By: Greg Donaldson
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia
BANGKOK, Thailand – The Thai Election Commission has decided to hold off on certifying the newly elected prime minister, Yingluck Shinawatra, citing it needed to look into several legal matters regarding the election. This act has many calling into question the intentions of the Election Commission.
In a historic election that had a voter turnout of seventy-four percent, Shinawatra and her party Pheu Thai (also called “red shirts”), won a projected 261 seats in Parliament, while the former prime minister’s party only took 162 seats according to the Election Commission. Other exit polls show Pheu Thai’s win to be even larger reports Reuters. However, the Election Commission has the ability to take away an elected candidate’s victory if it finds laws were broken during the election.
Much of the controversy that surrounds the elections revolves around the fact that the newly elected prime minister is the sister of former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. Shinawatra was overthrown in a 2006 military operation. Since his overthrow, lower and upper class Thais have been sharply divided.
Thaksin has been barred from politics by the courts and currently lives in exile in Dubai to avoid prison sentences that he calls politically motivated. However, one of Yingluck Shinawatra’s slogans for her campaign was “Thaksin thinks, Pheu Thai acts”.
The Thai news media have treated Ms. Yingluck as the presumptive prime minister. The local newspaper Thai Rath stated on Wednesday the Election Commission “needs to clarify to the public why it is working so slowly.”
The paper further noted that “The role of the Election Commission in the recent election reeked like a bad odor,” and there were many suspicions about why the process was so jammed up. The Bangkok Post explains that “only blatant cases of election fraud with strong evidence beyond reasonable doubt should bar anyone from initially entering public office.”
On Wednesday red-shirt leadership warned the Election Commission about their dissatisfaction over the delay in certification of newly elected members. Thida Thawornseth, chairwoman of the movement, called on the red shirts to “keep your batteries full and get ready for action in any situation.”
Thida described the Election Commission’s move as an attempt by the “ruling elite” to prevent the country emerging from its political crisis.” If the people’s interest is destroyed again, (the red-shirt movement) is ready to protect it,” she added.
The election results represent how sharply the country is divided into “red” and “blue” provinces. The blue areas, concentrated in Bangkok and southern Thailand support the departing government, while the reds support the Pheu Thai party whose members are generally poorer, less educated, and reside in the northern parts of the country. More than half of the voters whose monthly income was less than $165 (USD) voted for Pheu Thai while less than a third voted for the Democrat Party.
For more information, please see:
Bangkok Post — Smooth Transition is Heart of Democracy – 15 July 2011
Asia News Network — Thailand’s red shirts warn of backlash if election body delays endorsement of Yingluck — 14 July 2011
Asia News Network — Thai election commission delays endorsement of Yingluck, partymates – 13 July 2011
New York Times — New Thai Government is Delayed by Legal Challenges — 13 July 2011
Time — Thai Election Board Delays Certifying Winners – 12 July 2011
Reuters – Thaksin party wins Thai election by a landslide — 3 July 2011
