Listen to the public, Pheu Thai advised

Payao Akahad and other relatives of  victims of the 2010 crackdown held a press conference yesterday to voice their opposition to the new version of the amnesty bill that seeks to grant blanket amnesty to all sides.

The group said those charged with wrongdoing must undergo investigation according to the rule of law no matter whether they belong to the government or the opposition. However, ordinary protesters deserved to be released on bail during the legal process. 

“The amendment of the draft law [by the vetting panel] has proved that the Pheu Thai Party does not listen to the people’s voices, especially those of the victims’ relatives who were directly damaged,” Payao said.

This confirms the belief that the ruling party will do what it can to help fugitive former PM Thaksin Shinawatra return home, she said. On the other hand, opposition leader Abhisit Vejjajiva, who was PM at the time of the crackdown, and his then-deputy Suthep Thaugsuban were ready to face the legal process, she said. 

The group is planning to submit a letter opposing the bill to Parliament on Thursday. 

Separately, Pheu Thai MP Weng Tojirakarn, who is also a red-shirt leader, said yesterday that he and the red shirts were opposed to the blanket amnesty proposal. However, he said he believed the ruling party would eventually pass the original version of MP Worachai Hema’s bill as it had no choice but to heed the demands of the red-shirt people. He added that several Pheu Thai MPs also disagreed with the vetting panel’s version of the bill.

“The Pheu Thai Party must respect the will of the red shirts, otherwise I don’t know what will happen,” he said.

Meanwhile, Pheu Thai MP Chavalit Vichayasuthi said it was not true that the new version of the bill would help Thaksin recoup his assets. He said the amnesty was designed to grant justice in the wake of the 2006 coup, adding that the bill was based on a similar law enacted after the October 14, 1973 uprising.

Granting amnesty to people involved in politically motivated incidents was in accordance with international legal practice, Chavalit added.

Also yesterday, Abhisit said the vetting committee has suspiciously brought its meeting forward by a week to this Thursday. “This rescheduling is a clear sign that the government wants to cut short the vetting process,” Abhisit said.

He said the opposition would be denied sufficient time to air dissenting opinions on draft provisions designed to favour Thaksin.

Pheu Thai MP Samart Kaewmechai, in his capacity as the committee chair, said he had no intentions to rush the vetting process. It just so happened that all relevant documents were ready ahead of time, which allowed the panel members to comment on the vetted provisions by reserving their right to speak on the floor, he said.

He said he expected that the panel might hold two additional meetings before the bill is ready for the second reading by early next month.

Samart also said the draft provisions solely focused on granting amnesty to those involved in the political mayhem and did not address the issue of Thaksin’s Bt46-billion assets that were seized by court. If Thaksin wants to recoup his wealth, he is obliged to seek judicial review following amnesty, he said.

“I don’t think the government will collapse because of the amnesty law, though I am concerned that the protests instigated might be a pretext to pave the way for another coup,” he said. 

Democrat MP Nipit Intarasombat said he expected some 100,000 protesters to take to the streets when the House convened for the second and third readings of the bill. The amnesty debate might take place around November 6, he said.

Deputy government spokesman Sunisa Lertpakawat said the opposition should stop attacking PM Yingluck Shinawatra in relation to the amnesty bill because she had nothing to do with it.