Thailand's draft permanent Charter expected to be completed within 11 months

BANGKOK, July 24 (TNA) - The drafting of Thailand's new permanent Constitution is likely to be finished within 11 months. Dr. Borwornsak Uwanno, Secretary-General of the King Prajadhipok's Institute (KPI), made the assessment at a seminar held at the Thai Ministry of Defence in Bangkok on Thursday. As Thailand's interim Charter has been promulgated since July 22, 2014, Dr. Borwornsak revealed that the provisional Constitution authorizes five main organizations to work for national progress, one of which is the 250-member National Reform Council (NRC), set to be established soon. Dr. Borwornsak explained that the NRC will work out five areas of national reform, consisting of checks and balance or the makeup of members of the Thai Parliament, power decentralization, corruption prevention, public participation and relations between politicians and government officials. Permanent Secretary for Defence General Surasak Kanchanarat, who inaugurated the KPI-organized seminar, said, meanwhile, that he hoped the national reform would eventually result in free and fair elections over the next two decades with new faces of Thai politics. General Surasak urged people from all sectors in the Thai society to participate in proposing and designing national reform approaches before national reform will be carried out with effectiveness and public and national benefits. Dr. Borwornsak noted that the KPI will consider opinions gathered on July 24 at its meeting set from August 6-8, before forwarding the proposed ideas to the NRC and a constitution drafting committee for further consideration. (TNA)