The survey entitled “People and the Public Referendum” was conducted from February 7-13 with 1,522 respondents across the country.

Of the total, 69 per cent said they did not know enough about the draft while 30 per cent said they did.

Asked what they would like to know about the charter draft, 81 per cent said they wanted to know the differences between the old and the new charters; 76 per cent said they wanted to know about people’s rights and freedom; 68 per cent said they wanted to know about MPs, senators and PM selection methods; 59 per cent were keen to know about anti-corruption measures; while about 55 per cent said they wanted to know about the charter drafting process.

Asked what should be done to ensure the success of the referendum, about 80 per cent asked for public relations campaigns; 74 per cent said the pros and cons of the referendum should be pointed out; 72 per cent said a sense of belonging must be created among Thais about the charter; 66 per cent called for a halt to misleading and distorted information; while 54 per cent believed a transparent and strong team was the key to success.

Asked about their general opinion about the charter draft, 73 per cent responded there were both pro and anti charter groups; 71 per cent suggested that surveys be conducted to seek public advice and implement recommendations from the public; 69 per cent wanted the charter to be clear and suitable for the country; 65 per cent questioned whether the charter could defuse conflicts and would be accepted or rejected by the public; and 64.91 per cent wanted people to exercise their rights in accordance with the democratic system.

Asked to detail how much they knew about the charter draft, 45 per cent said they knew about it to “some extent”. About 32 per cent said they “did not really know”, 16 per cent said they “did not know at all” while 7.22 per cent said they fully understood the charter draft.