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#Thailand: Former Thai PM calls for inclusive talks over new constitution

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Thailand-012Thailand's former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatera has urged the ruling junta to talk with all political groups to try to  resolve disagreement over the country's new draft constitution, writes Martin Banks.

Shinawatera, who has been in exile for seven years, says this should start with drafting a constitution that would 'provide a voice' for the country’s voters and that would not be weakened by junta proposals to remain in power behind the scenes.

His message to Prayuth Chan-ocah's government, was: "Please don’t be paranoid or fear that I’ll come looking for revenge. I’m not looking for any conditions to help myself. But if you have a real intention to move the country forward, if you intend to return dignity to the Thai people, then please come to talk."

In a rare newspaper interview, he said, "I just want to see the county moving forward, to return democracy to the people."

Thaksin, who denied he was in any direct or indirect talks with the generals, denounced the ruling military junta which has run Thailand since a May 2014 coup for pushing a 'crazy' draft constitution that he says is part of a wider strategy to avoid a fair election it fears it would lose.

He pointed out that Thailand’s latest draft constitution, unveiled last month, provides for an unelected prime minister. That opens up the possibility that a military leader could continue to lead the country after elections, which Prayuth's government has pledged to hold by the end of 2017.

Junta officials are also proposing that their National Council for Peace and Order will continue to wield power behind a civilian government.

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"I can't imagine that this kind of constitution can be written in this manner in the 21st century," said the 66-year-old Thaksin who branded the draft a "charade to show the world that Thailand is returning to democracy." 

He said that under the draft the prime minister would always have to refer up to the generals and it would limit the powers of elected governments.

In the interview, he urges the junta to scrap the proposals and consult with the public instead.

In a separate interview, his sister, Yingluck Shinawatra, whose government was ousted in the 2014 coup and who faces jail for alleged negligence, urged the junta to write a 'fair constitution' ahead of a return to elections in the second half of next year.

"You have to live with this constitution, so please make sure it fits with Thailand, it fits with the whole country," Yingluck said at her home in Bangkok.

Elections and democracy are needed to accelerate growth and boost confidence in the country, she said.

Criticism of the draft also comes from Chaturon Chaisaeng, Thailand's former education minister, who summed up the feelings of both Thai citizens and international observers with his prediction that the latest constitution will "lead the country to a dead end."

The draft was unveiled on 29 January but sparked an immediate sharp response, with human rights groups branding it as 'undemocratic' and a 'violation' of international standards.

Willy Fautre, of the Brussels-based Human Rights Without Frontiers NGO, says Thailand is now 'ripe' for EU sanctions while British centre right MEP Charles Tannock says "the case is clear" for targeted sanctions against members of the junta.

He says, "The authoritarian rule of Thailand’s generals remains in its’ relative infancy and can still be quickly unravelled. A credible and lively Thai opposition remains, for which sanctions could become a rallying point."

In a recent editorial, the Bangkok Post commented, "The draft has been branded as a 'dictator's charter' or the constitution that 'cheats and steals the power of the people."

Elsewhere, group of senior Bangkok-based lawyers are equally scathing of Thailand's new draft, branding it an attack on democracy.

The first attack on democracy, they argue, comes in the form of the suggested reforms to the House of Senators. All 200 members of the upper house will be appointed, giving the junta the green light to shape a tame Senate - most likely made up from the ranks of senior military and the police - who will be able to veto legislation, appoint judges to the Constitutional Court and resist amendments to the Constitution.

The second major issue is the role of the National Reform Steering Assembly (NRSA), which like its predecessor, the National Strategic Reform and Reconciliation Committee (NSRR) is an unelected puppet of the military.

Named by the junta, the NRSA will shape and guide the legislative agenda. Unlike the previous constitutional draft (rejected last autumn), the Cabinet is not obliged to implement the NRSA's ideas, but only to 'cooperate' with it.

Another significant issue in the draft constitution is the proposed reforms of the electoral systemfrom a mixed member majoritarian system (MMM) to a mixed member apportionment system (MMA).

The constitution, which, if adopted in a referendum this July, would be the country's 20th. The last draft was rejected in October 2015.

After gaining control in 2014, the junta has clocked up a worrying human rights record, which counts an 'attitude adjustment' programme and liberal use of the lèse majesté laws among its dubious achievements.

Last October, a European Parliament motion emphatically condemned a "litany of abuses" under the junta’s oppressive rule.

Most recently, human rights advocates questioned President Obama's wisdom of inviting Prayuth to the recent ASEAN summit in  California.

In an open letter, 100 parliamentarians from across Southeast Asia urged Obama to make discussion about human rights and democracy a priority during the summit.

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