The Democrat Party will thoroughly check any charter amendment bills which go before the House, opposition leader Abhisit Vejjajiva says.
Abhisit: Flushing out hidden agendas
The party will examine the legislation through two channels. The first is a joint committee set up by the House which includes 11 representatives from the Democrat Party.
The 45-member panel, charged with scrutinising the draft amendments, is scheduled to meet for the first time tomorrow when the ruling Pheu Thai party is expected to appoint one of its own MPs to chair the panel.
The second channel is to have other MPs submit motions seeking deliberation on charter legislation during the House meeting, Mr Abhisit said.
"We are worried that if the new constitution includes a hidden agenda it could lead to conflict," he said, adding that the party's stance on amending the charter is based on three principles.
First, chapters 1 and 2 of the 2007 constitution, which concern the monarchy, must remain unchanged.
Second, the new constitution must protect the independence of judicial organisations and organisations which monitor state authorities. Third, the new constitution may not be used to grant an amnesty to certain groups of people.
Meanwhile, the PAD plans to hold a mass rally against the government's charter rewrite plans.
People's Alliance for Democracy leaders will meet on March 10 to work out the group's strategy to counter the charter rewrite legislation now before the House.
Army commander-in-chief Prayuth Chan-ocha yesterday warned the yellow shirt PAD and its allies not to break any laws in their campaign against charter change. As Thai citizens, PAD members have the right to carry out democratic activities, he said.
Gen Prayuth also brushed aside concerns about possible clashes between the yellow shirt and red shirt movements, saying that members of both groups could face criminal charges if they break the law.