The Constitution Court yesterday decided to try both the ruling Thai Rak Thai Party and opposition Democrat Party for alleged violations of election laws. Both parties, along with three minor parties that are to be tried by the court, have 15 days from the date of receiving the court order to hand over their written defence.

The 15 judges of the court agreed unanimously that there were substantial grounds to put all five parties on trial as recommended by the Election Commission through the Office of the Attorney-General.

The three minor parties are Progressive Democratic, Pattana Chart Thai and Thai Ground.

While no deadline was set for the completion of the trials of the two major political parties, which could have a far-reaching impact on Thai politics as both face the threat of dissolution, newly elected Constitution Court president Ura Wang-ormklang said yesterday the cases would be handled without delay. However, there are as many as 100,000 pages of documents that will have to be considered, he said.

Senior Thai Rak Thai executives have been accused of hiring small, little known parties to compete in the election in order to help the party avoid the requirement for a minimum 20 per cent of eligible votes for candidates standing uncontested.

The Democrats meanwhile are accused of undermining democratic rule by calling for a royally appointed prime minister to succeed Thaksin Shinawatra and for boycotting the April 2 snap general election.

Ura, who was elected to the post yesterday by a majority of the court's judges, tried to downplay fears voiced by some senators and members of the public that two of the 15 judges may be biased towards the ruling party.

He said the court was committed to being transparent and accountable. "Please be assured that the Constitution Court will work in the spirit of sacrifice for the institution and the nation," Ura told reporters.

The court has considered and dismissed the open letter submitted by a group of 16 outgoing senators that complained that two judges were not fit to handle the cases against the two major parties.

One of the two judges, Suwan Suwanvechoe, was a key leader behind a signature campaign in support of Thaksin when the Constitution Court was set to rule on an asset-concealment case against the then newly-elected premier back in 2001.

Outgoing Senator Chirmsak Pinthong, who submitted the letter, alleged that another judge, Jumpol Na Songkhla, had said after the court's ruling to acquit Thaksin in 2001 that the court could have been burnt down by a pro-Thaksin mob if the premier had been found guilty.

"Everyone can have their own understanding, but the fact remains that the judges are impartial," Ura said.

"I insist again that you can trust us to be impartial," he said, adding that any personal likes or dislikes would not be a factor in the judges' decisions.

It's not yet clear whether the trials will be open to the public or whether the five cases will be tried together or separately.

Pravit Rojanaphruk

The Nation

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New head of top court

Judge Ura Wang-ormklang, appointed yesterday as president of the Constitution Court, said he would try to improve public relations.

The court's deliberations should also be transparent so the public could check its work, said Ura, 66.

"I have worked as a Constitution Court judge for more than eight years. I think I can reply to everything that reporters want to know. I will follow the former court president's way. We will rush to consider all cases in order to be fair," Ura said.

He takes over from acting president Parn Chantarapan.

Ura was appointed to the court in 1998 from the Supreme Court. He graduated in law from Thammasat University, then worked as a government prosecutor and a judge on the Criminal, Civil and Supreme Courts.

Ura was among judges who returned a guilty decision against the PM in the 2001 asset-concealment trial.