By all ethical and moral standards, Britain and the US should be held culpably responsible and accountable for the chaotic disorder and fearsome violence that drove these disenfranchised freedom seekers from their once proudly cherished homeland.

A burnt toast of jeers, not cheers, for stiff-upper-lip service rather than a proactive caring response to the desperate in legal limbo.

Skoal for Sweden, hosting and providing safekeeping and humane treatment to more than 90,000 Iraqi asylum-seekers based on compassionate, progressive willingness to help serve the unmet needs of black sheep shunned by the not-in-my-neighbourhood global family.

The borderline global crisis, with humanitarian consequences far beyond the Middle East, has only just begun, but there does not seem to be any universal plan to accommodate and assimilate these grief-stricken victims of endless, imposed turmoil and an interminable, unjust war.

Why not? Pax vobiscum.

Dr Charles Frederickson

Bangkok

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Information is the key to democratic principles

Recent letters to the editor are pleading for elections now, often because of the stumbling of this government. I disagree with elections now. I agree with this government's stumbling. Elections now would mean the return of the Thaksin clique that destroyed the moral fibre of Thailand and smothered its young democracy.

Big parts of the population, especially in Isaan, still don't know the reasons for the coup and feel betrayed by the removal of the former prime minister. These people don't know about, or overlook, the cronyism, favouritism, corruption, greed and the lessening of freedom of expression of the Thaksin regime. The "listen to daddy" attitude strengthened government authority instead of individual independence, thus diminishing responsibility.

The existing patronage system, which creates followers instead of independent thinking citizens, has negatively influenced the basic principle that we are all free human beings. The Thaksin regime created "money" as a new god and Thaksin as its apostle. To become rich is the new ideal and materialism the norm, without any regard to what true happiness means.

The monkhood failed in its duty to combat this behaviour, being more interested in selling amulets and predicting winning lottery numbers.

But yes, this government also disappoints. It underestimates the opposition's power base and its ruthlessness. Reconciliation politics has backfired. Acceleration of the investigations into the evident corruption cases is absolutely necessary and non-cooperation from diverse parties should be vigorously eliminated.

The concept of  "sufficiency economy" is a good idea as it could restore morality, but it should be supported by a curriculum containing subjects in ethics. Thailand has to function in a globalised world where certain economic principles can't be forgotten. For the near future I am not really very optimistic.

Some people are determined to keep their positions. All the old politicians, some in new clothes, are gearing up for their comeback. My only hope is that a more informed population will give the Democrat Party the opportunity to form a new government.

I still have confidence in their implementation of democratic principles and the relative cleanliness of its members

Egon Wout

Bangkok

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Retroactive laws for old crimes miss the point

Laws exist to guide behaviour, by telling us what we should not do and by spelling out the consequences if we do. Thus, they must be created in advance of a potential wrongdoing and cannot be retroactive.

The alleged crimes of the Thai Rak Thai, Democrat and other parties took place under the 1997 Constitution, so if any party is guilty, the penalty applied must be no harsher than that specified in that charter.

The 1997 Constitution's punishment may be too mild in the view of many - but if so, it is our fault for not tightening things up in the nine years before the alleged crimes were committed. As Peter Marshall noted: "The test ... is not whether a certain law is popular, but whether it is based upon fundamental justice, fundamental decency and righteousness, and fundamental morality and goodness."

I suggest that tailoring a law to fit who ever is on trial utterly fails this test.

Burin Kantabutra

Bangkok

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A giant step backward for local government

Despite its claim to uphold democracy, the Surayud government has given it a huge setback by allowing kamnans and village headmen to assume office until they turn 60 - instead of the usual 5-year mandate.

This move to amend the Local Administrative Act will set Thailand back more than half a century in its struggle to decentralise governmental power.

It also means that a kamnan or village head who is, say, 35, will be given an extended tenure of 25 years immediately, even though he has only a short time left in office - all this without direct mandate from the villagers he is supposed to serve. One wonders what kind of democratic development is that.

It seems some elements in the highest echelons of government are seeking favours from the kamnans and village heads - by giving them undue influence and power - so that they can influence the outcome of the next general election. Guess what comes next.

This less-than-transparent act by the Surayud government will destroy the efforts to decentralise administrative power that has been going on since before Surayud was born. This is, to say the least, undemocratic.

Thus, all democratic-minded Thais should come out and demand that the aforesaid Cabinet decision be reversed.

Chavalit Van

Chiang Mai

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Serious doubts about ex-PM's Manchester City bid

There are concerns that Thaksin seems to be overriding Manchester City executives on the choice of a new manager. This is not entirely surprising given that Thaksin is first and foremost a politician. It is being widely reported that he is going against advice from club sources before an offer is made (eg Thaksin's preference for Ranieri as the next City manager, against the wishes of the City board). It suggests there may be no limits to Thaksin's interference.

Moreover, it has been reported that Thaksin wants City's reserve team to include Thai youngsters, regardless of ability. Whilst it is not unreasonable and entirely noble that young Thai footballers should benefit from a takeover, this should not be at the expense of more able non-Thai players. If this is the case, then this deal should be kicked out. We have one of the finest football academies in British football, and in one act of stupidity, Thaksin wants to undermine this. Furthermore, it reveals how little he understands about football.

There are acute concerns that the football club may be run without any transparency and democracy whatsoever. Thaksin isn't known for delegating authority. There are deep reservations as to whether or not the fans (including representative bodies such as the Manchester City Supporters' Trust) will have any say in the way the club is run.

Unsympathetic City fans are likely to be an obstacle to Thaksin and his political ambitions. It is rumoured that his London PR company, Holborn PR, are deluding themselves that a huge fund will be sufficient to counter fans' legitimate concerns.

Who exactly is the rebranded Thaksin? What money would be used to fund his purchase of Manchester City?

At the end of May 2007, Thailand's Constitution Tribunal is scheduled to hand down its rulings in the party dissolution cases brought against the Thai Rak Thai and Democrat parties, who were accused of electoral fraud. Let us not forget that Thaksin was forced from office following the sale of shares in Shin Corp to Temasek. He must answer charges of tax evasion, abuse of power and other charges in July 2007.

With such distractions, one wonders how the present City board can entertain such a proposal from Thaksin, especially when there are other offers on the table.

Clearly, it cannot be discounted that we are once again being led down a blind alley by Wardle and his associates. They continue to reveal their true colours by putting their own interests first. Wardle may take the money and run, but I would urge him and his board to consider what type of legacy they are leaving behind?

If Thaksin clears his name (or, as is more likely, cuts a deal with the military in Bangkok), then and only then should City consider any offer involving the former Thai PM.

I for one am not against the idea of the football club falling into Thai ownership. However, John Wardle and Shinawatra's representatives should come clean now and answer any legitimate concerns that City fans may have. If they do this, they can expect loyal and passionate backing from City fans.

If they don't do this, the risks - unwanted publicity, interference and lack of fans' involvement - can only backfire against Thaksin and the club in the long term.

St Petersburg Blue

Bangkok