Adapt democracy, don't reinvent it
Burin Kantabutra proposes "A democratic blueprint for redrafting democracy" (Letters, September 8).
What is required is quite simply a “blueprint for democracy”. Yet, with respect, how can this be established “after extensive, inclusive debate” among people who have never known democracy and do not understand its principles?
This latest home-made attempt at a constitution, like all its predecessors, has failed as the “supreme law” because it was the product of a committee, it resulted from too much consultation and it was far too extensive and verbose. Above all, it ignored the Constitutional Court’s right to adjudicate on the charter, instead delegating that authority to another committee.
A constitution is not a book of laws. It should be a concise document embodying the broad principles of democracy.
As the old saying goes, if you keep doing the same thing, you will only end up with the same thing. The only lessons that can be learned from the past 19 constitutions is that they were all failures because of the manner in which they were democratically drafted.
Thailand has to start with a clean sheet and ignore the current and historical failures. There’s no need to try to reinvent democracy democratically – it already exists and has done for centuries. Its essential principles only need to be reproduced.
Every man will feel himself a part of government in a true democracy because all people have equal rights under the law, enjoy equality of opportunity and have the right to freedom of expression. Very importantly, every person is accountable under the law, including members of government. Coups and a partisan police force would be relegated to history because the military and police would be apolitical.
JC Wilcox
