Democrats say decree needed for law and order; will be revoked gradually
The ruling Democrat Party yesterday defended its three-month-long emergency rule, suggesting the economy had proved to be resilient during this period as it grew 10 per cent in the first half of the year.
In response to calls for an end to the emergency, which has been in effect since April 7 when protesters stormed Parliament, party spokesman Buranat Samutaruk said the government still needed the extra powers provided by the decree to ensure law and order.
The decree also allowed the government to take speedy legal action against wrongdoers while keeping lawful protesters safe.
On the economic front, he said the country had managed to record the second highest growth rate in Asia in the first six months of this year, expanding 10 per cent year-on-year, while the Bank of Thailand's latest forecast showed that GDP would grow 6-7.5 per cent in 2010.
The central bank's projection has been revised up from the previous 4.5-5.5 per cent.
The International Monetary Fund also forecast that Thai GDP would expand by 7 per cent this year.
Emergency rule had been tipped to hit investment and the tourism sector hard, Buranat said, but the latest figures from the Board of Investment showed that a recovery was now underway.
More importantly, the export sector, which is the biggest engine of economic growth, accounting for more than 60 per cent of GDP, had not been affected by the emergency decree.
During the second quarter when violent protests and riots took place, shipments from Thailand continued to grow at a high rate of 42 per cent.
However, the global economic momentum is expected to slow in the second half of this year due to the US economy's weak recovery and the debt crisis in Europe.
Buranat said there was now a consensus among domestic and international economic institutions that the Thai economy had recovered from the 2008-09 global recession so there was no need for further fiscal stimulus measures.
In addition, the Bank of Thailand's Monetary Policy Committee had raised its policy interest rate by 25 basis points to 1.50 per cent - the first rate hike in nearly two years.
Buranat said the government was preparing to end the emergency law in stages over time to ensure that peace and stability was not disrupted by an abrupt move. Over the past months, the government had been successful in keeping law and order in Bangkok and several provinces, which previously saw political violence and riots.
In addition, it has arrested several key figures suspected of playing prominent roles in the use of weapons and violent acts during the protests and riots in April and May.
Buranat said the Centre for Resolution of the Emergency Situation was now working with the National Security Council to formulate a set of guidelines to end the emergency decree in stages.