General Piyapong Klinphan, deputy head of the junta’s public relations centre, yesterday dismissed the notion that the referendum bill would limit freedom of expression ahead of the plebiscite on a new constitution.

“I do not think the bill aims to limit freedom of expression. I want everyone first to study and try to understand the bill. And I want everyone to regard national interest above everything,” he said. “Plus, nobody would want to draft a bill that would lead to disorder in the country.”

Piyapong stressed that everyone should follow the laws. The NCPO and the NLA also respect the laws, he said, adding that the bill passed on Thursday set rules that everyone should obey.

Constitution Drafting Commission (CDC) chairman Meechai Ruchupan said he did not see how the bill would limit people’s freedom of expression. He said that recently there were video clips on the Internet that accused the government of silencing those who held different opinions. However, such an allegation is untrue and the referendum bill did not stipulate anything like that, he said. “The bill only prohibits acts that disturb or hamper the work of authorities. Such acts are not rights and everyone should be careful not to commit them,” he said.

“People can express their opinions, but they should not distort, lie, or disturb others. That is not the democracy they are calling for.”

Meechai also said everyone had the right to campaign and point out what is good and what is not good about the charter draft as long as those remarks were not distortions.

Regarding the CDC’s future work, Meechai said the bill still lacked a clause that could help prevent acts that could cause difficulties in the commission’s dissemination of information. Last week, the CDC chief’s speech on the framework of the constitution at Thammasat University was disrupted by opponents of the draft. Meechai said he would propose that the government amend the bill and add such clauses. In a related development, the Pheu Thai Party issued a new statement calling for full freedom of expression ahead of the referendum. It said that only with this would the result of the referendum be accepted.

Pheu Thai also denounced the NCPO’s latest Order No 13/2016, which allows military officers to exercise their authority across a wide spectrum of activities, which could suppress people’s rights unnecessarily, including in the coming referendum.

The party claimed in the statement that human-rights infringements had become rampant in Thailand since the NCPO took power from an elected civilian government in 2014. It said Order No 13/2016 could further undermine reconciliation efforts.

The party called on the NCPO to revoke the order and create a better atmosphere that would protect human rights and freedom of expression.