THAILAND: Thai military explains reasons for coup

Document which details former Thai prime minister's corruption finds its way to the media

Times of India
Wednesday, November 22, 2006

Bangkok --- Thailand's coup leaders have drafted a 35-page document explaining their reasons for overthrowing the country's prime minister, detailing his alleged corruption and abuse of power to defuse criticism of the coup at home and abroad, a spokesman said on Wednesday.

The document, which was leaked to Thai media, was still being printed and is due for release in Thai and English at the end of the month, Col. Sansern Kaewkamnerd, a spokesman for the Council of National Security, which comprises the coup leaders, said.

The paper titled, 'Facts about the Reform of Thai Politics on September 19, 2006,' highlights allegedly corrupt deals approved by former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra's government -- including a scandal over baggage scanners and a rail link for Bangkok's recently opened Suvarnabhumi airport, The Nation newspaper reported.

Thaksin was widely accused of reaping personal gain from government projects and policies. The document notes a 2004 case in which the government-run Exim Bank, which supports trade and loans abroad, issued a 4 billion baht loan (equivalent at the time to $97 million) to Myanmar for government construction and telecoms projects that used Thai suppliers. Critics alleged that the deal was rigged to benefit Thaksin's former telecommunications empire Shin Corp.

The document reveals little if any new allegations against Thaksin, but serves as a summary of his massive alleged wrongdoing. It spells out his administration's alleged dirty deals, human rights violations, interference with independent agencies, destruction of checks and balances and meddling with the media, The Nation reported.

Shin Corp. and its former affiliates are at the centre of a number of alleged corruption scandals. The document cites the Thaksin family's sale of Shin Corp. in January this year to Temasek Holdings, a Singaporean state-owned company, as a violation of ethics and a case of tax evasion.

The sale drew widespread protests in Thailand because it placed strategic assets -- including communications satellites -- in foreign hands, and because the deal was structured so that Thaksin's family did not have to pay capital gains taxes.

Protests over the sale fuelled calls for Thaksin to resign, causing political tension that culminated in the September 19 coup. The coup leaders' document also highlights 'policy flaws' that led to alleged human rights abuses, including a controversial war on drugs that left some 2,500 people dead.

Human rights groups have long claimed that most of the deaths were the result of extra-judicial killings carried out by police and security forces, the report further said.

It accused Thaksin of interfering with the Senate, which appointed independent agencies to monitor the government and with the Election Commission, the courts and anti-corruption agencies.

The Thai public overwhelmingly supported the coup, but its leaders have lately faced criticism for failing to provide concrete proof of Thaksin's alleged corruption. Coup leaders have set up several anti-graft bodies to investigate alleged wrongdoing by the fallen government.

Date Posted: 11/22/2006