Thai govt drops amnesty bills

[BlackJack]

misdirection

the right hand is doing something that the left hand doesnt know about

[h90]

Nice to see Thaksin face in combination with the amnesty bills. The reason that the people are not on Sanam Luang but on the public roads preventing school children from going to school and working people from going to work is of course that Suthep and Abhisit were also main beneficiaries of the amnesty and they need to get the government out because otherwise they will go to jail.

If there is so much resentment against amnesties why no cancelling all those amnesty bills that have been passed under the Democrat governments either, preventing democracy rapists in the army of facing the full force of the law.

You are big confused it seems.

There were no amnesty bills passed under the Democrat government.

If the amnesty passes it also guarantees amnesty for Suthep and Abhisit. So at the moment they also demonstrate against their own amnesty as they accept the rule of law.

[h90]

Hope things will return to normal. Fighting and too many angry people on the streets is not good.

Sent from my GT-I9190 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

There has been no fighting. That happens when red shirts protest on behalf of the paymaster.

There was one fighting with a imposer who was really police officer.

[Ricardo]

Nice to see Thaksin face in combination with the amnesty bills. The reason that the people are not on Sanam Luang but on the public roads preventing school children from going to school and working people from going to work is of course that Suthep and Abhisit were also main beneficiaries of the amnesty and they need to get the government out because otherwise they will go to jail.

If there is so much resentment against amnesties why no cancelling all those amnesty bills that have been passed under the Democrat governments either, preventing democracy rapists in the army of facing the full force of the law.

"all those amnesty bills that have been passed under the Democrat governments either"

I'm not sure, your post is a more-than-a-little confused, but I think that the amnesty-clause in the current Constitution is what you're referring to, in which case it was voted-for by the national-referendum in 2007, when the junta-appointed military-government was in power, not under the much later Democrat-led coalition-government of December-2008 to July-2011.

Would you agree your facts are wrong, or explain more-clearly what you did mean to say, please ?

Edited November 7, 2013 by Ricardo

[DGIE]

So only one wants the bill?

maybe its a restaurant bill?

[Thai at Heart]

The article is not clear at all and perhaps the writer misunderstands. Yesterday the chief whip said at they would vote to withdraw 5 of e 6 bills. The controversial bill handed to the senate has already passed the lower house and technically can not be withdrawn. NOTHING HAS CHANGED.

Exactly!

Suppose the senators are bluffing about votoing "no" and the bill gets passed on Monday.

This government cannot be trusted. They are cunning liars as we have seen so many times.

The demonstrators will stay put until the vote is cast.

The original headline came from MCOT and it is extremely disingenuous. There is already a bill sitting in the senate.

[PeterSmiles]

More sand in the eyes of the public.

They withdrew the 6 bills they not gonna use ever, since Thaksin is not included in them, but they still push the bill that is proposed to the Senate right now.

And if all fails they have still Chalerm waiting with 2 bills that include Thaksin and haven't been discussed yet.

If the Democrats explain it the right way to their supporters, this gonna anger them even more.

[Lite Beer]

Democrats say govt's promise to end bills a ploy
Cattleya Chan
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Despite the senate's likely rejection of the amnesty bill, which will be debated in the Senate on Monday, Democrat protesters have vowed to fight on until the government puts an end to the bill once and for all, said determined protesters at the Democracy Monument, Thursday.

ML Apimonkol Sonakul deputy spokesperson for the Democrat Party announced at the rally that despite the government's retreat, Democrats would fight on until they were sure the government had truly put an end to the bill.

"The government's retreat on the amnesty bill is just a lie to buy more time. We must fight until the bill and its related drafts are fully annulled," said Apimongkol.

Apirak Kosayodhin, deputy-leader of the Democrat Party and former Bangkok governor, said it was not possible to forgive those who corrupted and destroyed the country. "Where is the jurisprudence? We must fight together for justice and righteousness." he added.

The huge numbers of protesters Thursday at Democracy Monument reached almost as far as Phan Fa Lilat. People of all ages joined the protests, with some coming from other provinces. Others claimed they had come straight from work to join the protest movement.

In addition to speeches by politicians, elementary school children also took to the stage to make their voices heard.

Protesters wore black t-shirts and blew whistles, symbolic of the call-to-action by protest organisers

-- The Nation 2013-11-07

[marcusd]

Does this mean the Government will now get down to solving some of the more

serious problems of Thailand, now this matter has been put on the back burner,

for the time been at least.

regards worgeordie

Umm I think you are mixing this Government ujp with some other. Get down to business? they only know how to rob the business.

[winstonc]

be aware the dems are not the majority protesters in bkk.they jumped on the bandwagon ,after a few other groups were already there..wife not coming back till next week..happy days....no-one is getting paid..her and the asoke group.are sleeping on the streets.but they get free food i believe..people are staying even after yingys statement today.they know her game..its nothing to do with toppling the government either.corruption is the biggy along with the amnesty..just so you know.take care all........

[stoffel45]

First of all - everything is truly never so simple and honest as it appears. No, not even this once.

Secondly, the crowds in the streets, soon to grow to over a million - maybe two is food and drink for the "Let's have another coup" lads.

It is clear that T for Tribulations Taksin found out in the Thai media in pictures - that Thailand would be a VERY dangerous place for his PTP chums to welcome him.

You can bet he took one look at those pics in Bangkok yesterday and called his servants to halt the process - in case it was successful.

[h90]

be aware the dems are not the majority protesters in bkk.they jumped on the bandwagon ,after a few other groups were already there..wife not coming back till next week..happy days....no-one is getting paid..her and the asoke group.are sleeping on the streets.but they get free food i believe..people are staying even after yingys statement today.they know her game..its nothing to do with toppling the government either.corruption is the biggy along with the amnesty..just so you know.take care all........

but the dems brought the numbers

[nong38]

The Amnesty Bill was a light the blue touch paper and withdraw situation, why they could not see that is amazing. Perhaps all they saw was a certain "hero" returning home adored by the masses and all the country's problems solved, only the world is not like that.

Some of the people have woken up and see a bigger picture and the "hero" does not have a part in unifying Thailand, he would just make the situation worse, very much worse.

The Bill should never have brought to Parliament, it shows poor judgment and makes you wonder who controls the government, well we know the answer to that one I think but where do they go from here it begins to look like they are losing the support of the country as well.

[rametindallas]

Does this mean the Government will now get down to solving some of the more

serious problems of Thailand, now this matter has been put on the back burner,

for the time been at least.

regards worgeordie

No! It means they will have time to focus on schemes to loot the taxpayer's money.

In two years I can think of no programs promulgated by this government that serve the country as a whole. Ii is always targeted at special interest groups. Are the poor better off than two years ago? Two years from now they will still not be better off.

I do like you optimism though.

[bangon04]

Who was the 1?

Maybe Yingluck was in a hurry.....to get back to the shops

[hellodolly]

Does this include the bill that is currently in the Senate?

Good question I don't think they can withdraw it now that they have passed it. But they will surely be putting pressure on the Senate to turn it down.

I think behind the false bravado they are really concerned about staying in power. They know they have been a government of buffoons but they thought nobody noticed. They got a rude awakening.

If all those bills have been withdrawn are they still going to send out people to explain the amnesty to the people who know a white wash when they see one.

[rametindallas]

Now that the government has 'turned tail' and is on the run, the protests will not stop until this government steps down. Bangkok people do not like this government. If Parliament was located in Isaan, there would be less pressure on this government but the reality is they are surrounded by people who want them gone. After the video clip that Suthep showed the crowds of a PT MP telling a group of Red Shirts that what they were doing was a ploy to buy time, no one in the current protest will believe anything this government says. This is not over by a long shot; this has just begun.

[hellodolly]

be aware the dems are not the majority protesters in bkk.they jumped on the bandwagon ,after a few other groups were already there..wife not coming back till next week..happy days....no-one is getting paid..her and the asoke group.are sleeping on the streets.but they get free food i believe..people are staying even after yingys statement today.they know her game..its nothing to do with toppling the government either.corruption is the biggy along with the amnesty..just so you know.take care all........

but the dems brought the numbers

Guess they are more popular than a lot of Thai Visa PTPredshirt backers think they are.

[hellodolly]

Does this mean the Government will now get down to solving some of the more

serious problems of Thailand, now this matter has been put on the back burner,

for the time been at least.

regards worgeordie

Not a chance.

they will now bend all their energy into how to borrow 2.2 trillion baht and get as much of it as they can into their own pockets.

[hellodolly]

BANGKOK, 7 November 2013 (NNT) - Prime Minister Yingluck Shinatra made a statement on Thursday that the House of Representatives had agreed to drop all amnesty draft bills from its agenda.

Ms Yingluck told the press on Thursday afternoon at Government House that the government was no longer pushing ahead with its amnesty efforts. She insisted that the bills were crafted with the intention of reconciling differences within the Thai society and to assist those affected by political protests in recent years.

I thought the dead red shirt families were already paid off. Was she planning on reimbersing all the small bussiness that had to close up shop and the wages for all the honest citizens that were put out of work while they had their peaceful armed protest. How did she figure that white washing the one man that centralizes all the political differences is going to solve them. Even the village idiot would know it was just going to deepen them.

The blanket amnesty bill, which was passed by the Lower House last week, was widely expected to be rejected by the Senate when it is deliberated on Monday.

The PTP was lobbying them to get it past. I bet they are now lobbying them to defeat it.

During her statement, the premier said the government would by no means use force to disperse protesters at various sites. However, demonstrators were still urged to refrain from entering prohibited sites as it would constitute a felony.

Political talk for don't do as we did.

As the government has heeded the call of its people, all demonstrators should end their rallies, the premier said.

Well it would not be practical but it would sure be nice if they kept at it until either the Government did some thing good for Thailand or stepped down.

Just my opinion but if they would put as much energy into solving the problems in the south as they did and I suspect will continue to behind the scenes to white wash Thaksin they would have made great strides towards peace in the South.

[hellodolly]

Nice to see Thaksin face in combination with the amnesty bills. The reason that the people are not on Sanam Luang but on the public roads preventing school children from going to school and working people from going to work is of course that Suthep and Abhisit were also main beneficiaries of the amnesty and they need to get the government out because otherwise they will go to jail.

If there is so much resentment against amnesties why no cancelling all those amnesty bills that have been passed under the Democrat governments either, preventing democracy rapists in the army of facing the full force of the law.

I know you are still just holding your red-shirt party line, but that post was very hard to read and understand.

Abhisit and Suthep are leading the fight against the amnesty bill and are not asking for amnesty.

What amnesty laws were enacted when Abhisit was PM?

tragic is in his handle because it fits him.

what he needs is a

so typical of a die hard red shirt. The party is over. Even if they managed to white wash their leader he would not dare to come back to Thailand. He is finally seeing the lack of love for him. The only ones on his side are also on his payroll.

[Trouble]

Thailand has just demonstrated true democracy. Despite Thailand's shortcomings (of which there are many), the voice of the people has been heard and obeyed (for now).

I would not call giving in to demonstrations of opposition for a bill true democracy. In true democracy there would be a referendum voted by the people. While surely this bill for a blanket amnesty was motived for other than reasons of reconciliation, backing down because of demonstrations of a few is not democracy. While I am happy that they did back down in this instance, governing by who brings out the largest crowd and makes the most noise is not democracy. One must always be wary of those who can rally a crowd for their own political agenda. It does not always mean the majority are in favor of that agenda and if the government acquiesces to the mob then it is just the rule of bullying by the few. With that being said I too am glad the government has pulled back from this ill advised bill obviously done for selfish reasons. Whether Red, Yellow, or whatever, people should be punished for crimes. That is the rule of law.

[PeterSmiles]

Thailand has just demonstrated true democracy. Despite Thailand's shortcomings (of which there are many), the voice of the people has been heard and obeyed (for now).

I would not call giving in to demonstrations of opposition for a bill true democracy. In true democracy there would be a referendum voted by the people. While surely this bill for a blanket amnesty was motived for other than reasons of reconciliation, backing down because of demonstrations of a few is not democracy. While I am happy that they did back down in this instance, governing by who brings out the largest crowd and makes the most noise is not democracy. One must always be wary of those who can rally a crowd for their own political agenda. It does not always mean the majority are in favor of that agenda and if the government acquiesces to the mob then it is just the rule of bullying by the few. With that being said I too am glad the government has pulled back from this ill advised bill obviously done for selfish reasons. Whether Red, Yellow, or whatever, people should be punished for crimes. That is the rule of law.

They haven't pulled back anything, they withdrew the bills that never made in the lower house, but the bill with the blank amnesty is still alive and kicking.

[kcore]

WOW !!!! well well well. I wonder why ????

Japanese !

[wprime]

Who was the 1?

Thaksin, same as the other 310. She just didn't get the memo.

[kcore]

Like Crossy I smell a rat too.

This is just a devious tactic to try & get the protestors off the streets. Don't forget that Mr ear medicine has a couple of amnesty bills up his sleeve - which haven't yet been presented to the parliament. What has not yet been said by YL is that amnesty for Skyping bro is off the table.

Interesting article in the other paper saying that the Lawyers Council is currently translating the amnesty bill (the one before the Senate) for releasing to international media. It will demonstrate that PTP wants to absolve corruption, not only for Thaksin, but for thousands of cases currently with the NACC.

I do suspect that the protestors won't trust the government next time anyway.

Watch what the left had does while the right hand deals with this obvious mis direction!

[jdinasia]

Trouble ... an amnesty, like a pardon is also part of the rule of law.

A liberal democracy is not simply about who gets the most votes. In fact, all liberal democracies have constitutions with clauses to prevent the tyranny of the majority. When a significant minority has an issue with the will of the majority (or the elected officials that forget that when they take office, they then represent ALL of their constituents and not simply those that voted for them!) then protesting is the obvious next step if the courts do not provide a remedy.

The assumption that a referendum is the answer would obviously depend on the type of democracy in question as well as that democracy's laws. It also would not be the answer in any situation where time is critical since a bill can be made into a law quickly.

Peaceful demonstrations are almost always a good thing. Listening to the voices and concerns of the people demonstrating is the job of the country's elected officials. In the age of the internet even online demonstrations of dissatisfaction need to be heeded.

note- I am not saying mob rule is acceptable. I am saying that peaceful demonstrations must be accommodated, It has become obvious that Bangkok, and indeed Thailand as a whole, needs to start thinking of ways to accommodate peaceful demonstrations. That includes providing safe places for said demonstrations to take place.

second note- I am all in favor of civil disobedience as a part of the package that is democracy as well with one caveat. It must be peaceful. The "sit-in" etc has long been a useful tool for a minority opinion to be heard.

If I were any form of Deist I would pray that things in Thailand remain peaceful. As it is, I simply hope that it remains peaceful.

[473geo]

Thank goodness for that.

The storm was petered out before it turned into a full scale hurricane.

I think Yingluck has done her reputation irreplicable damage and lost a lot of her credibility as Prime Minister.

Really, well she does not yet have the blood of her own people on her hands in order to remain in government, in fact it would appear the government is making attempt to avoid such a dismal scenario.

[easybullet3]

Glad to see that Thai people are not gullible and stupid after all, and that common

sense has prevailed and they have woken up to the folly of their puppet PM

I see it differently...

I reckon its on purpose,,

withdraw...

get the red shirt country MAD...

the reds will riot and demonstrate against the withdrawal...

i reckon the government WANTS turmoil.

[JRSoul]

Thank goodness for that.

The storm was petered out before it turned into a full scale hurricane.

I think Yingluck has done her reputation irreplicable damage and lost a lot of her credibility as Prime Minister.

Really, well she does not yet have the blood of her own people on her hands in order to remain in government, in fact it would appear the government is making attempt to avoid such a dismal scenario.

Could this be because the protesters are not armed with, and using, automatic rifles, grenade launchers, Molotov cocktails, sling shots, bamboo staves, burning tyres, etc, etc?

Perhaps its because not one security official has been shot, blown up, stabbed, beaten to death or assaulted, nor had his sidearm stolen?

Or could it be that wants to save Tarit the embarassment of explaining why she is not charged for each and every protester injured or killed?

Edited November 7, 2013 by JRSoul