'Cut court out of any rewrite'

Pheu Thai legal adviser Chusak Sirinil said yesterday the ruling party should first amend Article 68 of the charter, seen as giving the top court the power to meddle in any rewrite. Once this provision was amended, the coalition could proceed to frame a new charter, the adviser said.

“Pheu Thai will strive for the rewriting of the entire charter,” Chusak said.

The ruling party will hold a meeting of its MPs in Chon Buri this weekend, and constitutional amendment is among the topics they are expected to discuss. The decisions made by Pheu Thai at the meeting are likely to be raised at the next meeting of coalition whips, scheduled for Tuesday, the eve of the next House session.

The court yesterday made an electronic version of its official 29-page verdict available to the public for download on its website (constitutionalcourt.or.th), which saw heavy traffic during the afternoon.

On July 13, the court ruled that there was insufficient evidence to prove that the charter-change proponents aimed to overthrow the country’s democratic regime with the King as head of state. However, it suggested that as the current Constitution was endorsed by the majority of voters in a public referendum, amendment to allow a rewrite of the entire charter could not be done without first consulting the public by holding a popular vote. The court said Article 291 of the charter allows amendment by article, not a wholesale rewrite of the entire Constitution.

The much-awaited official verdict released yesterday was almost identical to the one read by the judges on July 13. The court gave no more details or further explanations.

Pheu Thai politicians had earlier said that the ruling party would wait for the official version of the court’s ruling before taking action in response to the verdict. Some considered the court’s ruling regarding the referendum as only a suggestion. They called on Parliament to go ahead with voting on the final reading of the constitutional amendment bill.

Chusak said yesterday he expected the reconvening of Parliament next month to see a general debate about the verdict on the charter amendment bill. The debate will not include a vote because it is meant to assess opinions of lawmakers on the next step to be taken in rewriting the charter, he said.

In the face of the decision, he said Parliament should push for a specific amendment to curtail the judicial mandate, paving the way for change.

He said amending the charter provision by provision as per the verdict was impractical, arguing that the process would grind to a halt if 100 opposition lawmakers lined up to speak for each draft provision.

Meanwhile, House Speaker Somsak Kiatsuranont said he has scheduled next Wednesday to hold a special session of the lower chamber, marking the end of the House’s recess.

The session would not see debate on the controversial reconciliation bills, Somsak said, allaying concerns that the political tension would be inflamed.

Commenting on a demand by the People’s Alliance for Democracy to remove the reconciliation debate from the legislative docket, he said coalition and opposition MPs had yet to reach an agreement on the issue.

In regard to the next legislative move on charter change, he said the House-Senate session would have to study and debate the judicial decision.

He said that in his personal opinion, the legislature should not proceed to vote on the third reading of the charter amendment bill because the move might trigger legal wrangling.

Should Parliament opt to amend the charter provision by provision, the rewrite would have to revert to a new bill for that purpose, he said. 

Deputy Prime Minister Chalerm Yoobamrung said yesterday that at a Pheu Thai meeting this weekend, he will seek to persuade his colleagues not to try to push for a vote during the final reading of the charter change draft.