91 Percent of Complaints Filed With Junta 'Solved,' Minister Says

BANGKOK — Thailand's military government has "solved" nearly all of the complaints submitted by citizens across the country since the May 2014 coup, a senior official said.

"We have solved 91 percent of the complaints," said Panadda Diskul, Minister of the Office of Prime Minister. "As for the rest, we are working on them. It takes time because they are related to issues of law enforcement, such as encroachment on protected forests and Ponzi schemes."

"Please don't get involved in these issues," he advised the public.

Shortly after seizing power from an elected government last May, the Thai junta set up "complaint centers" in all of Thailand's 77 provinces.

Members of the public can submit their complaints by calling the hotline 1111, visiting the website 1111.go.th, or sending a letter to the Government House in Bangkok at P.O. Box 1111.

According to Panadda, the centers have received exactly 158,286 complaints since the program was established in May 2014. 

"We have been working with justice agencies at the provincial and local level," Panadda said. "People can file their complaints in their areas. I would like to call on all kamnans, village chiefs, and local administrative officials to take care of the welfare of the people in their regions."

Junta chairman and Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha will personally visit some of these complaint centers in the future to make sure that officials are performing their duties, Panadda said.

He added that the government is working to expand the operation and allow complaints to be filed at Thai embassies in nine Southeast Asian countries.

The Thai junta has urged critics to file their complaints via the government's agencies rather than expressing their dissatisfaction in public. To ensure the absence of any public opposition to its regime, the junta has banned all political activities and public protests. Violators of the ban are threatened with prosecution in military courts.