EDITORIAL: OPINION- Protests must be heeded

If the Prayut Chan-o-cha government wants to ease simmering political tension, in which political groups are starting to challenge the administration, it has no choice other than to kickstart a process of amending the constitution.

Last week, the country saw young students taking politics to the street, as thousands turned up at a rally at Democracy Monument in defiance of the emergency decree. One of the demands of the “flash mob” is charter amendment. Meanwhile, provincial universities have taken it in turns to stage political rallies.

Under such circumstances, there are no reasons for the government to bide their time any longer. Nor can the PM claim that he and his colleagues can’t intervene in parliament’s business because a House panel has already begun studying the proposed amendment. The fact is, the House panel is dominated by coalition MPs and anyway, the government committed in its policy declaration to join the amendment bandwagon.

It’s known that the regime-sponsored 2017 charter significantly lacks democratic elements, including the allowance for the 250-strong Senate to intervene in the lower House by naming the prime minister. As the Senate’s tenure lasts five years after parliament opens, it means that senators can make another PM appointment even if the opposition wins the election. What’s more, the charter is designed to promote small parties, a system that destabilises politics.

Hence, the charter must be amended or political conflict will be prolonged and may extend into a never-ending crisis. Over the years, opposition parties, political activists, academics and students have demanded changes in those clauses that are unfair to state opponents, saying such unfairness is the root of political conflict.

At the same time, the House panel under Pirapan Saliratha­vibhaga, who is an adviser to the PM, seems to have made little progress, even though the most contentious points are clear: changing the condition that enables regimes to prolong their power, freeing independent organisations from the regime’s control and removing all the undemocratic clauses.

The panel couldn’t hold public hearings when the deadline arrived last month so it extended it by three months, until Sept 25. It’s uncertain that there will be any more progress by then.

More importantly, the panel has no power to push for changes itself as its work is to report to parliament. It’s up to the government if a push for charter change is to be made.

Gen Prayut and the government must face the fact that it cannot drag its feet in amending the charter, thus maintaining a sad situation that saw opposition parties crushed time and again in dubious circumstances. Such unfairness has fuelled public anger and frustrations, so much so that many people, particularly sympathisers of the dissolved parties, have lost faith in the system. The current situation is putting the country at risk of chaos.

Ironically, the ruling party and its affiliates have churned out meaningless statements, calling for all parties to end conflicts which will further hurt a country already bruised by the coronavirus. Gen Prayut launched “new normal” policies and practices, asking all sectors to contribute to his “nation-building” campaign but he chooses to turn a blind eye to political dissent.

He should know that all efforts to rebuild the nation in the post-coronavirus era will fail, unless political games are reset under fair rules that can be achieved through charter amendment.