“Prime Minister Prayut’s second term is starting with the same blanket disregard for human rights that characterised his first term,” said Brad Adams, Human Rights Watch’s Asia director.

“His policy statement contains no language whatsoever addressing the serious problems under repressive military rule since the 2014 coup. [Any] hopes that the new government would bring about human rights reforms and advance democratic civilian rule have suffered a serious setback with the failure to include any commitments in the policy statement,” he said in a statement on Wednesday.

General Prayut staged a military coup in 2014 to topple an elected civilian government and run the country under military rules. The government has been criticised within Thailand and internationally for suppressing basic rights of the people.

The general has been accused of manipulating the March election to continue his rule with the coalition support of 19 elected political parties. The government is required by the junta-sponsored charter to announce its policy to the parliament without a vote before fully governing.

Prayut’s 40-page policy statement, which was submitted to the parliamentary speaker on July 19, does not discuss human rights issues in the country, Human Right Watch noted.

There is no mention of Prayut’s own national human rights agenda which he released in February 2018 with much fanfare, it noted.

The international rights organisation has been a consistent critic of the military government’s rights record over the past five years. It charges Prayut’s administration with providing immunity to human rights violations, restricting freedom of expression, failure to protect right defenders, as well as enabling forced disappearances and failing to comply with international obligations.

“Thailand’s foreign friends should not let the recent elections become an excuse for ignoring the deteriorating human rights situation in the country,” Adams said. “There should be no rush to return to business as usual without securing serious commitments and corresponding action from the new government to respect human rights.”

Yingluck posted on her Facebook wall that farmers in the Northeast and other parts of Thailand deserved people’s concerns because of the burdens imposed by the drought amid a sluggish economy.

“The other day, I learned from news reports that the people in the Northeast and several other parts of Thailand are suffering from drought and, without the rainfall, their crops have been damaged. Moreover, the country is now enduring a sluggish economy, so the farmers and a lot of other people are suffering hardships,” Yingluck said.

“I have sympathy for the people and I would like to extend my moral support to all who have to endure the current situation. I also have concerns about the economic impact that will follow. I hope all of you will have courage and will not be discouraged. Please be patient, so that you all will survive these obstacles.”

The coalition government, meanwhile, has insisted that each and every MP on its side has to be present in Parliament for the debate.

Suthin said the opposition will not just focus on government policies, but will also question the qualifications of the ministers, though he added that they will only focus on facts and not bring up personal issues, so the other side doesn’t start protesting.

He added that the government, opposition and senators have all agreed that the time allocated for debate will be reduced if the person debating at any given time is interrupted.

“Pheu Thai MPs will avoid subjects that will encourage interruptions from the other side. If they cannot do that, then they are not good at debating,” Suthin said.

He said he was not worried that the Phalang Pracharat Party has 20 MPs ready to fire back at the opposition, because only two of them – Weerakorn Khampragob and Wirat Ratanaset – have any experience in Parliament debates.

He is not worried about the Democrat MPs either, because though they are more experienced as opposition MPs, adding that he does not expect the Democrats to put forward a strong debate either.

Suthin also warned senators, saying they should stick to their job of scrutinising as set by the Constitution, and avoid defending the government side.

Wirat, as chair of the government whip, said that every coalition member must attend the two-day policy debate and that no excuses for absence will be accepted.

Meanwhile, Democrat MP Chinnaworn Boonyakiat, said his party has been allocated 63 minutes for debate and will focus on clarifying the policies it promised during the election campaign.

Government whip Wichian Chawalit said he was confident that Prayut will be able to deal with all the attacks from the opposition. “They must not play foul,” he warned.

According to schedule, debates will kick off from 9.30am and wrap up at 1am the following day.

Concerned that the draft might allow factories in agricultural areas, protesters on Tuesday marched from Hua Lamphong Railway Station to EECO headquarters in western Bangkok.

The EECO guaranteed that their concerns would be considered even though 35 public hearings had already been held and the drafting process was in accordance with international standards.

The EEC is the flagship economic project of the current and last governments, aimed at drawing vast foreign investment and turning eastern provinces into an economic hub for all of Southeast Asia.

Large areas of Rayong, Chachoengsao and Chon Buri have been designated as an industrial zone for high-tech industries.

Disputes over land use, however, have resulted in a long-term challenge for regulators and investors as local communities refuse to make way for industrial estates, which are widely criticised for triggering floods and pollution.

“The key reason we are peacefully protesting today is because the city planning process has not included sufficient consultation with the communities that will be affected,” said Gunn Tettiyakul, leader of a group called the Eastern Provinces Community.

“In the past, various industrial projects have been set up near agricultural areas, causing floods, inadequate waste disposal and water pollution for communities nearby.”

Sarayoot Sonraksa, whose fish farm straddles the Chachoengsao-Chon Buri border, cited an industrial estate run by Amata that has caused flooding and waste problems and noted that Amata is now planning another one on the Bang Pakong River.

The protesters demanded changes to the draft city plan reflecting their concerns, copies of the official draft sent to Gunn and other community representatives, and a delay in its finalisation to allow for further public participation.

If the demands are not met, Gunn said, protests could increase significantly in scale.

If the draft is finalised and approved by the Cabinet, residents of all three provinces might ask the Administrative Court to halt the planning process indefinitely.

“The city planning process has been progressing in accordance with the law and international practice,” Tasanee Kiatpatraporn, deputy secretary-general of the EECO, insisted. “The plan is now more than 90 per cent complete and the agricultural areas are protected from intrusion by industrial estates.”

And residents have been able to air concerns at 25 official public hearings in the past few years, 10 unofficial hearings and during 15 EECO visits to the area, she noted.

But the EECO will consider the complaints, distribute the official draft by the end of Tuesday and remain open to hearing further comments, she said.

The Army’s Public Relations Division said on Tuesday there was no need for alarm at the sight of processions of arms, troops and vehicles into Bangkok.

It said the soldiers, weaponry and vehicles, as well as the Army’s Thongchai Chalermpol (armed forces flag), will be transported into the capital from the Royal Guards 2nd Infantry Division base in Prachin Buri to take part in a ceremony honouring the King.

People are welcome to watch the parade along Suwansorn Road in Muang Nakhon Nayok to Ongkarak district, on the highway leading to Ramindra Road, and along Chaeng Wattana, Rama VI and Pradipat roads.

Their destination will be the Third Cavalry Regiment base.

Ong-arj said the Democrats are ready to contest the gubernatorial election and have approached some possible candidates to run under the party’s banner.

The Phalang Pracharat has reportedly invited Phayao Governor Narongsak Osottanakorn, who shot to fame during the successful operation to save the young “Wild Boar” footballers from a flooded Chiang Rai cave, to run as its candidate in the election.

Ong-arj said the Democrat Party has not cut any deal with Phalang Pracharat in exchange for joining the coalition, so the Democrats had no reason not to contest the gubernatorial poll.

He said a Democrat candidate would be selected based on quality, knowledge, experience and a service mind to serve Bangkokians. The governor must also be able to coordinate with various government agencies to solve the city’s woes, Ong-arj added.

He neither confirmed nor denied that former Democrat leader and ex-PM Abhisit Vejjajiva would contest the election as the Democrat candidate.

Abhisit stepped down as party leader after it was humiliatingly defeated in the general election. He subsequently left the party after it joined the Phalang Pracharat coalition.

Itthiporn Boonprakong, chairman of the junta-appointed EC, said the deadline for the EC to submit its argument to the court is July 24, and he is not certain whether the election monitoring body will be able to finish drafting its argument in time.

If the EC fails to finish by deadline it will seek an extension, Itthiporn said.

The new politician is accused of violating the Constitution by holding shares in the media firm V-Luck Company while running as an MP candidate.

Thanathorn has consistently said he transferred the shares to his mother weeks before the MP election was open for applications. Yet, official documents show that Thanathorn’s mother only became a legitimate shareholder of V-Luck after her son had become an MP candidate.

On July 8, Thanathorn’s lawyers submitted three boxes full of documents to the Constitutional Court to support his defence.

Itthiporn said the EC had no problem gathering evidence and witnesses for drafting their argument but writing the legal argument is taking time.

The NACC said it was determined to charge Suthep, Pateep and members of the police committee in charge of approving the project and bring them to the Supreme Court’s Criminal Division for Holders of Political Office.

Suthep, Pateep and members of the police panel were accused of violating the law through bidding collusion.

The project aimed to build 396 new police stations nationwide. The winner of the project was later found to have abandoned the project, causing police at many stations to have no premises from which to work. The opposition then attacked Suthep over the scandalous project that made headlines, prompting the NACC to conduct an investigation.

The NACC set up a subcommittee with nine members to investigate the case and the subpanel submitted its report to the NACC to consider, leading to the Commission’s decision to iindict Suthep, the former police chief and the panel in charge of approving the project.

Suthep is now a leading member of the Action Coalition for Thailand Party, whose leader Chatu Mongol Sonakul is the labour minister in the current government.

Earlier, the NACC announced that the accused were made up of two groups.

In the first group, Suthep is accused of violating the anti-collusion act of B.E. 2542 in the project to build 396 police stations nationwide by giving the contract to a contractor and cancelling the earlier method of granting multiple contracts based on region. It was his approval of the merger of regional contracts into one national project that has led to his facing the collusion charge and benefitting the bid winner.

Pateep and members the police committee was charged with abusing authority related to the project to build police stations for the Provincial Police Bureaus 1 to 9 and for the southern provinces’ border patrol police command.

Suthep has testified to the subcommittee of the NACC three times, protesting his innocence on each occasion.

In this third appearance before the subcommittee, Suthep said he had nothing to do with the failure on the part of the project winner to complete the construction on schedule.

Suthep also insisted that he had nothing to do with the drafting of the contract and the change of the bidding method because the signing of the contract complied with the regulations of the PM’s Office on hiring a private firm. Suthep said the contractor must be held responsible for the construction delay, not him.

Suthep explained to the NACC that he approved the merger of multiple contracts in line with a proposal put forward by Pateep.

He explained that he initially approved multiple projects based on nine police provincial bureaus as proposed by then national police chief Pol Gen Phatcharawat Wongsuwan. But when Pateep became acting national police chief, Pateep proposed the merger of the contracts into one on grounds that the 2010 budget act stated that contract signing of one project must be carried out as one contract. As a result, Suthep explained, the multiple contracts were changed into one in accordance with the budget spending regulations of the 2010 act.

The source said Prawit would definitely join the party. The party has yet to consult with Prawit about an executive post for him, the source added.

The government is scheduled to deliver its policy statement to Parliament on Thursday, with debate expected to continue until Saturday.

The source added that the party is now consulting with its legal team about the proper timing for Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha to take the party helm.

The policy statement is to be debated in Parliament on July 25-26.

The government also said it would reduce obstacles blocking people from earning a decent living and would utilise digital technology to manage public transportation.

It said existing regulations that curb Bangkok’s street vendors would be reviewed so that the city could retain its global reputation for exciting street food while at the same time ensuring cleanliness and orderliness.

This appears to reverse the stance adopted by the previous junta-backed government, which resulted in several popular street-food areas in the capital being cleared of vendors, the stated aim being to free crowded footpaths for commuters.

Critics said the move hurt small-scale tradesmen and would cost the Thai economy several billion baht a year, as well as ruining Bangkok’s reputation as a top destination for street food.

The government has also vowed to address swelling household  debt to revolving village funds, school tuition funds and loan sharks.

The move could be in response to high household debt in Thailand, which has slowed domestic consumption even as the global economy struggles to recover.

Online financial fraud will also be urgently addressed, the government said.

It said it would review the taxation system, but offered no further signal about an election campaign promise to lower personal income tax.

Poor farmers are promised access to land and low-income people access to mortgage loans so they can buy houses.

Small-scale fishing operations would get some relief from strict rules imposed by the previous government, it said, though international fishing standards would be maintained.

State welfare coverage will be expanded to include support for pregnant mothers, infants and young students whose families are struggling financially.

Service quality will become more standardised among the universal public health scheme, social security for workers and healthcare for state officials.

The government pledges to more promptly inject money into the economy following a series of annual budget delays.

It will accelerate the procedure for fiscal 2020, delayed due to tardiness in forming the new government.

It promises to increase the minimum wage, but stops short of committing to a hike beyond Bt400 as promised during the campaign by the Phalang Pracharat Party, which leads the coalition government.

In terms of education reform, the government promises to prepare citizens for the 21st century by promoting science and technology studies, such as introducing computer-coding courses in primary schools.

It promises to initiate public hearings on constitutional changes, given that the current charter, written by the military, has been called undemocratic and discouraging of amendments that would enshrine basic freedoms.