Charter-change draft passes third reading
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A bill to amend Article 190 of the Constitution was passed in its third reading yesterday by 381 votes to 165.
Article 190 requires that all treaties and contracts signed with other countries need to be approved by the Parliament.
The third reading vote was done via a roll call. Nine parliamentarians abstained. Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra was not present for the vote.
When it was the turn of Democrat MP Watchara Phetthong to vote, he blew a whistle 10 times before voting against the bill.
Democrat MP and legal expert Wiratana Kalayasiri said he had petitioned the Constitutional Court to ask if the amendment of Article 190 passed by the Parliament contravened the charter. He cited Article 68 of the Constitution, which prohibits any conduct that would overthrow the constitutional monarchy or the political system.
The bill’s legal passage may have contravened the law, he said, as House Speaker Somsak Kiatsuranont had ordered meetings closed and the meetings sometimes lacked a quorum.
Moreover, the amendment contained a modification that increases the mandate for the Administrative Branch and reduces the mandate of the Parliament in checking and balancing.
It may also open loopholes for the government to make international agreements that can affect or cause a change to Thai territory, Wiratana said.
