Civic group accuses CDC of being undemocratic in drafting process
Play
A CIVIC group complained yesterday that the current charter-drafting process is undemocratic and called on the Constitution Drafting Commission (CDC) to be more transparent about the draft's content.
The People’s Council for Reform is also planning to set up an event for other civic groups to voice their opinions on the draft, saying the constitution belongs to the people and the country, not just some individuals or groups.
The council’s representative Pairoj Polpetch, who is also a member of the Law Reform Commission of Thailand, said six points would be presented at the event, including political, labour and justice issues.
He also pointed out that the new charter should have at least the same provisions for people’s rights and freedoms as in the 1997 and 2007 Constitutions, although he admitted little was known about the new charter so far.
Pairoj also accused the CDC of being undemocratic in its work, because even though it has been open to public comment and opinions, it has yet to disclose the charter’s content.
Meanwhile, CDC spokesman Udom Rathamarut revealed yesterday that the new charter would not allow indirectly elected senators to campaign for elections. Instead, he said, candidates who have had at least two years experience in contributing to their professional group, would be voted in by members of the group they represent.
He said the CDC was aiming to ensure that all Senate candidates have played an active role in society and are engaged in their professional fields, adding that all profiles would be available for voters to examine.
As for concerns that the three-tier selection of senators – from district to provincial to national levels – could open the door to vote blocking, Udom admitted that was possible. However, he pointed out that with the set standards for qualification of candidates, electoral fraud would still be difficult.
Also, he said, social pressure would play a big role in ensuring that voters in each professional group choose the right person. After all, he said, voters would not accept a candidate not qualified for the position.
As for concerns that political investors will step in and support Senate candidates, he said it would be difficult to check which contestant has such backing. If he or she possessed the qualifications stipulated in the charter, then such an individual would be eligible to run in the election, he noted.
Udom also said that the Election Commission would examine each candidate’s qualifications right from the district level before they can be allowed to campaign for votes.
In addition, he said, candidates should only be fielded by legal entities related to each professional group and this would be done based on their domicile in order to prevent the problem of one candidate running in multiple fields.
Asked if the new charter would block former senators from running in elections like they were by the 1997 and 2007 Constitutions, he said that he personally did not think this would happen because they were not involved in writing the new charter.
