Thailand ruling party, PM ordered to stand down

Last Updated: Tue, 2 Dec 2008 20:26:00 +1100

Judges in Thailand's Constitutional Court have ordered the ruling People Power Party led by Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat to disband after being found guilty of vote fraud.

The court has barred Mr Somchai and the party's top leaders from politics for five years.

Speaking from the northern city of Chiang Mai - from where he has been governing since an opposition blockade of Bangkok's airports began last week - Mr Somchai said he accepts the verdict.

"My duty is over. I am now an ordinary citizen," he said.

"But it is unexpected that the decision would come out this way.

"In the past I have done my best, not for myself but for our country."

The head of the nine-judge court panel, Chat Chonlaworn, read the order live on national television.

"The Constitutional Court unanimously agrees to disband the People Power Party," he said.

"As the court decided to dissolve the People Power Party, therefore the leader of the party and party executives must be banned from politics for five years.

"The court had no other option. No matter whether you are satisfied or not with the verdict, we ask you to accept it."

The verdict says the party must be disbanded because PPP executives had been convicted of the fraud following the December 2007 elections.

"Although some party executives had no knowledge of the election fraud, the law stipulates clearly... the party must scrutinise its executives, thus the party cannot deny responsibility," Judge Chat said.

Other coalition parties banned

The court ruling further ordered two other parties from the ruling coalition to be dissolved over the fraud.

The Matchima Thipataya and Chart Thai parties, both minority members of the six-party ruling coalition, were banned minutes after the PPP was dissolved.

Chart Thai holds 34 seats in parliament, and Matchima 11 seats.

It also barred both parties' leaders and executives from politics for five years.

ASEAN summit postponed

A senior government official says Thailand has now postponed the mid-December summit of the Southeast Asian bloc ASEAN.

News of the delay came shortly after the country's Constitutional Court dissolved the ruling party and barred the prime minister from politics for five years.

"The cabinet has agreed to the proposal by the foreign ministry to postpone the ASEAN summit," the official said.

"The next date of the summit will be decided in consultation with ASEAN members."

The summit had been scheduled for December 15-18 in Chiang Mai.

Court forced to move

Earlier in the day, the Constitutional Court was forced to abandon its premises as pro-government protesters surrounded the building.

When hundreds of "red shirted" pro-government protesters surrounded the Constitutional Court building, members were forced to move their deliberations to Thailand's Administrative Court.

But a spokesman for the anti-government People's Alliance for Democracy, Parnthep Pourpongpan, told Radio Australia's Connect Asia program they have tried to avoid violence at all costs.

"Of course, six months already - you see that? How the people who support the government who wear the red shirts never be killed or never be injured by our people," he said.

The Thai capital remains tense after another fatal grenade attack at one of the country's occupied airports.

The attack killed one and injured 22 of the anti-government "yellow shirts" occupying Thailand's Don Muang domestic airport.

They also remain in control of the Suvarnabhumi international airport.