While Article 67 in the bill’s provisional clause says the new law will not affect cases that are already in the judicial process, Wallop said it is still not clear what was covered by the term “process”.

Wallop said, in his view, the law should not apply retroactively to cases concerning former premier Thaksin Shinawatra which have already been already ruled on by a court.

He said in his interpretation, the new law would not cover cases already adjudicated, including Thaksin’s, but would cover existing cases on which a final ruling has not been issued.

“The president or the spokesperson of the NLA committee vetting the said draft bill should clarify this point,” Wallop said “The Constitutional Court could also be approached for clarity on the term ‘process’.

The court upheld a ruling by the Appeal Court in February that handed him the same punishment. At that time, Charnchai sought to be released on bail of Bt300,000.

Charnchai had been found by the Appeal Court to have violated Criminal Code Articles 144 and 167 regarding bribing government officials and judges in exchange for being spared from legal action.

A lower court’s ruling in 2014 said the defendant’s deed severely abused the justice system. He was handed a three year imprisonment term before he sought to appeal the case.

The ruling followed testimony given by an eyewitness – then-Constitutional Court judge Krairerk Kasemsan – who said in 2013 that Charnchai had visited him between October 16 and 22, 2006, and had offered him a bribe of Bt15 million to Bt30 million to help with the party’s dissolution case.

The Constitutional Court in 2006 heard the case in which Thai Rak Thai was accused of electoral fraud, a charge punishable by dissolution.

Charnchai had denied the charge, saying that the mention of a bribe was only a joke as he had visited the judge only to invite him to a reunion party of Thammasat University alumni. They were former classmates at the university’s Faculty of Law.

Apart from Krairerk, three judges and former judges also gave testimony.

After the Supreme Court verdict, the ex-police officer was taken to Khlong Prem Central Prison to start serving his jail term.

Somchai said the first two options to remove commissioners involve petitions from either the National Legislative Assembly (NLA) or the Prime Minister.

In addition, Somchai added, Section 210 of the Constitution would allow the Constitutional Court to take up the case, although it has not yet come into effect. Lastly, the petition to the Constitutional Court could also be made by the Ombudsman, but only after it was promulgated, Somchai said, citing Section 231 of the Constitution.

The comment came after NLA whip spokesman Jate said that there were only two ways to petition against the controversial organic law. One route would involve a petition by the NLA, which was unlikely to happen because the NLA itself voted twice in favour of the bill, Jate said.

Following the NLA’s approval, the bill, among the four organic laws needฌed for the coming election, will be the fi rst subject to royal endorsement and promulgation.

Following the legal process, the NLA will pass the bill to the Cabinet, which will then send it for royal endorsement before it is published in the Royal Gazette and takes effect.

The bill, drafted by the Constitution Drafting Commission, was deliberatฌed on by the NLA early last month. The NLA’s lawvetting committee had made revisions to the draft, including proposing total replacement of curฌrent EC members. The revised bill was then endorsed by the NLA in its secฌond and third readings.

Under the process outlined in the new charter, concerned agencies may raise objections on whether clauses in the bill are constitutional or not. The EC had raised six issues that it deemed unconstitutional, including the total reconstitution of the EC, and officialฌly informed the NLA of its objections to the bill. This led to the appointment of a joint law review committee to study the bill.

The committee, however, resolved that the bill was constitutional, sugฌgesting no further revision of the bill was required.

The NLA vote 1940 to endorse the bill, with seven abstentions.

EC president Supachai Somcharoen also attended the NLA meeting yesterday to present the EC’s views. Supachai insisted on the EC’s stance, especially the point conฌcerning the commission’s current term, which would end after promฌulgation of the new EC law. Supachai said the NLA’s lawvetting commitฌtee had made significant changes to the bill’s content that resulted in infringement of the EC’s rights.

The bill, he added, did not adhere to the rule of law, governance and tradition, in addition to being parฌtial.

“We did not fight to protect our interests, but as a lawyer, I must say that this bill is unconstitutional and must be objected to. The EC must proฌtect its integrity, although we know the consequences,” said Supachai, while urging the NLA to consider the points raised.

Pakorn Nilpraphan, member of the joint law review committee, defended the decision made by the review comฌmittee, insisting that the NLA endorse the bill.

He said the bill adhered to the prinฌciple without taking into consideraฌtion anyone’s interests.

Pakorn said that the new charter does not stipulate continuity of current independent agencies’ terms, but instead leaves some room for considฌeration following the need to restrucฌture agencies.

The EC, Pakorn said, was a case in point, and said the bill was not a punฌishment for the agency, as outgoing EC members would be rewarded after they leave office.

EC member Somchai Srisutthiyakorn said the EC would meet and decide next Tuesday whether to petition the Constitutional Court.

“The public should not be worried that they would be affected if they report graft information to the newly-formed centres. I can assure you that all information will be dealt with in a confidential manner,” he said.

Prawit, also defence minister, was referring to the anti-corruption centres set up at the order of the prime minister to fight corruption by state officials.

The centres, which open today, are situated in army camps throughout the country.

There has been concern that people would be afraid of lodge complaints about corruption to military officers.

The project will be overseen by Army chief Gen Chalermchai Sittisart, who is also the junta secretary-general.

Prawit said that people could submit complaints via PO Box and hotline calls to the NCPO and the Army, which will then forward them to the PM’s Office for further investigation,

The status increases his chance of getting a green card and US citizenship, he said in a Facebook post on Thursday.

Jom left the country after the coup in 2014 when he did not report to the junta despite a summons.

With the asylum status his application for a green card will be easier and should not take longer than four months to complete, he said. After that, he could also apply for citizenship in the US.

Now that he has been granted asylum status, he said he will receive similar benefits as green card holders. He said he was relieved now that he could receive free medical service and assistance in getting trainings and jobs, without having to seek an annual work permit.

“This re-energises me to keep on my journalistic work, as a voice of the Thai people, for democracy,” he wrote on Facebook while also thanking his supporters.

Since the 2014 coup a number of pro-democracy activists fled the country for fear of arbitrary detention and charges on lese majeste.

Some of them, such as red-shirt leader Jaran Ditapichai, monarchy critic Somsak Jeamtheerasakul, and hardcore activist Ekapop Luara, aka Tang Achiwa, have been granted not only asylum but also new nationalities in France and New Zealand respectively for not being able to return home because of political threats.

Somchai said a decision should be made at the EC meeting next Tuesday.

The EC had, on Thursday, expressed its objections about the draft bill before the NLA, arguing against the reconstitution of the EC. The EC’s objections had earlier led to the setting up of a joint law review committee, which backed the bill version endorsed last month by the NLA.

The bill is the first of four organic laws required for the coming election under the new charter.

The NLA on Thursday morning approved the bill after the review committee rejected the EC’s appeal for changes.

The next legal option before the EC is to approach the Constitutional Court.

Assembly whip Jate Siratharanont said on Thursday, after the NLA had voted to approve the EC bill, that the election agency had no authority to take the issue to the court. He said such a petition would require the support of one-tenth of NLA members under the new charter.

Jate said this was impossible because the NLA had voted overwhelmingly to endorse the bill.

According to the Constitution, only the NLA or the Prime Minister can petition the Constitutional Court after the NLA has resolved twice to pass the draft bill, Jate said.

The EC, or any other independent organisation, does not have the authority to take action at this stage, he said.

“And it is not likely that 10 per cent of the NLA members would sign up to petition the Constitutional Court because they are the ones who approved the bill,” Jate said. “That door is just closed.”

The NLA last month passed the EC organic law, which replaces the current commissioners with a new batch. It was passed again on Thursday after the agency raised objections on six points including its dismissal, leading to a two-week review by a joint committee.

Since the passage last month, the agency said constantly that it would seek legal channels to turn around what it described as an unfair law, including petitioning the Constitutional Court.

Centres have been opened at Army camps across the country to accept complaints, following an order by Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, in his capacity as head of the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO).

Members of the public can lodge complaints at any of the centres against allegedly corrupt public officials anywhere in the country, Army spokesman Colonel Winthai Suwaree said yesterday.

Complaints can be submitted to the NCPO and the Army via PO Box 444 of Rajdamnoen Post Office, Bangkok 10200, and hotline 1299.

The complaints will be received by the NCPO’s Secretariat, which will categorise the complaints before they are forwarded to the Prime Minister’s Office for further action.

Complaints with convincing information and evidence will receive urgent consideration for possible action against the accused state officials, he added.

The project is overseen by Army chief General Chalermchai Sittisart, who is also the NCPO secretary-general.

The organic law on criminal procedures for political office holders stipulates that the statute of limitations does not cover the period of time indicted politicians flee the country after their cases are brought to court – a tactic adopted by many politicians charged with irregularities or malfeasance.

The law, required by the new Constitution, also allows the Supreme Court’s Criminal Division for Political Office Holders to hear cases against indicted politicians in absentia. However, there has been concern that this practice may go against international principles.

After three hours of deliberation, the bill yesterday sailed easily past the National Legislative Assembly (NLA) in the second and the third readings, with 176-0 votes in support and three abstentions.

The law is subject to review if any involved agencies or the Constitutional Court say it is unconstitutional, before it is forwarded to the Cabinet.

The bill is among 10 organic laws that need to be written to complement the new Constitution ahead of the next general election. It involves the court procedures for political office holders, and aims to address issues such as failure to bringing defenders to court or culprits to justice due to their political and economic power.

The vetting committee had written that cases would proceed in court regardless of the defender’s absence but raised questions on whether it was an infringement of rights.

NLA member Thani Onla-eiad said it has always been a practice in Thailand that the trial must take place with the defender present, in line with an international principle. The trial in absentia was only allowed on the defender’s request, according to the criminal procedures for the political office holders Act, he said.

The vetting committee’s chairman, Pattarasak Wannasang, explained that as the bill was especially for political office holders, it could be different from normal criminal laws.

The crimes committed by political office holders were more systemic and it was harder to accumulate evidence, the legislator said. In addition, the defenders were more likely to succeed in absconding, he said, resulting in the case being interrupted or paused and expired, leading to failure in bringing the culprit to justice. “Normal procedure with the presence of the defender could work with normal people, but not with those who are politically and economically powerful,” he said.

Pattarasak said that such a practice was not against international law. If the authority failed to bring the defender to court, it meant that the defender gives up their rights to stand trial. In addition, he pointed out that the defender could send a lawyer to represent their interests in court even though they were absent.

Somchai Sawaengkan, a spokesman for the vetting committee, said yesterday that the law was not intended for any politician in particular, as it would be enforced on political office holders of all levels and members of independent organisations as well.

Udom Rathamarit, a member of the Constitution Drafting Commission responsible for writing the original draft of the bill and who also sat on the vetting committee, said that the legislation should help create equality. It must find a way to get around people who abscond and reject justice, he said.

Besides allowing trials in absentia, the bill has other changes to criminal procedures against political office holders such as the adoption of the inquisitorial system, which encourages the court to investigate and find evidence against defenders rather than allowing them to prove their innocence.

KEY POINTS

Stipulations in the draft organic law on the procedure for criminal cases against political office holders.

– The count of a case’s statute of limitation stops when an indicted politician escapes, after the case is brought to court against him or her.

– The court may accept a case even if the indicted politician is not present before the court after being summoned.

– The court will issue an arrest warrant for a defendant who fails to show up after being summoned by the court.

– The court may start hearing the case against the defendant in absentia, three months after the person’s escape.

– Provisions under the organic law have no impact on cases already filed and can proceed as before the promulgation of the law.