REFORM COMMITTEE
PM may opt to issue executive decree
Hataikarn Treesuwan
The Sunday Nation

Red-shirt leader Somsak Boonngam-anong, second from right, takes part in a campaign by a group of people at the Police Club yesterday against the planned shutdown

BANGKOK: -- Move seen as attempt to ease tensions arising from tomorrow's shutdown's campaign

Caretaker Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra is set to issue an executive decree setting up a reform committee as proposed by 25 private organisations in an attempt to defuse the current political tension amid fears the anti-government Bangkok shutdown tomorrow could escalate into civil strife, government sources said yesterday.

Yingluck is brainstorming with Pheu Thai Party strategists and security officials on the possibility of issuing an executive decree on reform by today before the

People's Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC) led by Suthep Thaugsuban embarks on its "shutdown" campaign.

The private organisations reportedly have been lobbying Suthep and the PDRC leaders, with the military top brass coordinating negotiations. However, the talks so far have been fruitless, the source said.

"If the PM cannot persuade Suthep [to abort the campaign], she may announce the plan to issue an executive decree on TV pool or call a Cabinet meeting within today to issue the decree. Pheu Thai strategists are discussing whether to issue the law as a Royal Decree or an executive decree," the source said.

The Yingluck government had earlier decided to issue a PM's Office directive to establish a reform council after the Council of State stated that a Royal Decree establishing a reform body would not be legally binding on the next government.

Besides, Pheu Thai strategists feared that the government may face legal obstacles issuing a Royal Decree - for instance, if the decree does not get royal approval.

The source said it is likely the government may scrap the reform council to prevent overlapping of objectives. The government may ask academics from King Prajadhipok's Institute to structure the reform agency.

Meanwhile former Democrat Party leader Bhichai Rattakul called on Yingluck to show courage by stepping down in order to turn crisis into opportunity.

He said Yingluck can avoid plunging the country into chaos and Thailand becoming a failed state by quitting, postponing the February 2 election, paving the way for a new Cabinet that would not serve longer than 18 months to write a new charter and call a general election within 45 days of the charter being promulgated after receiving public approval through a referendum. Bhichai also suggested that people who had no direct role in the 2010 political riots, and state officials who were involved in the 2013 and 2014 political upheaval be pardoned. Those who face criminal charges should be excluded from the amnesty.

He also suggested that former PM Thaksin Shinawatra return to face his jail terms and vow not to get involved in politics directly and indirectly.

-- The Nation 2014-01-12

The aim of the protesters is to get rid of the shinaclan. Yingluck can propose anything she wants, but anything other than her stepping down will not be accepted by the protesters.

The aim of the protesters is to get rid of the shinaclan. Yingluck can propose anything she wants, but anything other than her stepping down will not be accepted by the protesters.

Bhichai and the other Democrats can push their unelected council as much as they want, but any government that results from a process which doesn't involve an election will not be accepted by those who support democracy.

But a designee of the Thaksin syndicate will be reelected again and the Thai cycle will repeat.

But a designee of the Thaksin syndicate will be reelected again and the Thai cycle will repeat.

So the fight goes on

The aim of the protesters is to get rid of the shinaclan. Yingluck can propose anything she wants, but anything other than her stepping down will not be accepted by the protesters.

The aim for the Democrats is to rewrite the constitution to hinder or water down the weight of the votes from the Northern Provinces so they can be in power for the next 30 years. I would call that a return to dictatorship.

Yep, the fight will go on and on. Poor, poor Thailand.

The aim of the protesters is to get rid of the shinaclan. Yingluck can propose anything she wants, but anything other than her stepping down will not be accepted by the protesters.

The aim for the Democrats is to rewrite the constitution to hinder or water down the weight of the votes from the Northern Provinces so they can be in power for the next 30 years. I would call that a return to dictatorship.

The democrats will not succeed in that. They will have to work hard to convince the voters in the north of the just cause of their fight. The missunderstood fugitive still seems to be a hero for many. The dems will have to prove to the people up north what the shinaclan is all about.

Bhichai and the other Democrats can push their unelected council as much as they want, but any government that results from a process which doesn't involve an election will not be accepted by those who support democracy.

No one anywhere that I have seen has proposed that elections be done away with, only postponed until reforms can be put in place to make said elections as fair as possible.

That does not take away anyones right to vote, indeed it should make their vote more secure without interference.

There are also the other matters that I am sure you will agree need urgent reform such as corruption, justice, police, education, etc, etc.

Would you trust any Govt once it gets into power to carry out these reforms for the good of the people and the country without self interest ?

Yingluck is brainstorming....

She provided the storm, I guess.

Some good idea's in this piece , the problem still remains, the executive government are not elected , they are in caretaker mode, this reform could drag on for years , you can't put a time limit on this sort of subject, where this idea will go is anybody's guess, I think no-where, there's to much hate involved for any good solid dialog.

Yingluck is brainstorming....

She provided the storm, I guess.

And who provided the brain?

Bhichai and the other Democrats can push their unelected council as much as they want, but any government that results from a process which doesn't involve an election will not be accepted by those who support democracy.

No one anywhere that I have seen has proposed that elections be done away with, only postponed until reforms can be put in place to make said elections as fair as possible.

That does not take away anyones right to vote, indeed it should make their vote more secure without interference.

There are also the other matters that I am sure you will agree need urgent reform such as corruption, justice, police, education, etc, etc.

Would you trust any Govt once it gets into power to carry out these reforms for the good of the people and the country without self interest ?

Would you trust any Govt of Suthep's appointed panel once it gets into power to carry out these reforms for the good of the people and the country without self interest ?

The aim of the protesters is to get rid of the shinaclan. Yingluck can propose anything she wants, but anything other than her stepping down will not be accepted by the protesters.

Bhichai and the other Democrats can push their unelected council as much as they want, but any government that results from a process which doesn't involve an election will not be accepted by those who support democracy.

Respect my vote:

1. The paymaster and his clan should have though about that subject when in the past they said that if people don't vote for us we don't take care of you (or words to that effect).

2. You want me to respect your vote? Well that's fine, but you must also respect my right to protest.

Surely a reform council under the Shinawatras will bring a stop to vote buying and corruption and at the end they'll ban themself from politics and seize their own money???

Bhichai and the other Democrats can push their unelected council as much as they want, but any government that results from a process which doesn't involve an election will not be accepted by those who support democracy.

No one anywhere that I have seen has proposed that elections be done away with, only postponed until reforms can be put in place to make said elections as fair as possible.

That does not take away anyones right to vote, indeed it should make their vote more secure without interference.

There are also the other matters that I am sure you will agree need urgent reform such as corruption, justice, police, education, etc, etc.

Would you trust any Govt once it gets into power to carry out these reforms for the good of the people and the country without self interest ?

The Democrats only want to get bach into power. Thats all. All the talk of reforms and what is are only a cover to get into power. They can only do that in a dictatorial way as they do not have the votes.

The aim of the protesters is to get rid of the shinaclan. Yingluck can propose anything she wants, but anything other than her stepping down will not be accepted by the protesters.

You are a broken record on this. Just the same post repeated over and over. What is your suggestion for resolving the conflict?

Yingluck, PTP and brainstorming and not words usually used in the same sentence\

She issue all the decrees she wants and form all the panels and committees ... does not matter

Unless she quits and boards and immediate flight out of Thailand ... Bangkok shut down is a go

The aim of the protesters is to get rid of the shinaclan. Yingluck can propose anything she wants, but anything other than her stepping down will not be accepted by the protesters.

Here's an idea. Why not hold an election and see what the electorate actually wants. If she loses the election, she won't be PM.

The aim of the protesters is to get rid of the shinaclan. Yingluck can propose anything she wants, but anything other than her stepping down will not be accepted by the protesters.

The aim for the Democrats is to rewrite the constitution to hinder or water down the weight of the votes from the Northern Provinces so they can be in power for the next 30 years. I would call that a return to dictatorship.

Don't forget, a lot of the protesters are not part of the Democrat party. Just tired of government corruption and lies. This isn't about the Democrats, though they are leading the protests. If it was just to get them back in power, the protesters wouldn't be there.

Yingluck, PTP and brainstorming and not words usually used in the same sentence\

She issue all the decrees she wants and form all the panels and committees ... does not matter

Unless she quits and boards and immediate flight out of Thailand ... Bangkok shut down is a go

If every person you did not like was expelled, there wouldn't be too many people left behind would there?

Here's an idea. Why don't you respect the legal framework. If she is allowed under the law to issue the decree, then it is indeed her prerogative. It would not be your place to demand that the PM abandon her obligation to the people who elected her to continue to serve.

You are quite quick at dismissing the voters who chose PTP and other parties and not Suthep and his Democrat party.

Respect their vote.

The aim of the protesters is to get rid of the shinaclan. Yingluck can propose anything she wants, but anything other than her stepping down will not be accepted by the protesters.

The aim for the Democrats is to rewrite the constitution to hinder or water down the weight of the votes from the Northern Provinces so they can be in power for the next 30 years. I would call that a return to dictatorship.

The democrats will not succeed in that. They will have to work hard to convince the voters in the north of the just cause of their fight. The missunderstood fugitive still seems to be a hero for many. The dems will have to prove to the people up north what the shinaclan is all about.

Not really, the lack of payment for the Rice Scam and the opening of their eyes to just how much money is being "lost" is slowly doing their work for them.

Don't forget, a lot of the protesters are not part of the Democrat party. Just tired of government corruption and lies. This isn't about the Democrats, though they are leading the protests. If it was just to get them back in power, the protesters wouldn't be there.

Well, why not put your claim it to the test at the ballot box?

Why are you afraid of an election?

The aim of the protesters is to get rid of the shinaclan. Yingluck can propose anything she wants, but anything other than her stepping down will not be accepted by the protesters.

The aim for the Democrats is to rewrite the constitution to hinder or water down the weight of the votes from the Northern Provinces so they can be in power for the next 30 years. I would call that a return to dictatorship.

Don't forget, a lot of the protesters are not part of the Democrat party. Just tired of government corruption and lies. This isn't about the Democrats, though they are leading the protests. If it was just to get them back in power, the protesters wouldn't be there.

I think most people would not reject a red shirt leader who actually cared for (all) people. Right now, the main parties have noone like that, as far as I can see. Reforms will come to nothing. We don't have have our own Madela.

Don't forget, a lot of the protesters are not part of the Democrat party. Just tired of government corruption and lies. This isn't about the Democrats, though they are leading the protests. If it was just to get them back in power, the protesters wouldn't be there.

Well, why not put your claim it to the test at the ballot box?

Why are you afraid of an election?

Well, perhaps a televised debate of the government's policies, a month before the election, would be a nice start. Yingluck's policies would have been torn to pieces - the rice scam in particular. Really want to see Abhisit vs Yingluck in front of a national audience. Same as is done in Australia and elsewhere. Not just some stupid billboard advertising 15K a month minimum salary - the consequences of that were obvious, but the government should have defended it in the public arena.

here is the two likely scenarios that Suthep and the people behind him have planned -

report begins by stating that the shutdown “is intended to trigger military intervention in the ongoing political stalemate…”.

The anti-democracy movement:

plans to mobilise 35,000 people from seven southern provinces to shut down seven locations in the capital on Monday to paralyse Yingluck Shinawatra’s caretaker administration…. They noted that some middle-class people in Bangkok might join in, but the southerners are the core of the operation.

An unnamed source says: … [the] first phase – the first two days of the shutdown – would cause the operations not only of government agencies but also of many businesses to cease…”.

This was to be followed by a “second stage, on the third and fourth days, would see a chaotic situation develop, as people in the blockaded areas in the capital struggled to find their way in and out…”.

A third and final stage, “if the chaos lasted for more than four days, many people such as taxi drivers and street vendors who cannot earn their daily living might riot.

There could also be clashes among groups of people in many locations…”.

In these circumstances, “only the military has the manpower and equipment to handle such a situation, he [the source] said, adding that heavy military hardware has already been moved into the capital.”

That’s the military coup scenario.

Another source thought that the military’s role would be to “act as a stabiliser to maintain a balance of power in the political scene…. What the military will do is to prevent any parties such as police and unknown elements … from using violence…”.

This source added that: “Yingluck’s caretaker government will try its best not to resort to violence to handle the protest, as the government knows that violence will lead to a military intervention. The red-shirt group would not come to Bangkok to confront the protesters…”.

this has been the “threat/deal” since late December: if red shirts are mobilized, the military will intervene.

This source didn’t expect a military coup, but expected that: “the elements that would bring Yingluck’s government down are constitutionally mandated independent organisations such as the Constitutional Court and the anti-graft agency…”. By this the source means the kangaroo courts and agencies that are part of the .................... anti-democracy movement.

That’s the judicial coup scenario - which is already setup by the pending (if needed) impeachment by the NACC of 308 law makers - for proposing the amendment of the military coup constitution - who would be banned from political office for 5 years which will make elections in February impossible - this was planned by the people behind the scenes who tell the courts how to rule (with the referral to the NACC) the constitutional court has lost all credibility like the administrative court that acquitted Thaksin for concealing his wealth.

The power struggle goes on as the people behind Suthep have learned nothing from the past and they might - this time - just miscalculate very badly and throw the country into chaos like never seen before.

There are already plans to protect the (caretaker) - PM establish a government in exile in a secure location in the North or Northeast if a military coup should happen- and we all know what that would mean for Thailand - so the very likely scenario is again a judicial coup which this time will have no way to succeed as the disenfranchised Thais will not sit idle and watch this scenario again without resistance.

It is time now for Suthep and the people behind him to switch on their brains and sit down and negotiate for the benefit of the country.

The aim for the Democrats is to rewrite the constitution to hinder or water down the weight of the votes from the Northern Provinces

Do you have anything to support your unfeasible contention?

So it was, is, and always will be, a power struggle between corruption and dictatorship. Someone here from all the branies tell me what is better.

The problem is the same like with this very own site, you can only "like" but not "dislike". Too much arrogance and no ear to hear. It's my way or no way.

How to solve the problem?

It can't be solved, People and education oppression is a genetic problem by now. You don't need to go that far as to politicians and government, just stay within family circle and neighborhood. How are the people there? Whatever stands on the lower ground will arrive upstairs, when taking the steps.

As someone once said, what do you get if you place rubbish into a cook pot? Correct, you'll get cooked rubbish.

As another one, once said. How to overcome corruption in our country? By shooting dead everyone at age 13 and above and give our children a chance to build their country as they see it good to be. Least at their young, and with their undissolved brain, they would have a chance.

So, seriously, it doesn't really matter at all, who of the 2 obsessives will "win". Look at the history and look at what is in place for the future, then one would need to agree, the only thing that will change is the time sequence, which will get shorter and shorter.

I won't say poor Thai people. There is no poor, never. Only ignorance and arrogance and that is - what reigned here for centuries.

The aim of the protesters is to get rid of the shinaclan. Yingluck can propose anything she wants, but anything other than her stepping down will not be accepted by the protesters.

The aim for the Democrats is to rewrite the constitution to hinder or water down the weight of the votes from the Northern Provinces so they can be in power for the next 30 years. I would call that a return to dictatorship.

Don't forget, a lot of the protesters are not part of the Democrat party. Just tired of government corruption and lies. This isn't about the Democrats, though they are leading the protests. If it was just to get them back in power, the protesters wouldn't be there.

The ONLY aim of the protests are to get the Democrats back in power. Maybe the protesters just dont know that.

The aim for the Democrats is to rewrite the constitution to hinder or water down the weight of the votes from the Northern Provinces

Do you have anything to support your unfeasible contention?

They did the exact same in 2006. The voting system was changed in order to water down the weight of the votes in the North.