Britain was on the wane as a world power anyway. Gandhi 'just' gave the inevitable a shove.

 

In Thailand's case we are talking about internal imperialism. An entrenched elite who will stop at practically nothing to retain the status quo, versus a public who aren't very pleased about it, but aren't prepared to get their hands dirty (and shot at) in order to take back what is theirs. There is nothing inevitable about the Thai elite's demise.

 

I am with cornishcarlos on this one, but long for the day folks are on here telling me how wrong I got it...

Edited April 30, 2018 by baboon

[bluesofa]

2 hours ago, webfact said:

Deputy Prime Minister for Legal Affairs Wissanu Krea-ngam has clarified that the government’s national reconciliation plan does not include the granting of pardons to those convicted of political offenses.

Not exactly reconciliation then, is it?

Or is there a new junta approved definition of 'reconciliation' - pardoning only those who follow their thinking.

 

[Dave67]

29 minutes ago, baboon said:

Wishful thinking I'm afraid. It's over. They've won.

The only way they are going to be kicked out and justice served is through a massive public uprising and tremendous violence, which really does not strike me as likely after four years. Look what happened to Suchinda in 1992 - Nothing. Why will it be different this time?

Just kicked out like Suchinda and a loss of face would do me, that's a life sentence in itself for a Thai

[Oziex1]

9 minutes ago, Dave67 said:

Just kicked out like Suchinda and a loss of face would do me, that's a life sentence in itself for a Thai

Im sure their Swiss bank accounts help ease the pain a little.

[HiSoLowSoNoSo]

15 minutes ago, baboon said:

I don't want to take anything away from the great man, but Indians had had enough of British imperialism and Britain was on the wane as a world power anyway. Gandhi 'just' gave the inevitable a shove.

 

In Thailand's case we are talking about internal imperialism. An entrenched elite who will stop at practically nothing to retain the status quo, versus a public who aren't very pleased about it, but aren't prepared to get their hands dirty (and shot at) in order to take back what is theirs. There is nothing inevitable about the Thai elite's demise.

 

I am with cornishcarlos on this one, but long for the day folks are on here telling me how wrong I got it...

The students are not accepting the present rulers and their ideas, if they get the farmers behind them things can change fast.

[Dave67]

13 minutes ago, Oziex1 said:

Im sure their Swiss bank accounts help ease the pain a little.

I don't care as long as they go 

[BobBKK]

They really are hypocrites and many would love to believe they would get arrested one day and jailed for the coup but it's extremely unlikely as Thais just don't have it in them. The elites control everything with an iron grip and ordinary Thais are just putty.   

[BobBKK]

16 minutes ago, HiSoLowSoNoSo said:

The students are not accepting the present rulers and their ideas, if they get the farmers behind them things can change fast.

I agree the students are the only hope for Thailand.

[Anak Nakal]

How about no amnesty for coup?

That fair.

 

 

[Eric Loh]

Reconciliation just got harder with the red, yellow and now green.   

[Lupatria]

They will need many huge buckets of rain for all those pants on fire at government house.

Edited April 30, 2018 by Lupatria

[simon59]

How come intelligent (?) people , like this man, talk about" political offense". We would expect a  spin and the use of coded words ( security, disturbance, etc...)  but now they always underline the very dictatorial nature of the regime. Once again ( but that might be omitted by the article..) let's be sad and disappointed about the lack of follow up comments or analysis by the reporter   ( "so why did you granted yourself an amnesty? How to reconcile without a pardon especially for so called political convictions?  What has been done so far to get people together?")

The real problem is that these guys do not understand a basic principal : Democracy is the art of managing peaceful disagreements. It is not reaching an impossible and dangerous unanimity of thoughts

[Baerboxer]

5 hours ago, cornishcarlos said:

 

Slow start ?? 4 years and no change !! 

 

 

 Defense Minister Gen Prawit Wongsuwan who has been at the forefront of the reconciliation corruption process. 

 

 

Apart from the one they granted themselves upon stealing the country !!

 

Indeedy! But they're clever beggars. No Amnesty for those convicted of political offenses (note not criminal offences committed by a politician). They granted themselves Amnesty from prosecution which they will no doubt claim is totally different 

 

Thailand - Hub of Catch 22's and interesting interpretations of the law and legal definitions - when it suits! 

[Baerboxer]

3 hours ago, baboon said:

I don't want to take anything away from the great man, but Indians had had enough of British imperialism and Britain was on the wane as a world power anyway. Gandhi 'just' gave the inevitable a shove.

 

In Thailand's case we are talking about internal imperialism. An entrenched elite who will stop at practically nothing to retain the status quo, versus a public who aren't very pleased about it, but aren't prepared to get their hands dirty (and shot at) in order to take back what is theirs. There is nothing inevitable about the Thai elite's demise.

 

I am with cornishcarlos on this one, but long for the day folks are on here telling me how wrong I got it...

 

Internal imperialism - great expression and analogy. Colonized by successive generations of offspring from Chinese immigrants who have slowly slowly entrenched themselves in business and politics. 

 

The old Colonial powers grabbed and ruled by force. The Chinese are so much more subtle. And know that economic and political power, power of the legal systems etc makes for a much longer term of control.

 

I agree, the entrenched elite are not likely to let their privileges and positions be eroded. And the majority will simply trudge on. Can't see that changing for a long long time.

[Srikcir]

6 hours ago, webfact said:

He admitted that building unity and reconciliation is a herculean task because 90% of the work involves members of the public

Translation:

He admitted that building unity and reconciliation is a herculean task because 90% of the work affects members of the public for work done by the 10%.

[Eligius]

3 hours ago, BobBKK said:

I agree the students are the only hope for Thailand.

I agree with you, in essence; I think that the students are potentially one of the main sources of hope for Thailand; but most Thai students I know (and I know many) are NOT up in arms and furious about what has happened to their country. They don't like the junta, but they put up with it and just get on with their university lives. There does not seem to be enough fiery resistance in the vast majority of Thai students (or Thais generally  - when it comes to standing up and being counted as resisters of military dinosaurship).

 

It is so sad to see this.

 

But one never knows what the future might hold. There is always some hope (slender though it be) ...

[Thailand]

There there are some balls around, not good news for the ptb.

[holy cow cm]

Little p is actually the BIG P. They just don't say it. Big P is the big mouth and made to look like running the show. 

[scorecard]

5 hours ago, cornishcarlos said:

 

Gandhi had motivation and some energy, things the Thai populace seem to be lacking....

 

i.e they just can't be bothered.. The majority that is, not the little raiding parties that surface occasionally...

 

Agree, I have often asked both my bachelor and masters students 'what's in the news at the moment' etc etc. Response - don't know.

 

I ask 'who has read a print newspaper or looked at an on-line version of a Thai newspaper, or watched an evening news program on TV, this week, this year'?

 

Answer to every question -  nobody!

 

 

 

 

They don't know