CDC panel mulls idea for 'limited amnesty' bill
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A proposal for an amnesty bill was discussed yesterday by a charter drafters' subcommittee as a way of accomplishing true reconciliation.
Anek Laothamatas, chairman of the Constitution Drafting Committee’s sub-panel responsible for national reforms and reconciliation, suggested an amnesty covering political protests going back to 2005, and possibly including protest leaders and military officers.
But it might exclude those guilty of infringing on people’s rights, lese majeste, and causing death, said Anek, who is also member of the National Reform Council.
The meeting was held at Parliament to review the reconciliation issue.
Boonlert Kachayuthadej, a member of the subcommittee and also an NRC member, supported the idea but stressed that it would not be a “blanket amnesty” because any such attempt would doom the whole process.
He added that there should be a strategy for listening to political parties and local movements to relieve their frustration at being unable to express themselves. This could help solve disputes and promote reconciliation.
“We should create a reconciliation mechanism for political groups and conflicting sides for them to forgive each other, and this might include an amnesty bill,” Boonlert said.
Another member, General Ekachai Srivilas, said the responsibility for creating a reconciliation process should be under the constitution and Parliament, not members of the executive branch, because most of them were susceptible to conflict.
“It’s difficult to restore reconciliation under the current situation because it is still in disorder, so a war room should be set up to monitor the situation all the time,” he said.
He said the subcommittee should lay down three important frameworks, for negotiation measures including follow-ups and solving disputes, preventing further disputes, and ultimately reconciliation.
