Gist of PM Abhisit Vejjajiva FCCTHK

Embed Doc
Copy Link
Readcast
Collections

CommentGo Back

Download

Gist of PM Abhisit Vejjajiva’s Address at the Foreign Correspondents’ Club,Hong Kong (FCCHK), 15 May 2009 and Q&A Session

May 25, 2009

Ministry of Foreign Affairs

(Introduction)

• Expressing his pleasure to be in Hong Kong for his first visit after assuming office, PM Abhisit notedthat this was his first trip abroad since the disruption of the ASEAN Summit in Pattaya and unrest inBangkok in April. The reason for his visit was to reaffirm Thailand’s commitment as a partner and friendof Hong Kong, given the growing and close relationship, particularly on trade, investment andtourism. At the same time, he wished to share his perspective on what was happening in Thailand,knowing that most of the correspondents had been following developments in Thailand not just overthe last 3-4 months but the last 2-3 years.• PM Abhisit talked about what he had been trying to do over the last four and a half months and whathe hoped to achieve in the coming months. He noted that the twin challenges his Government facedwere to lead the Thai economy out of one of the worst financial and economic crises in recent timesand to heal the political divisions and conflicts in the country.

(Politics)

• Noting that images of Thailand over the last 2-3 years have been of protests and chaotic scenes atGovernment House, the airports and on the streets of Bangkok, PM Abhisit reassured the audience thathis Government’s priority was to achieve true reconciliation. He had said from his first day in office thathe would pursue this by making sure that the rule of law and justice prevail, and that the Thai politicalsystem continue to be developed and reformed so that all voices could be heard and Thailand wouldhave a political system where there was participation from all sides and all differences could be resolvedthrough democratic and peaceful means.• The Prime Minister further said that during the first three months in office, his Government’s approachto these problems was to avoid any kind of conflict or confrontation and try to get to grips with theconcerns, complaints and grievances that various groups in the society had, in order to begin theprocess of reconciliation through reforms and fair and non-discriminatory enforcement of the law. Itseemed to have worked for three months, he noted, but in April the Government’s opponents decidedto resort to violence. What followed was the disruption of the summit in Pattaya and chaotic scenes onthe streets of Bangkok. The Government had to declare a state of emergency, using the powersentrusted in a special law – the emergency decree. The Government then swiftly moved to restoreorder. The operations to restore order lasted about 2-3 days with no losses of life as a direct result.• PM Abhisit pointed out that the operations were not about scoring a political victory or trying to clampdown on the Government’s opponents. He insisted that they could continue to exercise their democraticand constitutional rights so long that they did not violate the law, such as by inciting violence, blockingstreets, or trying to harm people, particularly people in the Government who had been targeted.• Immediately after the events, the Prime Minister called a special session of Parliament for a generaldebate, where the opposition, government MPs and senators could air their views on how they thoughtthe country should proceed or even raise questions about the events of April, especially concerning thegovernment operations. After an intensive two-day debate, it was agreed that two parliamentarycommittees should be set up: one to review the situation and events particularly during the days of unrest, and the other to look for a political solution whereby the political divisions and disagreementcould be resolved once and for all. PM Abhisit said that for the last couple of weeks, these twocommittees had been at work. They would report back to the President of the Parliament very soon sothat an inclusive process of political reform could begin and concerns about justice or problems in thepolitical system could be addressed for long-lasting peace and political stability.

(Economy)

• PM Abhisit noted that more significant was that, despite the turmoil and political challenges over thelast few months, the Government was able to implement its economic recovery and stimulus packageson track and on time. The Government had moved swiftly to pass a mid-year supplementary budget toprotect the least fortunate and the poorest in society from the impact of the financial crisis. Thecomprehensive programme – ranging from price support for farmers to income support for low incomeearners, as well as protecting the most vulnerable people by providing income support for the elderlyand beginning a programme of free basic education for children – was passed with the Parliament’sapproval. 70-80% of the three billion USD programme had now been disbursed. So the Governmentwas well on the way of completing the first phase of the recovery programme.• The Prime Minister further elaborated on the second and more ambitious stimulus package for whichthe Government was currently seeking parliamentary approval. This involved 45 billion USD of publicinvestment over the next few years. He underlined that there were clear frameworks on how the moneywas going to be invested by putting particular emphasis on investment in water distribution; transport,communications and logistics; upgrading health centres and schools; and supporting future economicdevelopment by focusing more on the service sector and the creative economy. To finance this, PM Abhisit said, Thailand would need to seek additional borrowing as it was running up against the legallimits in terms of the fiscal deficit, but most of the borrowing would be from domestic sources as therewas ample liquidity within the Thai financial system, which remained in good health.• PM Abhisit reiterated that despite the headlines and political troubles in the news, the economicprogramme was proceeding very well and the Government remained focused on that, recognizing thatthe economy was the number one concern for the majority of the Thai people. By the end of the year,one would begin to see the implementation of such investment, some of which would be financedthrough the budget, some through loans and some through public-private partnership. The PrimeMinister reaffirmed his Government’s continued stance to drive the economy through the private sectorand market forces.

(ASEAN)

• At the same time, the Prime Minister said that Thailand was also carrying out its commitment as ASEAN chair. In February, the country successfully hosted the 14th ASEAN Summit which saw the new ASEAN Charter put into effect and ASEAN continue on its path toward the vision of an ASEANcommunity. In October, Thailand would be hosting the 15th ASEAN Summit, Summits with dialoguepartners and the East Asia Summit, following up on the many regional and global initiatives to deal withthe financial crisis. These include a number of agreements and initiatives from the London Summit of the G20, additional facilities offered by global financial institutions such as the International MonetaryFund and World Bank, and also the regional multilateralisation of the Chiang Mai Initiative, anarrangement to reserve pooling, in which Hong Kong has also participated. PM Abhisit also added thatapart from all these challenges, ASEAN continued to be proactive. Last week Thailand hosted the ASEAN+3 Health Ministers’ Meeting to meet the challenge of the new Influenza A H1N1.

(Conclusion)

• In conclusion, PM Abhisit noted that behind the pictures in the media and beyond the headlines,Thailand was getting back to business and the Government was very much focused on the economicchallenges. At the same time, a national reconciliation process has begun through parliamentarymechanisms, in the hope of achieving peace and stability in the country.

Q&A Session after PM Abhisit’s Speechat the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Hong Kong (FCCHK)Hong Kong, Friday 15 May 2009

(Monarchy: role in politics and succession)

Q: (IHT - Philip Bowring) In previous Thai crises, His Majesty the King played a rather visible role inbringing people together. On this occasion, nothing has been heard from His Majesty the King for thelast many months. Is it reasonable to come to a conclusion therefore that His Majesty is seriouslyincapacitated? Could you say something about the procedure for the succession when H.M. eventuallyis no longer with us?PM: As prime minister in a parliamentary system, I have to report to His Majesty the King regularly. Ihave presented the most recent report only a week and a bit back. Since then, His Majesty the Kinghas attended some public ceremonies to mark very important occasions for the country. So he is ingood health. Obviously, given that I have spent a lot of time reporting to His Majesty, I can tell youthat His Majesty is very well aware of all the issues that are pertinent to the country’s situation. Your observation needs to be put in perspective. His Majesty the King’s interventions in the past,most notably after 14 October 1973 and in May 1992, were interventions of a humanitarian kind, wherethere has been violence and conflict up to the point that no other process would be able to stop theviolence spreading and causing further losses of lives. They were not political interventions as such. At the moment, we have a situation where certainly the government, and now the opposition and thesenators have been invited to provide a political solution, which is what explains why there has notbeen intervention from His Majesty.His Majesty has been very clear in a speech given two years ago when there were a lot of conflicts andchaos in the streets that he himself is under the law, under the Constitution, and has no power or rightto exercise any power beyond what is given to him according to the Constitution. So at the moment, itis up to us, politicians primarily and the people of Thailand, to resolve our problems. His Majestyremains above politics and will continue to provide inspiration, wisdom and guidance in philosophicalterms for the Thai people.The issue of succession is all in the Constitution. There is a provision that states clearly whathappens should there need to be a process of succession, and obviously we have to proceed accordingto that provision.Q: (Bloomberg) We are relieved to hear that His Majesty is in good health. In his recent interview withDer Spiegel, M.R. Sukhumbhand Baripatra said that he is now afraid for the first time that Thailandcould slip into chaos when His Majesty is no longer around. Nobody lives forever. The King has beenon the throne in 60 years, right back to when Truman was in the White House. The investors I havebeen talking to said they are worried about the succession as they are about the present impasse. Youmentioned twin challenges. Isn’t the succession actually a greater challenge for Thailand?PM: If you look at succession issues, there are two things that we should accept. The first is that if there are clear rules for succession. That eliminates a lot of uncertainty around how the successionprocess will actually evolve or work out. There are clear constitutional provisions, so in that sense, thateliminates some of the uncertainty. The second issue is undebatable. When you have had a leader formore than six decades – and one that has built up so much reverence and respect from the people,there’s always going to be anxiety. I don’t know of any country or society or even organization – wherethere has been an inspirational leader who has been there for a long time – that does not have anxietyabout succession. But Thailand has to make sure that we are mature enough as a country to deal withchanges, economic, political and whatever issues that we need to face. I have no illusion that when ithappens, it will be a very difficult time for all of us because we are very much attached to His Majesty.But we have to prove our maturity as a people and as a society and demonstrate to the rest of theworld that we can deal with all issues and changes.

of 00

Leave a Comment