THAILAND’S GOVERNMENT is considering holding a referendum on an amnesty for banned politicians before elections next year, in an effort to appease opposition groups and restore Thailand’s battered image as a stable democracy.
Thai deputy prime minister Korbsak Sabhavasu said the amnesty would focus on overturning a five-year ban on 220 deputies, many of whom are loyal to former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who was deposed in a 2006 coup.
The efforts to restore political credibility come as the southeast Asian country tries to fight its way out of recession.
Courts disbanded many political parties loyal to Mr Thaksin after protests in April led to clashes between his supporters and opponents.
However, any amnesty would not include Mr Thaksin himself as he is charged with a crime.
The popular former leader fled Thailand last year before a court sentenced him to two years in prison on corruption charges. He claimed the trial was unfair.
Establishing the legitimacy of elections is crucial if there is to be political stability in Thailand. The country has had five prime ministers in the past three years as rival groups failed to agree on how elections should be run.
Thai prime minister Abhisit Vejjajiva set up a multiparty reconciliation panel to draft constitutional changes after the protests, which saw Thaksin supporters clash with police and soldiers, resulting in a number of deaths.
“The big major issues that could not be agreed would go for a referendum,” Mr Korbsak told Bloomberg TV. “Once that’s done, we start the process of changing the constitution.”
A poll in the Bangkok Post newspaper showed that voters in the northeast supported an amnesty for corrupt politicians while those in the south were markedly against one.
The constitution was rewritten by the army after the 2006 coup that ousted Mr Thaksin, and Mr Abhisit said last month that amending the constitution was necessary before a new election.
Among the politicians banned are former prime ministers Samak Sundaravej, Somchai Wongsawat and Banharn Silpa-Archa, as well as many former ministers and parliamentarians.