Thai court to announce crucial verdicts for political parties

BANGKOK, May 30 Kyodo

Hundreds of police have been deployed to guard Thailand's Constitutional Tribunal's office while more than 10,000 soldiers are on standby nationwide as military rulers fear that crucial verdicts against two major political parties, scheduled to be announced later Wednesday, by the tribunal could spark public unrest.

The Thai Rak Thai Party -- founded by former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra in 1998, the Democrat Party -- the oldest party established since 1946, and three other obscure parties completed 10-month trials on electoral fraud charges that carry dissolution penalties.

Eight months after a bloodless coup that ousted twice-elected Thaksin, the military leaders are still afraid of pro-Thaksin movements.

Ten schools in the neighborhood of the tribunal office in an old town near the Chao Phraya River were closed Wednesday, and shops and roadside stalls in the area are also closed.

And authorities have drawn up contingency plans, including a plan to evacuate the nine judges by boat.

The chief of the Bangkok Metropolitan Police said security forces would accompany the judges for the next several days to ensure their safety.

Thai Rak Thai won an absolute majority in the House of Representatives in 2005 and Thaksin became the first Thai leader elected to two consecutive terms.

But his decision to dissolve the lower house in February 2006 and call a snap poll in April last year was opposed by the Democrat Party, which is the main opposition in the parliament.

The Democrats and two other opposition parties boycotted the April 2006 poll.

A month later, the then Constitutional Court annulled the voting results, saying the election was unconstitutional because of the hasty scheduling and incorrect positioning of ballot booths.

The Wednesday verdicts will be announced in two groups. The first one is scheduled to begin at 1:30 p.m. for the Democrat Party and the Prachathippatai Kaona Party, and the second one will begin at 2:30 p.m. for the Thai Rak Thai Party and two other small parties -- the Phattana Chat Chai Party and the Phaendin Thai Party.

Thai Rak Thai is accused of financing obscure parties to run in otherwise uncontested seats so that Thai Rak Thai could avoid the requirement that a party must get approval of 20 percent of the eligible voters to claim victory in a one-candidate constituency.

The Democrat Party is accused of masterminding the Prachathippatai Kaona Party to slander Thai Rak Thai by accepting bribes to join the poll.

The Democrat Party is also accused of inciting voters in a southern province to obstruct registration of electoral candidates.

By force of the coup leaders through a provisional constitution, the tribunal replaces the 15-member Constitutional Court, which was abolished altogether with the previous constitution.

The tribunal headed by Supreme Court President Panya Thanomrod and Supreme Administrative Court President Ackaratorn Chularat as vice president also has another seven judges -- five from the Supreme Court and two from the Supreme Administrative Court.

The Office of the Attorney General, as plaintiff, indicted the five parties on fraud charges for violating the 1998 Political Parties Act.

If any of the five parties is found guilty, it will be dissolved and executives of the party will be barred from leading a political party or forming a new party for five years, according to the law, which is a supplementary law of the 1997 Constitution.

The September 2006 coup scrapped the 1997 Constitution and the military rulers led by Army Commander-in-Chief Gen. Sonthi Boonyaratglin subsequently issued an order to revoke electoral rights of executive members of political parties disbanded after being found to have violated the 1998 Political Parties Act, meaning they could not run in any elections for five years.

Until the coup last year, Thai Rak Thai had 119 executive members, including prominent politicians such as Somkid Jatusripitak, a possible candidate for new Thai leader.

Only 51 executive members remain with the party now led by Chaturon Chaisaeng.

The Democrat Party has 49 executives, including Bangkok Gov. Apirak Kosayothin.

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