CDC chief Meechai Ruchupan said drafters were waiting until the referendum bill is published in the Royal Gazette to see whether it includes provisions providing protection to CDC staff working to promote the draft constitution.

If the bill does not include protections for the panel, he will suggest an amendment or a separate law to prevent disturbances.

Initially the CDC would rely on the political assembly bill and the assistance of authorities to keep out troublemakers, Meechai said.

On April 5, Meechai was disturbed by groups of protesters when he was giving a speech concerning the framework of the constitution draft. Subsequently he called for the referendum bill to include measures to curb such disruptions so the CDC could work undisturbed.

The CDC chief also said drafters would have to prepare for protests by supporters of political parties. The country’s two largest parties, the Democrats and Pheu Thai, have voiced strong opposition against the charter draft.

However, Meechai said political parties would show themselves to be unethical if they played foul by encouraging supporters to protest against the CDC.

“They would just expose themselves and the people would know how they play politics,” Meechai said. “But I still believe that most people would understand that this is about re-establishing the rules for the country and we have done the best we can. We heeded all opinions, put them together and here is the charter as you can see.”

Voters should listen to the drafters and not cause trouble if they want to understand the draft so they could make a decision about how to vote in the plebiscite, he added.

In the meantime, Meechai said the CDC would play a defensive game by trying to explain to the public what the draft constitution is about.

He expressed concerns that misunderstanding about the draft were going viral on the Internet, spread not only by opponents of the draft but also by those who did not understand the charter and propagated a false understanding.

A public relations team has been tasked to promote the charter draft using public officials who will communicate with the general public. Drafters will also go into the field in key geographical areas to explain the charter, Meechai said.