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Thailand yesterday announced it would hold general elections on
November 25, earlier than expected in a bid to speed up the return
to democracy in the kingdom after last year’s coup.
“The government wants to make elections happen faster, and
the elections must be free and fair and transparent,”
army-appointed Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont said.
The polls—originally scheduled for December—would be
preceded by a referendum on August 19 on the new constitution,
which was drafted by a body appointed by the junta that seized
power last September, election commission chair Apichart
Sukhagganond said. The moves will likely appease the international
community, which has been pushing for early polls, but the party of
deposed premier Thaksin Shinawatra said any elections would be
illegitimate unless it was able to contest them.
The Thai Rak Thai party was dissolved three weeks ago over vote
fraud violations, and a law has not yet been passed allowing the
twice-elected TRT to register a new party.
“It’s good that they moved up the election, but they
have to open up the opportunity to register the political parties
otherwise the election will not be legitimate,” said Kudeb
Saikrajang, a senior member of TRT. Surayud denied that the new
poll date was part of any masterplan by the junta and government to
erase TRT from political life.
“I insist that we have no hidden agenda,” he said.
Michael Nelson, a political analyst at Bangkok’s
Chulalongkorn University, said the junta and government wanted to
send a clear signal that they were committed to their promise to
restore democracy.
“To both people in Thailand and foreign governments, it
sends the message that they are on track,” he said. But first
the government must convince the Thai public to approve its
controversial new constitution.
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