Political impasse, Preah Vihear dispute: Thai govt whips to call for joint session

[webfact]

Govt whips to call for joint session
Hataikarn Treesuwan,
Olan Lertrudtanadum-rongkul
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Government whips resolved yesterday to call on the House and Senate to hold a joint meeting tomorrow in order to find a way out of the current political impasse and the Preah Vihear dispute, chief whip Aumnuay Khlangpha said.

The proposal is based on the Constitution's Article 179, which says that in case of big problems facing the administration, the premier can tell the Parliament speaker that a general debate be held at a joint meeting of both lower and upper houses. However, no resolution can be passed.

Aumnuay held a meeting with Parliament's team of legal advisers later in the day to look for a way to terminate the controversial amnesty bill ahead of the 180-day waiting period after it undergoes its first reading in the Senate. The Senate was expected to reject the bill yesterday or today.

He added that Parliament's legal adviser had confirmed the bill could not be killed before the 180-day period is completed. "If we do that, we will be unconstitutional right away," he said.

The whips have also set up a committee, chaired by Pheu Thai MP Woravat Auapinyakul, to monitor all political rallies.

A source from the government's team of legal advisers said Pheu Thai MP Pichit Chuenban had called on the 300 coalition MPs to confirm in a letter to the House Speaker that they would not revive the bill. However, many MPs rejected the idea, saying they had no confidence this would take the protesters off the streets.

"The Pheu Thai Party doesn't know when the House of Representatives will be dissolved, and the MPs are worried that other more important issues on the legislative agenda, such as amending Articles 68 and 237 of the Constitution, will be put on the backburner," a source said.

He said legal experts lead by Pichit had called on the ruling party's strategic committee asking that it consider the third reading of the amendment to Article 291.

-- The Nation 2013-11-12

[ramrod711]

He added that Parliament's legal adviser had confirmed the bill could not be killed before the 180-day period is completed. "If we do that, we will be unconstitutional right away," he said.

That pesky constitution keeps getting in the way of a perfectly planned dictatorship, probably best to scrap it until the man from afar writes a new one.

[Always18]

"..............and the Preah Vihear dispute" - errrrrrm, no dispute chaps, you may have missed the small news snippet but it's all over as of yesterday!

Grow up and get over it.

[ChrisY1]

Well...what a day for Thailand!

The Government in crisis....tens of thousands on the streets....Yingluck not allowed to resign 'cos Thaksin says so.....Troops to stay at the temple site....TAT confirms tourists will keep arriviing....and now a <deleted>' train came off the rails in Udon.......this is Thailand!

[Rob8891]

Two (not too complicated) suggestion for the esteemed Prime Minister:

• Ditch the bill irrevocably
• Accept the ICJ ruling (maybe send the troops to help disaster relief in the Philippines instead?

There now, petal. That feels better doesn't it?

[Neilly]

BANGKOK: -- Government whips resolved yesterday to call on the House and Senate to hold a joint meeting tomorrow in order to find a way out of the current political impasse and the Preah Vihear dispute, chief whip Aumnuay Khlangpha said.

Good luck with that

[Artisi]

Didn't realise Thailand still had a dispute regarding Preah Vihear, assumed the decision was made by others and now needs to be applied. A thank you to the ICJ for a reasonable and fair ruling would be more appropriate than looking for ways to weasel out of a commitment.

But then This Is Thailand and no-one can tell us what to do -- you can have this confirmed by the caddy if unsure of this fact.

[animatic]

Joint session?

Perfect way to ramrod the bill through in an hour.

Before the howling starts...

[ggold]

This lot are more slippery than an eel.

[Ticketmaster]

Impasse?

[JoeThePoster]

Thai govt whips to call for joint session

Hope they've got enough joints to go around. It's gonna take some creative thinking to put an ambiguous spin on the ICJ ruling.