THAILAND/ENGLAND: Ousted Thai Prime Mininster Thaksin Shinawatra calls for swift elections, coup chiefs detain two more ministers as country bounces back two days after a bloodless coup

Ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and the main opposition called on Thursday (September 21) for swift general elections in Thailand as military coup leaders banned "political activities". Thaksin, in a statement from London two days after he was removed in a bloodless coup, urged all parties to work for national reconciliation "for the sake of our King and country". It said Thaksin "hopes the new regime will quickly arrange a new general election and continue to uphold the principles of democracy for the future of all Thai". When asked by journalists outside the apartment in London's prestigious Park Lane what his plans are, Thaksin, who was walking without any bodyguards or armed security, replied: "Well, relax. Stay with my daughter. That's it." The statement gave no indication the billionaire telecoms tycoon, who won two landslide elections before facing an anti-corruption street campaign a year ago, was planning to return to Bangkok, despite an invitation to do so from coup leaders. He would have to face charges already filed, including election fraud, and others may be looming. The administration said it expected to complete a probe this month into whether Thaksin's family legitimately avoided tax on their 1.9 billion U.S. dollars (USD) sale of the company he founded and into allegations of corruption in government spending under his rule. In Bangkok, coup leaders sacked four senior police generals on Thursday who were either close friends or related to ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. Coup leader General Sonthi Boonyaratglin re-assigned the four to inactive posts in the Prime Minister's Office, according to a statement read out on national television. Among the officers were Jumpol Manmai, head of the National Intelligence Agency, and Priewphand Damapong, the number two at the National Police Bureau and a brother-in-law of Thaksin, himself a former police lieutenant-colonel. The Council for Democratic Reform Under Constitutional Monarchy (CDRM), as the coup leaders called themselves, have so far detained four former cabinet ministers since they toppled the Thaksin government on Tuesday. Environment Minister Yongyut Tiyapairat and Newin Chidchob, a minister in the Prime Minister's Office, were detained on Thursday after they were ordered to report to army headquarters. Police General Chidchai Vanasatidya, former deputy prime minister, and Prommin Lertsuridej, Thaksin's chief of staff, were apprehended by soldiers on Tuesday when tanks and soldiers seized Government House. On Thursday, a photograph of Sonthi flanked by the heads of the other branches of the military and the police, in an audience with King Bhumibol Adulyadej and Queen Sirikit. The photograph was taken on Tuesday (September 19) when the country went under martial law. On Wednesday evening, Sonthi gained a boost in legitimacy among Thais when it was announced that revered Thai king has endorsed his appointment. An earlier order banned political gatherings of more than five people as well as free distribution of information critical of the coup on Web sites or on television. The military said it was forced to stage Tuesday's coup because there was no other way out of a political crisis that pitted Thaksin against the old guard and street campaigners. The coup leaders said they would craft a constitution within a year to repair flaws that Thaksin was accused of exploiting to wield near-dictatorial powers, then hold an election. Thailand was largely back at work on Thursday after the military declared Wednesday a public holiday. Bangkok traffic returned to the familiar near-gridlock, while coup leaders worked on fulfilling a promise of installing a civilian prime minister within two weeks. "It is one of the solutions and perhaps it's working now but I don't know if it's the best solution. But it's as good as it's possible for now," said Arunee Krongphanich, a 45-year-old Bangkok resident. "This is good because there has been too much conflict so now we can see there's going to be a general elections," said Boonmi Ohlanuwut, a 69-year-old Bangkok resident. The stock market ended the day down 1.42 percent after falling more than 4 percent in the first minutes, in the end a far less precipitous drop than had been feared. Traders said a royal proclamation legitimising the military government went a long way to reassuring investors after Thailand's first coup in 15 years but its 18th since it became a constitutional monarchy in 1932. At a securities firm in Bangkok's Chinatown, Thai investors kept their eyes on stock indexes as they anxiously waited for trade to open for the first time after Wednesday was declared a market holiday. Despite stocks taking a tumble early on, most were cheered when numbers started to climb soon after. "It's fallen a lot already, it'll go up later. No worries, no worries," said 80-year-old retiree Suthep Jirasirlikul. Analysts had said any sell off was likely to be limited as the coup generated hopes of an end to a long political crisis. In particular, the markets had been reassured by the coup leaders announcing a timetable for a return to civilian rule -- a new prime minister within two weeks, a new constitution within a year and then elections. With the coup relatively peaceful, the Thai economy too will likely continue to progress reasonably well, business risk consultant Christopher Bruton told Reuters. But Bruton cautioned that with the coup, the credibility of Thailand has taken a beating internationally especially since a democratic process was taking place with a general elections pending. So investors' eyes will be on who forms the next government, he told Reuters. "It depends on who they appoint to be the interim prime minister and what he does when he is appointed. Will he simply see his role as an interim situation to amend yet again the constitution to close to a 20th time, or will he see it as an opportunity to bring about reforms in the legal, the economic and governmental systems," he said. Soon after Tuesday's coup, the leaders had sought to reassure the public that they would craft within a year a constitution to repair flaws Thaksin was accused of exploiting to wield near dictatorial powers, then hold an election. But the leader of the largest Thai opposition party told Reuters that despite their assurances, coup leaders still had to prove they were not intending to hold onto power. "We think the process can be speeded up but at least we're encouraged to hear that they do not intend to hold on to power, and that they're job is really to put the country on the democratic path, but they have to prove it, and they have to prove it as quickly as possible," said Abhisit Vejjajiva, leader of the Democrat Party. Abhisit said an ideal time to hold an election would be in six months. Abhisit also urged the generals to lift restrictions on individual rights. Bank of Thailand governor Pridiyathorn Devakula told reporters the economy would improve after the coup and said that the stock market performance reflected investor confidence. But the outlook was mixed. Moody's Investor Service reaffirmed Thailand's ratings and stable outlook on Thursday. But Morgan Stanley cut its annual economic growth forecast for the second half of the year to 2.4 percent from 3.5 percent. ar/jrc

ITN Source | September 22, 2006

Tags:. .legitimising. .legitimately. .toppled. .interim. .landslide