The government should be able to make a decision within three weeks on two key issues - the emergency rule and an amnesty for red shirts found not involved in terrorism, Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban said yesterday.
"The review is underway and the Centre for the Resolution of the Emergency Situation [CRES] needs to hold a brainstorming session in order to come up with recommendations deemed beneficial to the country in the long run," he said.
Pending completion of the CRES report, the Cabinet will debate and decide on whether to grant amnesty to the red shirts and whether to lift or scale down the state of emergency, he said.
At a meeting on Tuesday evening, Suthep instructed CRES to map out its recommendations.
Since April 7, the government has declared the state of emergency four times in 24 provinces, including Bangkok.
According to the first declaration, the emergency rule should expire on July 7 and the government has until then to make a decision on whether to continue, lift or scale down the decree.
At present, some 300 to 400 red shirts are in detention for violating the emergency rule and many are not linked to terrorism.
The authorities have the right to prosecute these suspects whether or not the state of emergency is reinforced, though the legal proceedings would hinge on whether an amnesty was granted.