KPI warns against rushing reconciliation

The institute warned it would withdraw its reconciliation report if politicians were too quick to implement its suggestions.

“If the House of Representatives resolves to approve the report and proposes it for implementation by the Cabinet, as in the previous proposal by the committee, it will lead to confusion among the people and cause a ‘reconciliation war’,” KPI said in a statement, warning against conflicts, violence and institutionalisation of “winner’s justice”.

KPI representatives met yesterday to discuss whether it would withdraw its report, which was submitted to the House ad hoc committee on reconciliation led by General Sonthi Boonyaratglin and was due to be submitted at the House’s meeting today.

In its statement, KPI insisted that the atmosphere for reconciliation was not yet right and the process cannot be rushed. There should first be talks among both politicians and the people, it said. 

Further, KPI proposes that the House only “acknowledge” the report. It urged that the Opposition and the people engage in appreciative, constructive dialogue, that the media reporting on the reconciliation process do so with a balanced view and that people should not believe any comments on the report until they read the short and the full versions for themselves.

KPI insisted the study was done properly and academically, adding that it took on the task out of a sense of duty and did not do the research for money.

Critics and the opposition earlier said the study's findings have been cited selectively by the majority of Sonthi’s House panel with the hidden goal of whitewashing certain politicians' wrongdoings.