He went to the cave yesterday morning to meet the families of the Mu Pa Academy football team members who have been missing in the flooded cave since last Saturday.

Prayut told the parents and other family members, who were in a tent near the cave’s entrance, that he conveyed concerns from His Majesty the King.

“I ask everyone to have hopes and be confident the boys will be safe. The officials will be able to help all of them,” Prayut told the family members. “The 13 boys are like my children. We are the same family. All the Thai people and I are in the same family.”

Some of the family members wept while Prayut was speaking to them, and a mother was heard telling him: “Please help my son.”

Prayut said the large-scale rescue operation pointed to the kindness of strangers from all over Thailand and from other countries who had come to help without hoping for anything in return.

“I come here to offer encouragement. The purpose is not about politics or election campaigning,” Prayut said.

He also had a simple lunch with the missing youngsters’ family members before leaving the rescue site.

During the visit, he told reporters that restrictions on their movements at the site were necessary to avoid complicating the rescue operation. He said order was necessary as the operation was being covered by media from all over the world.

“All of you should help, no matter when, even after the election. There will certainly be an election,” Prayut said.

There was a heavy security presence during the PM’s visit. Prayut was accompanied by Interior Minister General Anupong Paochinda and Royal Thai Army commander-in-chief General Chalermchai Sitthisart.

Some local officials complained that the presence of senior officers and high-ranking government figures from Bangkok at the rescue site had made their work more difficult.

Meanwhile, deputy national police chief Pol General Srivara Rangsibrahmanakul came under criticism from social media users yesterday after he was seen in a video clip telling a police search team to show him their drone in operation.

In the video clip, posted on social media and news sites and believed to have been taken during his tour of the rescue site, Srivara was heard saying: “Where is the drone? Let me see it. Do you want your boss to walk to you? Make it fly to me so I can see it.”

It was unclear when the video was recorded.

Many social media users also criticised Srivara for distracting a rescue team boring holes at the cave in their attempts to save the missing youngsters. His grilling of a junior official was recorded in another video clip.

The case was connected to a speech he delivered to a red-shirt rally in Ratchaburi Province in August 2010.

According to iLaw, Tom had turned himself in and acknowledged the charge in 2012. But he was not detained and there had been no movement on the case until prosecutor brought the case to the court in January of this year. Tom was already serving a jail sentence related to other lese majeste charges.

Tom, whose real name is Thanat Thanawatcharanon, had been indicted on four charges of lese majeste under Article 112 of the Penal Code. He had the largest number of lese majeste prosecutions under the current military-led rule, according to iLaw’s records.

The first two charges resulted from videos posted to YouTube in 2013 featuring speeches he made in 2009 with content deemed an insult to the monarchy. The court ruled in the first case that he was guilty and handed down a punishment of 15 years in jail for three counts of the crime. Because he had confessed, the sentence was reduced to seven years and six months.

He also confessed in the second YouTube video case and his sentence was reduced by two-thirds to three years and four months. In total, he must serve 10 years and 10 months in prison, and has so far been jailed for nearly four years since his July 2014 arrest.

Tom was indicted on two more charges while in jail. In addition to the Ratchaburi case, he was charged for a political speech he made in Lampoon Province in 2010. He also admitted to having committed a lese majeste crime, but the court dropped the case.

It is the third such case against the singer, whose real name is Thanat Thanawatcharanon.

Dundee of Phetchaburi province is accused of violating Article 112 of the Penal Code for allegedly insulting the monarchy. The case resulted from his speech made during a red-shirt protest in August 2010 in Ratchaburi.

He was indicted in 2012 and his case was brought to court in January this year.

He is serving a combined jail term of 10 years and 10 months from two separate lese majeste cases.

In May, the Ratchaburi court postponed the reading of the verdict because the final ruling was not ready.

The singer also faced a fourth lese majeste case stemming from his speech at a red-shirt protest in Lamphun in 2011. But the Criminal Court acquitted him in March this year.

Between 2010 and 2011, Dundee had joined many street protests organised in different provinces by the red shirts’ umbrella group, United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD). As a well-known figure, he often went on stage to address protesters.

However, no exact date has been scheduled for a meeting between the government and political parties and state agencies regarding preparations for the general election, Wissanu said. He added that the meeting would be scheduled only after the new electoral law is promulgated in the Royal Gazette.

On Wednesday, Prayut said he expected to meet with representatives from political parties in September to discuss preparations for the election. The PM said he would meet with the political parties after the laws on MP elections and the Senate structure get Royal endorsement.

Relax restrictions

It would be the junta leader’s first meeting with political parties. The first meeting between the government and most political parties took place on Monday and was presided over by Deputy Prime Minister General Prawit Wongsuwan. Politicians from most registered parties and officials from relevant agencies attended, including Wissanu.

Pheu Thai and Future Forward parties did not attend the meeting. Political parties have asked Prayut, in his capacity as head of the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO), to relax restrictions in NCPO Order 53/2017 so that parties could follow the requirements of the new electoral law, such as setting up party branches and recruiting enough members for the primary vote to select candidates.

The meeting on Monday did not discuss relaxing the NCPO order and no participants raised the issue, according to Wissanu, who is in charge of the government’s legal affairs.

“This issue will likely be discussed at the second meeting with political parties, which will be presided over by General Prayut,” he said on Thursday.

Wissanu earlier had reported that at the meeting, political parties mainly asked for a new NCPO order to be issued to waive a legal requirement for primary voting in the next |election. He said yesterday that the NCPO would have the final say on the parties’ request after they had discussed the matter with all relevant bodies.

Prayut said that people living in self-exile overseas and escaping from Thai law were just “second-class citizens” in their host countries.

He also criticised the media for presenting news about “someone who committed wrongdoing and fled the country to live overseas”.

“Why do you care about him? You would do better caring about someone who is working for the country now,” Prayut said, without naming anyone.

“Please don’t give credit to people who attack their own country. They were born Thai, but now live in another country as second-class citizens,” he said.

“They should come back and fight the legal cases against them. The justice system can ensure justice for them. If they believe in their innocence, they should come back,” he said.

Prayut, who also heads the ruling junta, the National Council for Peace and Order, added that he was not referring to anyone in particular in making the remarks.

He was speaking at Don Mueang |military airport following his return from a trip to the United Kingdom and |France, during which he met government leaders of both countries.

Thaksin, who has been in self-exile abroad since 2008, earlier criticised Prayut and his government. While Army chief, Prayut in 2014 led a coup to overthrow the elected government led by Thaksin’s younger sister, Yingluck Shinawatra, who is now in self-exile with Thaksin in London.

Prayut said yesterday that he had received an “honourable welcome” from both the UK and France during his recent trip.

The PM also said he had seen both support and protests from separate groups of Thai expatriates in those countries, adding that he was not angry at the protesters.

“They may not understand me today, but in the future they may have a good understanding,” he said.

The premier also defended his post-coup government against criticism over its handling of the country’s economy.

He said gross domestic product had expanded continuously to a growth rate of 4.8 per cent in the first quarter of this year, compared with just 0.9 per cent before his administration took power.

He also disputed a claim by critics that only wealthy people benefited from his government’s economic policies. “All groups of people have benefited,” he insisted.

Prayut added that his government’s Thai Niyom development project was aimed at poorer people. “This government is serving everyone at all economic levels. Don’t accuse us of working for the rich only,” he said.

Prayut hailed his meetings with Macron and UK Prime Minister Theresa May a success after discussing business deals.

The junta chief had been barred from visiting the European Union after he staged a military coup to topple an elected civilian government in 2014.

The EU softened its stance in December last year to resume political engagement with Thailand at all levels. The Foreign Affairs Council of the EU said it would gradually resume political engagement since Prayut had promised that an election would be held in November this year.

However, the election has been delayed, with no firm date yet established. 

A meeting between Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan and representatives of political parties on Sunday discussed the possibility of holding the next election between late February and early May of next year.

In his meeting with Prayut in Paris, Macron called for a “return to democracy” in Thailand, according to the website of weekly news magazine L’Express in Paris.

Macron “expressed the willingness of France to accompany Thailand, a long-time friend and important partner of France in Southeast Asia, on the road back to democracy, as well as its attention to the situation of fundamental rights in this country,” the website said, quoting the Elysee Palace statement.

Prayut said Thailand was following its road map to democracy and would see an election in February next year.

He invited Macron to pay an official visit to Thailand and join the Asean summit next year when Thailand would hold the chairmanship of the group.

The EU is a dialogue partner of Asean and Thailand is currently the coordinator between the two blocks.

The two leaders also witnessed the signing of an agreement between THAI airways and Airbus Commercial Aircraft to launch an aircraft maintenance centre at U-Tapao International Airport, and also the purchase of the THEOS II Satellite by Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency from Airbus Defence and Space SAS.

A group of Thai dissidents and activists held a protest in Paris against Prayut’s trip. It led by well-known exiled critics of the junta government including Jaran Ditapichai, Junya Yimprasert and Saran Chuichai, who is better known as Aum Neko.

The group of about a dozen people gathered in front of the Paris hotel where Prayut and the Thai delegation were staying and held banners reading, “We feel shame for the visit of dictator to France” and “Return democracy to Thai people, we want to vote”.Junya told The Nation that she believed the protest would be a reminder to the junta that it was not easy to lie to the people about politics.

If Prayut visited Europe again, he could face a more serious and organised protest, she added.

Junya and Aum Neko also expressed their disappointment at the French government for welcoming an authoritarian leader, effectively putting economic benefits over democracy and human rights.

Deputy Prime Minister General Prawit Wongsuwan said that waiving the requirement on primary voting was a major issue raised by party representatives attending a meeting with the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) on Monday.

“We will have to consider their request,” he said at the Defence Ministry.

Prawit, who is also defence minister and a key NCPO figure, said he had informed Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha about his discussion with the politicians at the Army Club.

He said the meeting on Monday had gone well and without any problems. “That’s a good sign,” he added.

Political parties have called on the NCPO to issue an order under Article 44 of the post-coup interim charter to waive a requirement under the new electoral law for parties to hold primary voting to select their election candidates.

The parties have said they will not have sufficient time to comply with the requirement, as the junta ban on political activities has yet to be lifted.

Prayut, who also heads the NCPO, said on Tuesday that the junta would consider the proposals by the political parties in order to determine whether to follow their suggestions.

He called on all groups of people not to disrupt peace in the country. “We are heading towards an election,” he added.

The prime minister was speaking at Don Mueang military airport following his return from the United Kingdom and France, where he met the government leaders of both countries.

Meanwhile, Deputy Prime Minister Wissanu Krea-ngam said on Tuesday that in addition to the 150 days allowed by the Constitution for the Election Commission (EC) to hold the election, the agency also had another 60 days to announce the official results of the national vote.

He said the timeframe was clearly stated in the new charter in effect since April last year.

Moreover, the Constitution Drafting Commission has made a clear interpretation of the relevant clause, concluding that the EC has 60 days to announce the election results after the national vote, Wissanu added.

In a related development, National Legislative Assembly president Pornpetch Wichitcholchai said on Tuesday that the NLA is scheduled to vote on July 12 on whether to endorse nominations for new EC members.

Pornpetch said he did not think the selection process of new election commissioners would affect the next national vote, as the current EC members were still able to perform their duty in preparing for the election.

General Prayut said that people living in self-exile overseas and escaping from Thai law were just “second-class citizens” in their host countries.

He also criticised the media for presenting news about “someone who committed wrongdoing and fled the country to live overseas”.

“Why did you care about him? You would do better caring about someone who is working for the country now,” Prayut said, without naming anyone.

“Please don’t give credit to people who attack their own country. They were born Thai, but now live in another country as second-class citizens,” he said.

“They should come back and fight the legal cases against them. The justice system can ensure justice for them. If they believe in their innocence, they should come back,” he stressed.

Prayut, who also heads the ruling junta, the National Council for Peace and Order, added that he was not referring to anyone in particular in making these remarks.

He was speaking at Don Mueang military airport following his return from a trip to the United Kingdom and France, during which he met government leaders of the two European countries.

Thaksin, who has been in self-exile abroad since 2008, earlier criticised Prayut and his government. While Army chief, Prayut in 2014 led a coup to overthrow an elected government led by Thaksin’s younger sister, Yingluck Shinawatra, who is now in self-exile with Thaksin in London.

Prayut on Tuesday said he had received an “honourable welcome” from both the UK and France during his recent trip.

The PM also said he had seen both support and protest from separate groups of Thai expatriates in those countries, adding that he was not however angry at the protesters.

“They may not understand me today, but in the future they may have a good understanding,” he said.

The premier also defended his post-coup government against criticism over its handling of the country’s economy.

He said gross domestic product had expanded continuously to a growth rate of 4.8 per cent in the first quarter of this year, compared with just 0.9 per cent before his administration came to power.

He also disputed a claim by critics that only wealthy people benefited from his government’s economic policies.

“All groups of people have benefited,” he insisted.

Prayut added that his government’s Thai Niyom development project was aimed at poorer people. “This government is serving everyone at all economic levels. Don’t accuse us of working for the rich only,” he said.

Reform of the bureaucracy and government services is one of five “quick win” sectors to be implemented for effective results, he told a seminar on “Transforming Thailand: Thailand-France Partnership”, hosted by the business association Mouvement des Entreprises de France.

“We are now in the second of a three-step reform towards democracy,” he said, adding that this step encompasses political, economic and social reforms.

The final step will be the general election toward democratisation, he said, adding the reform agenda would be handed over to the elected government to carry on.

Thailand Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha addresses a business conference organised by French employers’s association Medef International in Paris on June 25, 2018. // AFP PHOTO

Prayut led a delegation to Europe last week with visits to the United Kingdom and France. He promised leaders and business elites in the two countries that the junta, which took power after a coup four years ago, would hold an election early next year.

Activists and dissidents held protests in London and Paris demanding that leaders of the two countries press the junta chief to return democracy to Thai people and respect human rights.

Prayut largely ignored the political demands and instead focused on economic relations for his high-profile visit. He said the Thai economy is continuing an upward trajectory, with 3.8 per cent GDP growth in 2017 and 4.8 per cent in the first quarter of this year.

The Thailand 4.0 policy focused on science, technology and innovation would drive the country’s development goals for prosperity, he said.

The government’s Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) would become a region of high economic growth as it connected neighbouring countries Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam, as well as other Asean members, he said.

Thailand, the Asean chair for next year, has an open policy to welcome foreign investment, he said. An investment in Thailand could link to the combined 230 million population of the entire Asean market, he concluded.

THE ELECTION is likely to take place some time between February 24 and May 5 next year, Deputy Prime Minister Wissanu Krea-ngam announced yesterday.

It is the first time that any government official has clearly declared dates for the poll.

There is a “strong possibility” that the election will take place in February, Wissanu said, given Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha’s recent promise to his United Kingdom counterpart Theresa May.

The dates were proposed by the Election Commission (EC) yesterday at the first meeting of relevant parties in preparation for the poll.

The meeting was held at the Army Club by the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) and was attended by government figures, EC officials, Constitution Drafting Commission members and political party representatives.

The forum discussed the preparation for the upcoming election, including lifting the NCPO’s ban on political activities.

Wissanu, who is in charge of the government’s legal affairs, said the ban could be partially lifted from September to December after the bills on Senate and MP elections have been published in the Royal Gazette.

After the promulgation, the MP election bill leaves a gap of 90 days before it comes into effect. The EC could use that time to draw up the electoral constituencies and political parties would be able to freely assemble to deal with primary votes and select party executives as the ban would be partially lifted, Wissanu explained.

The ban on the assembly of five or more people would remain in place, he said, and would only be lifted after the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) has decided to nullify the previous orders that imposed the restriction.

All the proposals floated in the forum yesterday would be reported to the NCPO who had the absolute power to make any decision, Wissanu stressed, adding that only after the next meeting attended by PM Prayut would the confirmed scheduled be announced.

Wissanu also said five factors were influential on the road map to democracy: peace and order during the coronation, the promulgation of the election bills, the local administrative election, the change of the EC and general peace and order in society.

Earlier, Wissanu had said he did not expect yesterday’s first meeting to see “complete success”.

“I don’t know if this first meeting will be a success. We don’t expect complete success anyway,” he said.

The election bills have already been submitted for royal endorsement but it could take up to 90 days- – or until September –– before they are promulgated.

The forum yesterday lasted two and a half hours and was attended by 198 politicians from 73 parties.

While the oldest, the Democrat Party, sent deputy leader Julin Laksanawisit to take part, notable by their absence were Pheu Thai and the new Future Forward parties.

Pheu Thai had said that the NCPO lacked the legitimacy to hold talks. Future Forward added that the meeting had not been transparent as the NCPO had not allowed any type of live broadcast. Participants were asked to leave their cellphones outside the meeting room. The NCPO strictly prohibited any recordings or live broadcast.

One participant, Varawut Silapa-archa, a key figure from the Chart Thai Pattana Party, said he was satisfied with the NCPO’s promise to ease the political restrictions and allow parties to prepare for the next election.

“The party is well prepared for the election, whether it is held sooner or later. We have no problem,” he said.

He expected the NCPO to soon make it clear how it intends overcoming the legal obstacles restricting parties from operating at the moment.