Junta accused of using ploy on vote
Chiang Mai-based "Midnight University", a group of intellectuals who offer critiques on current political and social situations, has slammed the junta for using the royal institution and the state media to fool people into voting on its draft constitution.
Midnight University yesterday issued a statement accusing the holders of power of propagating false statements in order to win the referendum on the draft constitution.
The statement said military-run radio stations were trying to fool the public by airing a song that was telling people they should show their loyalty to His Majesty the King by voting to accept the constitution.
"In fact, whether people accept the constitution or not, it will not affect the monarch. Such a lie is to get the royal institution openly involved in politics," the statement said.
The Midnight University said that another false statement claimed there would be no election if the referendum failed. Some TV hosts and members of the Constitution Drafting Com-mittee (CDA) and the National Legislative Assembly (NLA) repeatedly relayed this false information, the statement said.
"The fact is that the military junta's interim constitution had stated that if the draft constitution is denied, the Council for National Security has to pick up one of the previous constitutions and to amend and promulgate within 30 days after the referendum day. They cannot avoid organising the election," the University statement said.
The referendum should be held fairly without such propaganda. The powers-that-be have been trying to fool the public, it said.
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