HM the King: Be prepared for crucial verdict
BANGKOK (XFN-ASIA) - Foreigners in Bangkok were warned by their embassies to exercise caution amid mounting security fears ahead of a court decision over whether to dissolve Thailand's two largest political parties.
Australia, Canada, France and Japan all advised their citizens to show a high degree of personal security awareness as tomorrow's verdict could trigger violent demonstrations in the Thai capital.
'You should avoid demonstrations, political rallies and concentrations of military personnel,' the Australian embassy said in a statement.
The Japanese embassy called on its citizens to 'stay away from expected political rallies' and 'act very cautiously so as not to get involved in possible unrest and terror attacks.'
Some 900 police will be deployed on Bangkok's streets tonight, protecting the Constitutional Tribunal offices and setting up checkpoints to deter party supporters from traveling to the capital from the provinces.
Some 15,000 Thai troops are now on alert across the country to deter possible violence, officials said.
The Canadian embassy warned that planned protests might turn violent and urged its citizens to 'maintain high level of personal security awareness' and avoid 'unnecessary travel' in Bangkok.
The US embassy here has left its travel advice unchanged, urging tourists and expatriates to monitor events and avoid large public gatherings.
The British embassy's travel advice, which was updated on Wednesday last week, also urged its citizens to avoid demonstrations and large crowds.
Tomorrow, Thailand's Constitutional Tribunal must decide whether Thai Rak Thai, the party formed by ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, and the Democrat Party are guilty of a slew of charges of electoral fraud related to annulled elections in April last year.
The tribunal has the power to dissolve the parties and ban their executives from politics for five years.
afp/net
Australia, Canada, France and Japan all advised their citizens to show a high degree of personal security awareness as tomorrow's verdict could trigger violent demonstrations in the Thai capital.
'You should avoid demonstrations, political rallies and concentrations of military personnel,' the Australian embassy said in a statement.
The Japanese embassy called on its citizens to 'stay away from expected political rallies' and 'act very cautiously so as not to get involved in possible unrest and terror attacks.'
Some 900 police will be deployed on Bangkok's streets tonight, protecting the Constitutional Tribunal offices and setting up checkpoints to deter party supporters from traveling to the capital from the provinces.
Some 15,000 Thai troops are now on alert across the country to deter possible violence, officials said.
The Canadian embassy warned that planned protests might turn violent and urged its citizens to 'maintain high level of personal security awareness' and avoid 'unnecessary travel' in Bangkok.
The US embassy here has left its travel advice unchanged, urging tourists and expatriates to monitor events and avoid large public gatherings.
The British embassy's travel advice, which was updated on Wednesday last week, also urged its citizens to avoid demonstrations and large crowds.
Tomorrow, Thailand's Constitutional Tribunal must decide whether Thai Rak Thai, the party formed by ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, and the Democrat Party are guilty of a slew of charges of electoral fraud related to annulled elections in April last year.
The tribunal has the power to dissolve the parties and ban their executives from politics for five years.
afp/net
Democrats escape unscathed
BangkokPost.com
The Constitution Tribunal has cleared the Democrat Party of election fraud charges, and the party will not be dissolved.
The Constitution Tribunal has begun reading charges and its verdict on the Thai Rak Thai party.
BangkokPost.com
The Constitution Tribunal has cleared the Democrat Party of election fraud charges, and the party will not be dissolved.
The Constitution Tribunal has begun reading charges and its verdict on the Thai Rak Thai party.
I intend to live forever - so far so good.
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From the BBC.
Key Thai party cleared of fraud
The Democrat Party was Thai Rak Thai's main rival
Thailand's Constitutional Court has acquitted the Democrat Party of all charges of violating the country's election laws.
If the party had been found guilty, it could have been disbanded and its leaders banned from politics.
The judges now have to consider similar charges against the Democrats' main rival, the Thai Rak Thai Party, and its former leader Thaksin Shinawatra.
Police are on standby in Bangkok amid fears of violence at the verdicts.
The country's interim Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont, who was installed after Mr Thaksin was ousted in a coup last September, said he would issue an emergency decree if necessary to quell any unrest.
Damaged democracy
The Constitutional Court ruled that the Democrat Party neither slandered Mr Thaksin nor urged voters to cast a "no" vote in last year's controversial election campaign, which was subsequently annulled over allegations of electoral fraud.
The judges also found the Democrats not guilty of bribing a smaller party to influence the results of the poll.
Mr Thaksin's Thai Rak Thai party could be disbanded
"There are no legal grounds to disband" the Democratic Party, one judge concluded.
But a series of charges threatening the dissolution of Thai Rak Thai remain to be decided, and a verdict is expected later on Wednesday.
The now exiled Mr Thaksin - Thai Rak Thai's founder and former leader - together with other prominent politicians, could be barred from office for five years if the judges find them guilty of fraud.
Whatever the court's final verdict, it is unlikely to clear the air in what is already a damaged democracy, the BBC's Asia correspondent Andrew Harding says.
There are fears that a ruling against Thai Rak Thai might prompt street demonstrations, and a former Thai Rak Thai deputy has already threatened to mobilise thousands of protesters if the court rules against it.
But if Thai Rak Thai is not disbanded, analysts fear that the justification for the military coup which ousted the party and its leader would be undermined.
Mr Thaksin and Thai Rak Thai remain hugely popular, particularly in rural areas of Thailand, and the credibility of the interim government installed by the military coup leaders is increasingly on the line.
Key Thai party cleared of fraud
The Democrat Party was Thai Rak Thai's main rival
Thailand's Constitutional Court has acquitted the Democrat Party of all charges of violating the country's election laws.
If the party had been found guilty, it could have been disbanded and its leaders banned from politics.
The judges now have to consider similar charges against the Democrats' main rival, the Thai Rak Thai Party, and its former leader Thaksin Shinawatra.
Police are on standby in Bangkok amid fears of violence at the verdicts.
The country's interim Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont, who was installed after Mr Thaksin was ousted in a coup last September, said he would issue an emergency decree if necessary to quell any unrest.
Damaged democracy
The Constitutional Court ruled that the Democrat Party neither slandered Mr Thaksin nor urged voters to cast a "no" vote in last year's controversial election campaign, which was subsequently annulled over allegations of electoral fraud.
The judges also found the Democrats not guilty of bribing a smaller party to influence the results of the poll.
Mr Thaksin's Thai Rak Thai party could be disbanded
"There are no legal grounds to disband" the Democratic Party, one judge concluded.
But a series of charges threatening the dissolution of Thai Rak Thai remain to be decided, and a verdict is expected later on Wednesday.
The now exiled Mr Thaksin - Thai Rak Thai's founder and former leader - together with other prominent politicians, could be barred from office for five years if the judges find them guilty of fraud.
Whatever the court's final verdict, it is unlikely to clear the air in what is already a damaged democracy, the BBC's Asia correspondent Andrew Harding says.
There are fears that a ruling against Thai Rak Thai might prompt street demonstrations, and a former Thai Rak Thai deputy has already threatened to mobilise thousands of protesters if the court rules against it.
But if Thai Rak Thai is not disbanded, analysts fear that the justification for the military coup which ousted the party and its leader would be undermined.
Mr Thaksin and Thai Rak Thai remain hugely popular, particularly in rural areas of Thailand, and the credibility of the interim government installed by the military coup leaders is increasingly on the line.
The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist.
Thai Rak Thai officials 'guilty'
BangkokPost.com
The verdicts came near the climax of a long day where all nine judges of the Constitution Tribunal read the cases against the Democrat and Thai Rak Thai parties.
Two senior TRT found guilty of violating election laws
The Constitutional Tribunal judges ruled on Wednesday that two senior members of Thai Rak Thai party found guilty of violating the election laws by paying and hiring others to run in an election.
The nine-member Tribunal said in its reading that former TRT deputy leader Thamarak Isarangura and ex-deputy secretary general Pongsak Ruktapongpisal involved in the paying and hiring politicians of Pattana Chart Thai party to run in the April national election.
Footage from closed-circuit cameras showed representatives of the parties waiting for Thamarak, then defence ministry, at the ministry. Pongsak is accused of acting as a negotiator for Thamarak while discussing the alleged hiring of small partis at the Thai Rak Thai headquarter.
BangkokPost.com
The verdicts came near the climax of a long day where all nine judges of the Constitution Tribunal read the cases against the Democrat and Thai Rak Thai parties.
Two senior TRT found guilty of violating election laws
The Constitutional Tribunal judges ruled on Wednesday that two senior members of Thai Rak Thai party found guilty of violating the election laws by paying and hiring others to run in an election.
The nine-member Tribunal said in its reading that former TRT deputy leader Thamarak Isarangura and ex-deputy secretary general Pongsak Ruktapongpisal involved in the paying and hiring politicians of Pattana Chart Thai party to run in the April national election.
Footage from closed-circuit cameras showed representatives of the parties waiting for Thamarak, then defence ministry, at the ministry. Pongsak is accused of acting as a negotiator for Thamarak while discussing the alleged hiring of small partis at the Thai Rak Thai headquarter.
I intend to live forever - so far so good.
Yes, Democrats 1, TRT 0 in overtime.
This all started at 1330 hours here and the conclusion was to be 1 hour to announce the decision on the Democrats, and 1 hour for TRT, all being finished by 1530 hours. Instead, they decided to first openly read the charges against the Democrats and their defense which took until about 2000 hours. This was followed by the same for TRT which concluded just before midnight. Besides TRT being found guilty and banned as a party, 111 TRT members are also banned from politics for 5 years, including Thaksin.
This extended process was planned for sure to make it the wee hours before the fate of TRT was known. This will delay any protests until the morning when it is light, and hopefully when angry TRT backers have had some hours to calm down, reflect and re-think. Pete
This all started at 1330 hours here and the conclusion was to be 1 hour to announce the decision on the Democrats, and 1 hour for TRT, all being finished by 1530 hours. Instead, they decided to first openly read the charges against the Democrats and their defense which took until about 2000 hours. This was followed by the same for TRT which concluded just before midnight. Besides TRT being found guilty and banned as a party, 111 TRT members are also banned from politics for 5 years, including Thaksin.
This extended process was planned for sure to make it the wee hours before the fate of TRT was known. This will delay any protests until the morning when it is light, and hopefully when angry TRT backers have had some hours to calm down, reflect and re-think. Pete
Just FYI, it's 0145 hours here and we have an unusually high quantity of police vehicles and military jeeps patrolling, even back in my quiet area of Pattaya here. I just walked out of my office and saw them stop a car and question the occupants and then sent them on their way. Appears they are being extra cautious tonight. Pete
BANGKOK (Reuters) - Exiled former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra was banned from politics for five years on Wednesday and his party, the first to win an absolute majority in the country's history, disbanded.
The Constitutional Tribunal, at the end of a marathon 10-hour televised explanation of its verdicts on charges of breaches of election laws, said the ban extended to the entire 111-member executive committee of his Thai Rak Thai (Thais Love Thais).
The party will reform under a new name, but without the charisma of the billionaire Thaksin who was idolised by millions in the countryside and among the urban poor as the one Thai politician they believed really cared about them.
"This is not the last day of Thai Rak Thai, brothers and sisters," party spokeswoman Laddawan Wongsriwong told a distraught crowd of 1,000 people at party headquarters which hissed and booed at the verdict.
The time the tribunal took to explain the cases for and against Thai Rak Thai and the opposition Democrat Party -- Thailand's oldest party which was absolved of any wrongdoing -- and their verdicts may have been an effort to head off feared trouble from Thaksin supporters, analysts said.
But with so many Thai Rak Thai officials banned, that possibility was not dead, they said.
"It's a big surprise because banning more than 100 people will make the political game unfair. It's negative for the country's political climate, which needs checks and balances," leading financial analyst Thanawat Patchimkul said.
"It's a political massacre," said Kongkiat Opaswongkarn, head of a leading brokerage.
Thaksin, living in exile in London, was saddened by the punishments, his lawyer said.
"It is an unexpected ruling and we are disappointed by the verdict. It's too harsh on Thai Rak Thai," Thaksin's lawyer and spokesman Noppadon Pattama told Reuters in Bangkok.
"DANGEROUS CRIMES"
The tribunal found Thai Rak Thai guilty of paying a small party to run in elections last year to circumvent rules on single candidate polls.
It also said Thai Rak Thai paid two small parties to bribe an election official to falsify their records to show candidates were eligible to run in elections Thaksin called as street protesters accused him of abusing power and corruption.
"The Thai Rak Thai's crimes are very dangerous to democracy," Judge Krairerk Kasemsant said as Thai Rak Thai officials, including several former Thaksin cabinet colleagues, sat stonefaced as the verdict was read out.
There was no immediate violence in Bangkok, where 1,800 uniformed, riot and plain-clothes police surrounded the court with 13,000 police and troops waiting in the wings.
But that could still come, analysts said, with a new constitution due to be put to a referendum in September ahead of a general election the government installed by the military has promised for December.
"I think it would be naive to assume that a decision will resolve the current political problems," Global Insight analyst Elizabeth Mills said in London. "It will be difficult to envisage how meaningful elections can be held in December."
Few doubt the generals, who say they staged last September's coup in part to prevent violence as the street campaign against him grew, wanted Thaksin out of politics.
However, banning the telecommunications billionaire could outrage the millions of people in the countryside and the urban poor who gave him two landslide election victories.
"It is certain the people of the country won't accept it," Thai Rak Thai leader Chaturon Chaisang said while calling for restraint.
The Constitutional Tribunal, at the end of a marathon 10-hour televised explanation of its verdicts on charges of breaches of election laws, said the ban extended to the entire 111-member executive committee of his Thai Rak Thai (Thais Love Thais).
The party will reform under a new name, but without the charisma of the billionaire Thaksin who was idolised by millions in the countryside and among the urban poor as the one Thai politician they believed really cared about them.
"This is not the last day of Thai Rak Thai, brothers and sisters," party spokeswoman Laddawan Wongsriwong told a distraught crowd of 1,000 people at party headquarters which hissed and booed at the verdict.
The time the tribunal took to explain the cases for and against Thai Rak Thai and the opposition Democrat Party -- Thailand's oldest party which was absolved of any wrongdoing -- and their verdicts may have been an effort to head off feared trouble from Thaksin supporters, analysts said.
But with so many Thai Rak Thai officials banned, that possibility was not dead, they said.
"It's a big surprise because banning more than 100 people will make the political game unfair. It's negative for the country's political climate, which needs checks and balances," leading financial analyst Thanawat Patchimkul said.
"It's a political massacre," said Kongkiat Opaswongkarn, head of a leading brokerage.
Thaksin, living in exile in London, was saddened by the punishments, his lawyer said.
"It is an unexpected ruling and we are disappointed by the verdict. It's too harsh on Thai Rak Thai," Thaksin's lawyer and spokesman Noppadon Pattama told Reuters in Bangkok.
"DANGEROUS CRIMES"
The tribunal found Thai Rak Thai guilty of paying a small party to run in elections last year to circumvent rules on single candidate polls.
It also said Thai Rak Thai paid two small parties to bribe an election official to falsify their records to show candidates were eligible to run in elections Thaksin called as street protesters accused him of abusing power and corruption.
"The Thai Rak Thai's crimes are very dangerous to democracy," Judge Krairerk Kasemsant said as Thai Rak Thai officials, including several former Thaksin cabinet colleagues, sat stonefaced as the verdict was read out.
There was no immediate violence in Bangkok, where 1,800 uniformed, riot and plain-clothes police surrounded the court with 13,000 police and troops waiting in the wings.
But that could still come, analysts said, with a new constitution due to be put to a referendum in September ahead of a general election the government installed by the military has promised for December.
"I think it would be naive to assume that a decision will resolve the current political problems," Global Insight analyst Elizabeth Mills said in London. "It will be difficult to envisage how meaningful elections can be held in December."
Few doubt the generals, who say they staged last September's coup in part to prevent violence as the street campaign against him grew, wanted Thaksin out of politics.
However, banning the telecommunications billionaire could outrage the millions of people in the countryside and the urban poor who gave him two landslide election victories.
"It is certain the people of the country won't accept it," Thai Rak Thai leader Chaturon Chaisang said while calling for restraint.
I have a tendency to agree. Today (Thursday) is a Thai Buddhist holiday. Everyone will be off and many going to Wats around the country. It is meant to be a day of peace for all or Thailand and Thai people. Again, I think this was well planned out to make the announcement the day before this holiday.STEVE G wrote:Pete, I can't help feeling that this is going to cause a big problem. They have created a potentially explosive situation now, having just banned the party which still obtained a majority in elections.
A part of this judgement mentioned TRT bribing an election offical to do something with voter registration records. If things like that happened, I scratch my head if TRT did indeed win the large majorities they bragged about, or if something magical happened with the ballots? If the election commission head and his staff were in TRT's pocket, nothing can be ruled out. Pete
