Special:A tale of two constitutions to confuse all

The reintroduction of multiple-MP constituency elections and easier conditions for opposition MPs to censure the government, show that the draft 2007 constitution was written by people who fear deposed premier Thaksin Shinawatra, say  opponents of the junta that ousted him.

Moreover, these changes will weaken political parties while strengthening the military and bureaucracy, they claim.

However, members of the junta-sponsored Constitution Drafting Assembly (CDA) insist that they are meant to reduce vote-buying while breaking the domination of a single party.

The junta and government leaders are pushing hard for the CDA's charter draft to be passed in the national referendum this Sunday. They claim the country will benefit from the new constitution after going through a 'dark age' of almost six years under Thaksin's rule.

Justice Ministry permanent secretary and CDA member Charan Pakdithanakul who played a key role in drafting the new charter insists that the country will never succeed in being rid of Thaksin's legacy if the political rules are kept the same as in the so-called People's Constitution of 1997.

The CDA's draft reintroduces multiple-MP constituency elections for 400 constituency MPs, a system that existed for decades before being replaced by single-MP constituency elections provided for under the 1997 charter.

The claim is that the constituencies will be larger, making attempts to buy votes much more difficult.

As for proportional representation, the CDA draft provides for 80 party-list MPs - 10 each from eight zones around the country, a move the drafters say would prevent political domination by a single party. The Thai Rak Thai won nearly 70 of the 100 party-list seats in the 2005 poll.

The CDA has also removed the rule requiring that a party must win 5 per cent of party-list votes nationwide to be eligible for MP seats. It believes this will give small parties a better chance to enter Parliament.

Another big change in the CDA's charter draft is that an MP candidate only needs to hold membership of a political party for 30 days before the election date, whereas the 1997 charter required 90 days.

Thaksin allegedly exploited the 90-day rule to keep in line "rebel MPs" in the Thai Rak Thai who were said to be planning to move to other parties. How-ever, they dared not because Thaksin might dissolve the House following their "mass migration", in which case they would not be able to run in the next election, which is normally held within 60 days of dissolution. The CDA claims the change in this rule will free such "slaves".

The Thaksin's government went through five years without a single censure debate on the prime minister, which required the support of 200 out of 500 MPs. Charan called this a threat to the checks and balances system and the CDA scrapped the provision. Instead, only one-fifth of House members - or 96 out of 480 MPs - will be needed to bring a censure motion against the premier if the charter passes the referendum.

However, critics of the draft constitution say the CDA's attempts to preempt the rise of another Thaksin are nothing but a step backward for Thailand's democracy.

Uthai Pimchaichon, former Parliament president and chairman of the 1997 constitution-drafting assembly, said reintroducing the multiple-MP constituency elections would "kill" quality politicians.

A larger constituency would require an MP candidate to campaign in at least six districts to reach voters. Candidates of quality but not wealthy or well-known would unlikely be elected, he said.

The junta's main opponents, the Thai Rak Thai group, says the CDA's charter will ruin the political party system and the stability of the government. The multiple-MP constituencies, each of which has no more than three representatives, will cause rifts among candidates of the same party because they will not help their colleagues, the group claims in its campaign for people to reject the charter. Instead, each candidate will campaign only for their own victory.

The former members of the now dissolved Thai Rak Thai believe the 1997 constitution had proven itself in strengthening the government and political parties as representatives of the people.

The previous constitution had strict regulations to prevent MPs from moving to other parties. In other words, it barred "dishonest" MPs from selling their souls in exchange for dirty money, they say.

While the CDA says the removal of the 90-day membership rule will free the "slaves", the former Thai Rak Thai members believe it will bring back the days when political factions had bargaining power. These factions could threaten to quit the party and shake the balance of power or, in the worst case scenario, force the prime minister to dissolve the House.

Moreover, the CDA charter bars the Cabinet from interfering in the work of government and military officials or their annual reshuffle.

Therefore, the military and the bureaucracy will have overwhelming power, leaving the elected government paralysed in ruling the country, opponents of the draft charter claim.

Weerayut Chokchaimadon

The Nation