BANGKOK — The secretary-general of Thailand's Election Commission has defended the group's ten-day trip to Scotland, calling it an opportunity for officials to learn how to "improve the election procedure" in Thailand.

EC officials traveled to Scotland from 10 to 21 September to "observe" the independence referendum, in which Scottish residents voted on whether Scotland should remain a part of the United Kingdom. The voting was carried out peacefully in a single day.

Critics of the ten-day trip called it a waste of taxpayer money, as democracy has been suspended in Thailand and the country's interim constitution does not permit separatism or a referendum on secessions. In addition, many observers found the EC's apparent gusto for elections puzzling given the group's notorious reluctance to organise elections in Thailand earlier this year.

But Puchong Nutrawong, sec-gen of the EC, said today that the trip was an important educational experience.

"Officials went on the trip to record all the information [they saw]," Mr. Puchong told reporters. "They did not go for sightseeing. They were there to perform their duties per their assignment."

Asked whether he thought the Scottish referendum was truly relevant to the political situation Thailand, Mr. Puchong said, "Elections are an important principle of democracy. I believe [what we learned on] this educational trip will be very applicable to Thailand."

Earlier this year, EC officials in many voting districts closed down their posts during the 2 February snap poll called by former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, citing pressure from anti-government protesters who sought to obstruct the election. 

The Constitutional Court ultimately nullified the election because voting did not take place everywhere in the country on the same day.

The EC then repeatedly resisted the government's attempts to organise a fresh poll, claiming that it was not possible because of the anti-government protesters who vowed to block any election held before unspecified national reforms were implemented. 

In April, the EC allowed anti-government protesters to enter the hall where election talks were being held and hang banners bearing anti-election slogans. 

The second attempt at a snap poll, which was initially scheduled to take place on 20 July, never happened as the military seized power and dissolved the government on 22 May.

Thailand's military rulers now say elections will be not be held until October 2015, and only if "national reconciliation" has been achieved and the political climate is deemed stable. 

Meanwhile, photos of Election Commissioner Somchai Srisuthiyakorn visiting museums in Scotland have been widely circulated on social media, with critics of the EC calling the photos proof that Mr. Somchai was wasting the state budget on personal leisure. 

When a reporter asked Mr. Puchong whether the trip to Scotland was approved by the junta's National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO), the sec-gen said the trip was authorised under the budget for the 2014 fiscal year, which was approved before the 22 May coup. 

"There will be no foreign trip for the EC in the 2015 fiscal year budget," Mr. Puchong said.

BANGKOK — Thailand’s military junta has reiterated its ban on all political activities, including academic discussions, and moved to block another forum organised by academics at Chiang Mai University.

"All activities related to politics must be held off for now," Col. Winthai Suvaree, spokesperson of the junta's National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO), said at a press conference yesterday.

Last week the military interrupted a panel on the "Demise of Foreign Dictators" at Thammasat University and briefly detained four professors and three students, including the prominent historian Nidhi Eoseewong.

Col. Winthai said the military has also canceled an academic discussion titled "Happiness and Reconciliation Under 2014 Interim Constitution” that was scheduled to take place at Chiang Mai University this Thursday.

"Because of the nation's atmosphere at the moment, we don't want to see any gatherings or activities that may be related to politics," Col. Winthai said. "If any agency wants to propose or complain about any issue to the government, they should submit a letter to Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha, Prime Minister and NCPO chairman."

He added, "We don't want to see the use of any other channels that could cause divisions in society."

After staging a coup four months ago, the NCPO banned all forms of political expression and public protests. Many of the those who violated the prohibition are now facing trials in military court.

Yesterday, 60 academics from 16 universities across Thailand signed an open letter condemning the cancellation of the panel discussion at Thammasat University, which they called "a severe infringement of academic freedom."

"We urge the ruling military junta, the National Council of Peace and Order (NCPO), to stop intimidating academics and students, and respect academic freedom," the letter said. "If such a basic freedom as the freedom to engage in intellectual discussions within an academic institution is not respected, there is no hope that the Thailand that will come out of the NCPO's reform will respect citizens' basic rights and freedom."

On 2 September, the military forced a group of lawyers and activists to cancel their panel discussion on the status of human rights in junta-ruled Thailand. A spokesperson of the NCPO claimed it was necessary to block the talk, aptly titled "Access to Justice in Thailand: Currently Unavailable," to prevent the dissemination of false information and "prejudice."

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NAKHON SI THAMMARAT—Soldiers have removed mysterious banners hung in the southern province of Nakhon Si Thammarat that accused the newly appointed governor of being allied to the Redshirt movement.

The banners appeared in major intersections and roads in the province this morning. Witnesses said they were hung by a group of "men in black" who arrived in pick-up trucks and motorcycles. 

"Citizens of Muang Khon [nickname of Nakhon Si Thammarat province] do not want a Redshirt governor," the banners proclaimed. 

Pirasak Hinmuangkao, who served as director of Land Department under the previous government, was recently appointed by the Cabinet as governor of the southern province, replacing Apinan Suethanuwong. His term is due to begin on October 1.

Over 30 soldiers were later dispatched by 4th Region Army to remove all of the banners. Political protests of all kinds are banned by Thailand's military junta, which seized power in a coup d'etat on 22 May.

Thailand’s political sphere is generally divided along the Redshirt–Yellowshirt faultline; northern and northeastern Thailand is considered a stronghold of the Redshirt movement, while Bangkok and the southern provinces, including Nakhon Si Thammarat, are home to many Yellowshirt supporters.

Speaking to Matichon today, Mr. Pirasak said he believes the banners were the work of "ill-intentioned individuals" looking to discredit him.

"I am very uncomfortable because I didn't do anything wrong," Mr. Pirasak said, "I insist that I am not a Redshirt as accused, and I have never meddled with politics. I am a professional bureaucrat."

He added, "I hope the people in the province will understand me."

Mr. Pirasak was also a target of rumours earlier this year during the six month protest campaign that sought to oust the Redshirt-allied government eventually toppled in the coup. The rumour claimed that Mr. Pirasak ordered a floodgate to open and obstruct Petchkasem Road in an attempt to prevent southern Thais from joining the protests in Bangkok. 

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BANGKOK — Leading members of the Democrat Party have denied the allegation that their party supported the six month anti-government protest campaign launched at the end of last year.

The comments came in response to a complaint filed by Redshirt activist Sa-ngiam Samranrat asking the Constitutional Court to dissolve the Democrat Party on the grounds that it engaged in politics through non-parliamentary means. 

Mr. Sa-ngiam's complaint was based on the involvement of prominent Democrat party leaders in the six months of street protests staged against then-Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra starting last November. The former secretary-general of the Democrat Party, Suthep Thaugsuban, became the leader of the protest movement. 

"The party did not organise the protests," Wirat Kalyasiri, director of Democrat Party's legal department, said on Thursday, explaining that Mr. Suthep and other Democrat leaders had already resigned from the party when they joined and organised the protests. 

The People's Committee for Absolute Democracy With the King As Head of State (PCAD) started its campaign against Ms. Yingluck in December 2013, demanding that she be replaced by a royally-appointed Prime Minister and an unelected "People's Council." The protests came to an end on 22 May 2014 when the military seized power in a coup d’etat.

Mr. Suthep and seven other Democrats resigned from their party in November last year to the lead the escalating protests, which were sparked by the government's attempt to pass a bill that would have given amnesty to Ms. Yingluck's brother, former PM Thaksin Shinawatra, who currently lives in self-imposed exile to avoid corruption convictions.

"They resigned to demonstrate and struggle for the right cause in a democratic way," Mr. Wirat said. "Society has always been aware about our party's stance on this issue." 

The Democrat Party’s legal adviser also insisted that previous court rulings deemed the PCAD protests legal, peaceful assembly. 

Nipit Intarasombat, deputy chairman of Democrat Party, said the public should understand that his party never agreed to endorse the PCAD protests. He stressed that all illegal actions committed by former Democrat members during the campaign should not be used to prosecute the party as a whole. 

In 2007, Democrat Party was spared from a party dissolution verdict by the Constitutional Court in a lawsuit related to its boycott of the April 2006 national election. However, the court dissolved the former ruling Thai Rak Thai Party on the grounds that it allegedly bribed a number of smaller parties to participate in the boycotted election. 

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BANGKOK — Thailand’s military junta has scrapped its plans to appoint members of a national reform body through a selection committee and instead decided to choose the council's members on its own.

The junta initially set up a 14-member selection committee to narrow a pool of over 6,000 candidates for the 250-member National Reform Council (NRC), which will be tasked with implementing a wide range of reforms in Thailand over the next year.

But in an announcement signed on 19 September, which was only made public on Friday night, the junta's National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) abolished the committee and granted itself the power to determine the makeup of the NRC.

"The NCPO is already assisted by experts and advisers to consider the matter," NCPO spokesperson Col. Winthai Suvaree said yesterday. "So there is no need to set up a new committee."

Thailand is officially ruled by a semi-civilian interim government, but the NCPO is authorized through the 2014 interim constitution to unilaterally intervene in the administration of the country "regardless of its effects on the legislative, executive or judiciary."

The latest move by the NCPO will ensure that the junta retains significant influence over all prominent bodies of the interim administration. Members of the National Legislative Assembly (NLA) and the Cabinet were similarly handpicked by the NCPO and junta chairman Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha has taken up the post as Prime Minister.

According to the junta's "roadmap" for Thailand's return to democratic rule, the reform council will work with the NLA and the government to enact reforms across numerous sectors of Thai society, including politics, economy, culture, and media. 

The junta says a national election will be held in October 2015 at the earliest, if the reforms and "national reconciliation" process are completed by that time.

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