PM seeks approval to lift Martial Law

[Norseman]

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha on Tuesday said he has forwarded a draft announcement lifting martial law to His Majesty the King for endorsement.
The Section 44 order would replace martial law, which has been in force nationwide since shortly before the May 22 coup, once it is lifted.

Yea, right! We're on the right track now?

The whole story here: http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/politic ... artial-law

[STEVE G]

I suppose we'll just have to see whether the first political demonstrators that appear on the street get arrested or not to see if this is anymore than a cosmetic change.

[centermid7]

^ nope. We won't have to wait at all.

Section 44 is more strict than the current martial law that we are under now.

[pharvey]

Thailand martial law replacement criticised by US

The US says the replacement of martial law with new emergency measures in Thailand does little to restore democracy in the military-run country.
Thailand's army, which took power in a coup in May, declared martial law over on Wednesday after almost a year.
But a section of the new constitution has been invoked instead under which the military retains significant power.
Critics have said Article 44 could lead to more draconian leadership and gives PM Prayuth Chan-Ocha unchecked power.
Security forces are still able to make arrests without warrants and detain people without charge, while Gen Prayuth - who led last year's coup - can rule by executive order in the name of national security.
The media remains heavily restricted and political gatherings of more than five people are still banned.
The US said it had wanted to see an end to detentions and the limits on freedom of expression.
"We are concerned that moving to a security order under Article 44 will not accomplish any of these objectives," a State Department official said.
"We would welcome the actual, full restoration of civil liberties in Thailand."

Full Story: - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-32157204

So what effect is this going to have if any.......

[Takiap]

It's not going to change anything, although I suppose you could argue that "Article 44" sounds less intimidating than "Martial Law." At the end of the day, the country is still be governed by one man who has the power to implement whatever laws/rules he wants, with nobody having any right to question his actions.
Also, I don't really believe the general gives two hoots about what America says. Lastly, for the overwhelming majority of Thais, life continues as normal, and as long as they are not too unhappy, the current administration doesn't have too much to worry about.

[Big Boy]

I agree 100% Takiab. I've worked along side service personnel all of my working life. They are given civilian jobs for short periods. and they all seemed to want to make a name for themselves in that period.

They would steam roller their ideas through for maybe 15 months, at which time they'd be re-posted to a service job. On the odd occassion they would do a good job, but mostly it required a team of Civil Servants to unpick the mess they they had created. However, good or bad work, they had made their name.

I'm sure the General is doing some good work, but you can be sure it's going to take a while to unpick the mess he or his cronies have also created.

[lomuamart]

There have been a couple of decent articles in The Guardian lately about Prayuth. Can't find the first one from a couple of days ago, but here's another from today:
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/a ... ta-bangkok

[STEVE G]

There have been a couple of decent articles in The Guardian lately about Prayuth. Can't find the first one from a couple of days ago, but here's another from today:
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/a ... ta-bangkok

That article points out that article 44 absolves the junta of any legal responsibilities for his actions which is an interesting concept when they're presently pushing criminal charges against the last prime minister.

[Name Taken]

Thailand martial law replacement criticised by US

The US says the replacement of martial law with new emergency measures in Thailand does little to restore democracy in the military-run country.
Thailand's army, which took power in a coup in May, declared martial law over on Wednesday after almost a year.
But a section of the new constitution has been invoked instead under which the military retains significant power.
Critics have said Article 44 could lead to more draconian leadership and gives PM Prayuth Chan-Ocha unchecked power.
Security forces are still able to make arrests without warrants and detain people without charge, while Gen Prayuth - who led last year's coup - can rule by executive order in the name of national security.
The media remains heavily restricted and political gatherings of more than five people are still banned.
The US said it had wanted to see an end to detentions and the limits on freedom of expression.
"We are concerned that moving to a security order under Article 44 will not accomplish any of these objectives," a State Department official said.
"We would welcome the actual, full restoration of civil liberties in Thailand."

Full Story: - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-32157204

So what effect is this going to have if any.......

It probably won't have any effect in the short-term, but if the military 'junta' continues to remain in power then it's very possible that trade sanctions could be imposed. Similar to the trade sanctions that the U.S. imposed on Burma(Myanmar) for decades.

[Ropes]

Reference the Guardian article the following line made me chuckle:
Prayuth’s military detained the subversive snackers for “eating sandwiches with political intent”.

[Takiap]

Reference the Guardian article the following line made me chuckle:
Prayuth’s military detained the subversive snackers for “eating sandwiches with political intent”.

Well, if they were eating 7/11 sandwiches then they deserved being arrested.