Premier Seeks to Dissolve Parliament and Call Election

[kamui]

Thailand’s Premier Seeks to Dissolve Parliament and Call Election

 

By SETH MYDANS

 

BANGKOK — Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said Friday that he would ask the king to dissolve Parliament, making way for an early election.

 

The step would be the [color:red]next stage in a long political struggle[/color] in Thailand that has included a coup, violent demonstrations and a military assault in the heart of the commercial center here in Thailand’s capital. The election, which will take place 45 to 60 days after it is approved by King Bhumibol Adulyadej, has been a key demand of the political opposition since the mass demonstrations a year ago that ended in bloodshed, deepening the country’s political crisis.

 

“I am confident that this is the way to make the country move forward,†the prime minister said as he announced his call to dissolve Parliament seven months ahead of the end of his term. “While the process is under way, I’d like to insist that there’s no necessity to criticize this matter.â€

 

Mr. Abhisit said he would hold a news conference when he returned on Monday from a meeting in Jakarta, Indonesia, of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

 

Thailand has been unstable since a military coup in 2006, with protests and violence on both sides of a deep political and social divide. Political analysts said that a new election was unlikely to resolve the conflicts, warning that it could touch off more unrest.

 

The main contest will pit Mr. Abhisit’s governing Democratic Party against the Pheu Thai Party, which is backed by Thaksin Shinawatra, who was prime minister before the 2006 coup. Mr. Thaksin remains a political force in Thailand even though he fled the country to avoid prison after being convicted for corruption, and has taken refuge in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates.

 

Mr. Thaksin enjoys the loyalty of many people in the poor but populous north and northeast of the country, the home of many of the “red-shirt†protesters who besieged Bangkok in April and May 2010 and who form the largest regional bloc of voters.

 

Clashes between troops and protesters paralyzed parts of Bangkok and led to the deaths of about 90 people.

 

If neither of the major parties wins a majority in the election, the outcome will depend on a competition for coalition partners from smaller parties whose allegiances are driven by political calculation and personal ambition rather than policy.

 

Mr. Abhisit’s Democratic Party now holds office in a coalition with smaller parties, and analysts say that it will need a coalition if it is to retain power. Mr. Thaksin’s allies dominate the red-shirt regions and in the past have won the most votes.

 

Many analysts expect instability after the new election, with renewed demonstrations by the red shirts if they are excluded from the government. If they win, the military and the establishment could act to overturn the result with a coup or an intervention by the courts, experts say.

 

“If we are talking free and fair elections, I think the pro-Thaksin red-shirts party has a chance to win,†said Pavin Chachavalpongpun of the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies in Singapore.

 

But, he said, “I think the Democrats will work with other smaller parties to form a coalition, with again the help of the military and influential figures.â€

 

NYT

 

[Flashermac]

 

<< Thailand has been unstable since a military coup in 2006 ... >>

 

 

I'd say it was pretty unstable for a few years before that, with Thakin pulling shenanigans over elections (not to mention tax evasion).

[shygye]

If tax evasion was a reason to oust MPs, there wouldn't be anyone left in Parliament.

[Flashermac]

 

But you are not supposed to be blatant about it. Takky was acting like ... "I'm rich and powerful so I don't have to pretend".

 

 

[shygye]

What brought down Mr T was him trying to bring the military under civilian control.

[ThaiHome]

What brought down Mr T was him trying to bring the military under civilian control.

 

THat would be by appointing his cousin as supreme commander, right? Or maybe his cadet school classmates to all the key positions.

 

Perhaps you could provide the reasons you think his alleged attempts to bring the "military under civilian control" caused the 2006 coup?

 

 

TH

[Flashermac]

As I recall, he appointed his BROTHER as head of the police and his FIRST COUSIN as head of the Army. That is called civilian control?

 

He also thoroughly farked up the Malay provinces of the far south, bringing on the current bloody insurgency. I rode with a Muslim taxi driver the other day, ethnic Thai and from Chiang Mai. When news came on about Thaksin, he became very angry - calling him the man responsible for so many Muslim deaths. Thai Muslims hate Takky's guts with good reason.

 

I worked with a retired Thai Army colonel who knew Takky's cousin he appointed to command. He said the cousin was unpopular because of his rude and brusque behaviour and would never have been chosen #1 if Takky hadn't personally picked him. He claimed Takky was trying to ensure he stayed in power by putting his family at the top of the military and police, so that no one could remove him by a coup. Instead, he made one more likely.

 

p.s. Never let the facts get in the way of a good argument.

 

 

[ThaiHome]

It has become quite fashionable now for the UDD apologist to attempt to rehabilitate Thaksin and to wax lyrical what fine time it was for everyone.

 

Here is what ANFREL said about Thaksin and the military in the report on the 2005 election. Anyone that is getting homesick for Thaksin should spend a few minutes and read the entire background section.

TH 2005 Thai Mission

The military, and the army in particular, has played a major role in Thai politics throughout

much of the twentieth century. Military officers were among the key “promoters†who staged the 1932 coup that toppled the absolute monarchy and ushered in the new era of constitutional monarchy. Moreover, since that time, the person occupying the office of the prime minister has far more often than not been a military officer. However, after the May 1992 popular uprising against the military government that had seized power in a coup the previous year, public sentiment turned strongly against the idea of permitting the military to have a direct role in politics. Consequently, the two post-1992 Democrat-led governments under Chuan Leekpai made a conscious effort to depoliticize the military and increase its level of professionalization.11 However, this trend was reversed after Thaksin became prime minister in 2001 and began to transform the military into a base of personal power.

 

Thaksin repoliticized the military by intervening in the system of promotions, placing reliable supporters into key positions throughout the military. Since Thaksin had several relatives who were military officers, as well as an entire group of classmates (class 10) with whom he had attended the Armed Forces Academy Preparatory School before entering the police academy, there were plenty of loyalists who could be tapped to do the prime minister’s bidding. By 2003, Thaksin had managed to have one of his cousins appointed

commander-in-chief of the army, and another, deputy permanent secretary of the Ministry

of Defense.12 From 2002-03, Thaksin succeeded in having at least 35 of his former class 10 classmates promoted to important military posts, including several who took command of key fighting units (McCargo and Ukrist 2005: 147). What has emerged as a result of the exertion of political intervention is a powerful personalized military network composed of Thaksin’s class 10 cronies. While these officers’ relationship to the prime minister undoubtedly confers on them a high degree of political influence, the fact that they owe their positions today to the personal patronage of their former classmate also places them in a position of great indebtedness to the prime minister. Because the neutrality and

professionalism of the military has been compromised in this way, the military risks

becoming little more than a political instrument of the Thai Rak Thai government.