The push by the ruling Pheu Thai Party to include lese-majeste among offences that could qualify under a new political amnesty bill could lead to the government’s early demise, a deputy government spokesman warned on Thursday.
Karom Polpornklang, who is a member of the Bhumjaithai Party, said his party welcomes the push to pass the amnesty bill, which he said would help end ongoing political conflicts and foster unity in society.
“However, a blanket pardon for lese-majeste offenders can reignite conflict and lead to the downfall of the government,” he said.
Mr Karom’s comment echoes recent remarks made by Bhumjaithai leader and Interior Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, who said Section 112 of the Criminal Code, the lese-majeste law, should be left untouched.
“Bhumjaithai has no problem with Section 112, and we will leave it alone,” Mr Anutin said.
After months of silence on the issue, the Pheu Thai Party has suddenly found its voice after party patriarch Thaksin Shinawatra was indicted under Section 112 for comments he made nearly a decade ago.
Somkid Chueakong, a Pheu Thai member and spokesman of the House committee studying the bill, said he backed a proposal to include Section 112 violations in the list of offences that would be pardoned.
He said doing so should not be an uphill battle, as the move is backed by several committee members, without going into further detail.
Mr Somkid insisted the push to include Section 112 offences was initiated long before the attorney-general resolved to indict Thaksin.
The paroled ex-premier is facing lese-majeste and computer crime charges over remarks he made during an interview given to a South Korean newspaper in Seoul on Feb 21, 2015. He is scheduled to appear at the Office of the Attorney General on June 18 to answer the charge.
Thaksin was alleged to have defamed the monarchy while speaking with the Chosun Ilbo newspaper, when he claimed privy councillors supported the 2014 military coup that ousted the government led by his younger sister, Yingluck.
In a related development, activists led by Pichit Chaimongkol of the Network of Students and People Reforming Thailand, on Thursday handed a letter to the House committee studying the amnesty bill, asking it to ignore any attempt to include lese majeste offences.
Mr Pichit also said that those who have been convicted of corruption and other serious crimes should also be excluded from the bill.
He warned that the latest attempt to pass a fresh political amnesty bill could prompt scenes of unrest similar to those that occurred during the Yingluck administration, which began after her administration tried to pass a blanket political amnesty bill back in 2013.
The 2013 bill came under heavy criticism as it sought to pardon a wide range of offences. It came to be seen as a legal whitewash for Thaksin, then in self-exile.
The move triggered massive protests led by the People’s Democratic Reform Committee, which culminated in the 2014 military coup that ultimately let to the ouster of the Pheu Thai-led administration.
The 2013 bill was later rejected by the Senate and sent back to the House of Representatives, where MPs from coalition parties refused to reconsider it.
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