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Having passed a national referendum, Thailand's new constitution
will be submitted next Monday to the King for royal endorsement,
after which the new charter will take effect, said the country's
chief legislator.
The 2007 Constitution will take effect after the King signs the
royal decree for promulgation, said National Legislative Assembly
(NLA) Speaker Meechai Ruchuphan on Tuesday, quoted by news network
The Nation.
The new constitution, which won 57.8 percent "Yes" votes to pass
the country's first-ever national referendum on Sunday, is
expected to pave the way for a general election tentatively
scheduled for December and eventually lead the country back to the
rule of an elected government after the military coup on Sept. 19
coup ousted the former Thaksin administration.
The NLA is scheduled to start deliberation on Wednesday on three
election-related organic laws under the new constitution, including
the Political Party Act, an MP and Senatorial Election Act and an
Election Commission Act.
The deliberation should be completed within 45 days, counting
from Aug. 19, the date of the referendum, according to the
military-installed interim charter after the Sept. 19 coup-makers
abrogated the 1997 constitution.
The lawmakers actually have only 30 working days to complete the
debate in order to meet the deadline, said Meechai.
The tight schedule for the organic laws to pass through the NLA
and for election preparation has had some critics in doubt that the
general election might not be able to be held by the end of this
year as the government promised.
Meanwhile, the Election Commission has urged politicians what
want to set up a new political party to submit their applications
to the EC by Oct. 1, as the commission hinted related regulations
might change after the election-related organic laws under the new
constitution is enacted.
The EC spokesman Suthipol Thaweechaikan noted the political
party registration process is still being conducted.
However, "Things are expected to be different when the new
charter is introduced," said Suthipol, "That's why it would be
wise for any political party thinking of registering to do so
before October."
Suthipol also revealed that six political groups have filed
applications for registering new parties on Monday, the opening day
for officially registering new parties, after the King signed a new
law last Friday to allow new political party
registration.
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