The government's peacekeeping centres are not intended to prevent people from expressing differing opinions over the draft constitution, Interior Minister Anupong Paojinda says.
It is the duty of the Interior Ministry to support the Election Commission's (EC) handling of the Aug 7 referendum on the draft charter, Gen Anupong said ahead of a cabinet meeting Tuesday.
However, critics said the centres are aimed at curbing the red shirts' activities in villages as they are now attempting to campaign against the draft.
Gen Anupong said the centres are operating at two levels. The provincial centres are supervised by the governors of the respective provinces, and the district centres by district chiefs.
They are staffed by Interior Ministry officials and police and are responsible for preparing lists of eligible voters for the EC and maintaining peace and order during the referendum.
While the EC is responsible for "educating" the public about the draft charter and the referendum, the centres will ensure the referendum proceeds smoothly, Gen Anupong said.
Unlike in an election, political parties will not be invited to observe the referendum. However, Gen Anupong gave assurances the public would not be prevented from expressing differing opinions.
The Interior Ministry will hold a meeting of provincial governors on July 15, where they can ask for clarification of the role of the peace centres, he said.
Permanent secretary for interior Grisada Boonrach said the peacekeeping centres, which have been set up to support the EC's handling of the referendum, function in the same manner as the peace administration centres set up by provincial governors to maintain order in previous elections.
The scope of their work is similar in that they are designed to deal with potential disruptions caused by natural disasters or by people, Mr Grisada said.
He insisted the centres have nothing to do with politics, but it is the task of the Interior Ministry to maintain peace and order through them.
If there are any violations of the referendum law in the run-up to the vote, the centres will hand the complaints over to the police for further action, Mr Grisada said, adding the centres will be dissolved after the referendum.
Meanwhile, United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship co-leader Weng Tojirakarn Tuesday petitioned the Central Administrative Court against the National Broadcasting Television Commission's (NBTC) decision to shut Peace TV for 30 days, effective this coming Sunday.
Dr Weng is an executive of Peace Television Co Ltd -- the operator of the red shirt-affiliated satellite television station.
The order came after an NBTC sub-panel ruled last month three programmes on Peace TV had broadcast content violating National Council for Peace and Order orders No.97 and No.103, covering dissemination of information to the public. The panel also said Peace Television Co breached a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the company and the NBTC. The content was broadcast on the programmes Khao Jai Trong Kan Na on March 11 and 21, Khem Kao Duek on March 24, and Hong Khao Lao Rueng on March 28.
The NBTC revoked the station's licence on April 27 last year, saying it had repeatedly breached the MoU and the NCPO's orders on broadcasting. But the Central Administrative Court issued a temporary injunction against the closure order on July 16 last year. The case is now pending a Supreme Administrative Court ruling.
Also Tuesday, Dr Weng petitioned the Central Administrative Court to consider if the NBTC had violated the court's injunction order. He wondered how the licence could be suspended in this latest case, as the NBTC had already revoked it.
He also said the NCPO's orders and the MoU give the NBTC authority to ban only programmes deemed to violate the conditions, not revoke a station's licence.
