A royally sponsored bathing rite will be performed today, along with funeral rites at Thepsirintharawas Temple from today to Saturday.

Kosit served many important roles in the country, including as deputy secretary-general of the National Economic and Social Development Board and also minister of the Finance and Industry ministries.

PRIME MINISTER Prayut Chan-o-cha swatted away critics yesterday, vowing to stay in power “despite how much you hate me”, as tensions simmer before a referendum which the military says will pave the way for elections.

Prayut seized power two years ago when he was Army chief, promising to heal a bitter decade-long political divide. But his regime has curbed free speech, outlawed political activities and penned a new charter designed to entrench the military’s role in government.

“I won’t go anywhere as long as the country is not at peace and in order. I won’t leave, despite how much you hate me,” Prayut, who is renowned for his often irate outbursts, said in remarks to a forum in Bangkok.

He also defended the sweeping powers granted to him as junta chief, saying “there are still some politicians expressing their opinions”.

The junta has promised elections will go ahead in 2017, but has not clarified what will happen if the charter is rejected in the referendum, raising fears the timetable will slip once again.

Prayut‘s speech came after the junta appears to be loosening its grip by ending travel restrictions on many former politicians and promising to move its “attitude adjustment” sessions – a common punishment for critics – from military camps to government buildings and police stations.

A source quoted Army chief General Thirachai Nakwanich as saying yesterday that Prayut wants the attitude adjustment sessions to be described as “talks to seek cooperation and understanding”.

The source added that this change came after there were a few incidents of misunderstanding between concerned parties and the public.

Citing the land dispute in Phuket between locals and the landowner, he pointed out that though the land was bought legally, some long-time residents refused to leave, which caused conflicts.

The National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) summoned both parties for talks at the military camp, but this move was widely criticised because even the victims were summoned for a session with the military.

“Actually we only wanted the dispute to be settled,” the source said.

The source also added that the NCPO would consider the option of soldiers wearing plainclothes when holding such talks with the summoned parties.

The NCPO held its first “attitude adjustment” session outside a military camp yesterday, when it held talks with environmentalist Srisuwan Janya at the Lak Si district office in Bangkok.

President of the Stop Global Warming Association, Srisuwan had posted a message on his Facebook page marking his lucky encounter with the military. In response, some soldiers stopped by at his house and he was sent a summons from the commander of the Infantry Regiment 2, 11th Infantry Guard Department, for an attitude-adjustment session.

“This morning, soldiers stopped by for a visit again. We are doing our duty with the same goal for the benefit and happiness of the people,” Srisuwan said in a Facebook post.

He added that he too met the military top brass at the Lak Si district office at 11am yesterday.

The environmentalist added that he had initially been asked to meet the military on Monday at a military camp, before the NCPO announced the new, relaxed rules.

So the appointment was held at the district office.

Srisuwan suspects that he was summoned because of his call for transparency over the government’s real-estate project – Ban Man Kong. He said he believed the summons for him would mark the first attitude-adjustment outside military camps.

Separately, the lifting of the travel ban on politicians was published in the Royal Gazette on Tuesday, taking immediate effect.

The order was signed on Tuesday by Prayut in his capacity as NCPO chief.

The new order annulled previous NCPO orders that banned several politicians who had earlier been summoned for attitude adjustment sessions from leaving the Kingdom.

Thanat Thanawatcharanon, known by his stage name Tom Dundee, gave waiting media the thumbs-up as he arrived at court yesterday, wearing an orange prison uniform.

“The sentence is much longer than we expected,” his lawyer Saovalux Po-Ngam said.

“We can lodge an appeal within a month but have to discuss first whether we will. In my personal view, the sentences are too long.”

Thanat, who has been in prison since his arrest in 2014, had previously denied the charges but confessed in a sudden about-face in court on Monday.

Confessing to a lese majeste crime is routine practice in Thailand, where the accused often plead guilty in hopes of a more lenient sentence.

Prosecutors said Thanat made defamatory comments against the monarchy during a 2013 speech to “red shirt” activists at apolitical rally in Bangkok.

He was arrested and charged in July 2014, following pressure by an ultra royalist group on Department of Special Investigation to prosecute Thanat.

“You have to understand that people are criticising us, saying that nothing tangible has been done in relation to reform,” Prayut said to the NRSA committee, which visited Parliament yesterday to introduce the assembly’s online campaign.

“The previous governments did not work on reform. Please understand this and let us know what else you want done. Both of us are being blamed because we do not have mutual understanding,” the premier said.

The NRSA’s National Reform Voice Committee yesterday launched the new website entitled “Reform Voice: Voice for Change”, which aims to provide the public with information about the progress of reforms and outcomes summarised in an easy-to-understand style.

“We wish to tell the public that the NRSA is actually doing something,” said the committee’s chairperson Tuenjai Sinthuvnik, who is also former deputy director of the government’s PR Department. “From now on, we will keep the public updated via this website.”

The website, www. reformvoice.com, is in both Thai and English and separate from the NRSA’s original platform on the official parliamentary website, where official documents of meeting schedules and minutes are published.

Tuenjai said the new website provides content in a more casual manner for people. Apart from publishing information about the NRSA’s efforts, the site will also provide updates about reforms pushed by the six deputy prime ministers.

She added that the website is linked with media outlets such as Channel 8, which will circulate live NRSA reports via traditional and online broadcasts. It is also connected with other government websites such as those run by the Prime Minister’s Office and the PR Department.

Although the website was created by the junta-appointed NRSA, it also includes a link to Prachamati – a website operated by alternative media and civil society organisations that often conducts polls questioning the government’s performance.

Tuenjai said the NRSA website intends to promote well-rounded information to the public, so promoting Prachamati should not cause concern.

The National Reform Voice Committee was established three weeks ago directly under the authority of NRSA president Captain Tinnapan Nakata. The panel includes 20 members, most of whom are veteran civil servants and businessmen who are volunteering for the project.

Tuenjai said she spent her own money to register the web domain, adding that the website will be kept online after the NRSA is disbanded to track other mechanisms to advance the reform agenda in the future.

She said she expects the website to attract at least 100,000 visitors. She is running a promotional campaign giving out free T-shirts, which have been blessed by the well-known monk Phra Phrom Wachirayan, displaying messages about reform to people who post comments on the website with the hashtag #reformvoice.

Later yesterday, Tuenjai also discussed the launch of the website with NRSA vice president Alongkorn Ponlaboot.