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Published on October 17, 2007

The Cabinet yesterday approved the draft royal decree to hold a general election on December 23. The decree will be presented to His Majesty the King for endorsement next week. Thailand, which has been under military rule since the September 2006 coup, can now look forward to an election that will usher in the rebirth of democracy. The military-appointed Surayud government will work closely with the Election Commission to organise a free and fair poll. The most pressing problem for the interim government and the EC is how to stop vote-buying and other electoral fraud from having too much influence on the election outcome.

For most of the 75 years since the introduction of parliamentary democracy, the country has been condemned to a vicious circle of political corruption. It invariably starts with politicians bankrolling their way into Parliament, and, having achieved power through dishonest means, proceeding to indulge in large-scale corruption. Such corruption then causes public outrage that gives the military the justification to seize power - purportedly to clean up politics - before launching another attempt to rebuild democracy.

The most important question to ask is: how can Thailand break out of this vicious circle and rebuild a sustainable democracy?

Finding the right answer to this question will make all the difference because it will improve the likelihood of Thailand staging a comeback as the vibrant democracy it was before Thaksin Shinawatra came to power in 2001. But all Thais, from the rural masses to the urban middle class, must draw the correct lesson from the past six years. This period gave a very clear picture of how corrupt politicians manipulated the country's political system and how a large number of people willingly allowed themselves to be exploited.

The art of vote-buying is based on the feudalistic culture of patron-client relationships. This continues to be widely practised in this country among all socio-economic classes, in all walks of life, with no exceptions. Most of those who sold their votes, or their souls, to the likes of Thaksin knew exactly what they were getting themselves and the country into. The problem is, they did not care whether Thaksin would cheat or steal as long as they got to keep the crumbs under the table. To cynical voters, all politicians are corrupt, and these people made a conscious choice to vote for the devil they knew.

It just happened that Thaksin, with his fabulous wealth, could afford to buy as many votes as necessary to gain an overwhelming majority in the House of Representatives. Although Thaksin and members of his family are currently being prosecuted for a number of corruption scandals, the former PM still has a formidable war chest, which - unless something is done to frustrate electoral fraud and lessen the impact of vote-buying - could determine which parties form the new government.

Some of the measures taken by the junta and the Surayud government to deal with the problem are a bit too crude, such as the imposition of martial law in provinces known to be strongholds of Thaksin's now-defunct Thai Rak Thai Party or its reincarnation under different names.

Deputy Prime Minister Sonthi Boonyaratglin told reporters yesterday he would ask the Cabinet to consider lifting martial law in 11 provinces and to reimpose it in three - Nong Khai, Nakhon Phanom and Mukdahan. The use of military force to intimidate supporters who are still loyal to Thaksin should not be condoned by democracy-loving people even though it might be effective, to a certain extent, in preventing vote-buying or precluding Thaksin or his proxies from making a triumphant comeback.

Any effort to fight corrupt politicians and their fraudulent practices must be based on the rule of law and must involve civil society. Many ideas have been broached, including monetary rewards for people who notify the authorities about vote-buying and other electoral fraud. These ideas coupled with strict enforcement of campaign finance law and severe punishment  including dissolution of parties found to have engaged in vote-buying and other electoral fraud should serve as an effective deterrent. That is, provided the government and the Election Commission see to it that government officials whose job it is to monitor and organise elections diligently, carry out their work in a straightforward manner.

The Nation