Thailand has suffered ‘judicial coup’: opposition leader

Thailand has suffered ‘judicial coup’: opposition leader
Move Forward Party’ new leader Natthaphong Ruengpanyawut said that reform was needed for Thailand to progress. (AFP)
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Updated 28 August 2024
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Thailand has suffered ‘judicial coup’: opposition leader

Thailand has suffered ‘judicial coup’: opposition leader
  • The Constitutional Court disbanded the progressive Move Forward Party and banned its leaders from politics
  • It also threw then-premier Srettha Thavisin out of office for ethics violations

BANGKOK: Thailand’s main opposition leader on Wednesday accused judges of mounting a “judicial coup,” after court rulings that ousted the kingdom’s prime minister and dissolved its most popular party.
The Constitutional Court earlier this month disbanded the progressive Move Forward Party (MFP) and banned its leaders from politics, before throwing then-premier Srettha Thavisin out of office for ethics violations.
MFP, which won most seats in last year’s election, swiftly relaunched as the People’s Party (PP), and its new leader Natthaphong Ruengpanyawut said that reform was needed for the kingdom to progress.
“The Constitutional Court has ousted the PM, and also ousted the ex-executives of MFP — we call it a judicial coup,” he said in an interview at the Thai parliament.
“A power that is not accountable to the people overruled the executive branch and legislative branch which are elected by the people. This is a sign that Thailand is not a full democracy,” he added.
Natthaphong, a 37-year-old tech entrepreneur, said his party will push for reforms to limit the Constitutional Court’s powers to vet legislation — removing its ability to dissolve political parties or sack prime ministers.
Thailand’s politics over the past two decades has been scarred by a bitter struggle between populist progressive parties and the kingdom’s pro-military, pro-royalist elite.
MFP’s popular leader Pita Limjaroenrat led the party to a surprise first place in last year’s election promising to reform Thailand’s tough lese-majeste laws, reduce military influence and tackle powerful business monopolies.
But he was blocked from forming a government by senators appointed by the last military junta, ostensibly because of concerns about the party’s plans for the royal insult laws.
A court later ruled that the proposals amounted to an attempt to overthrow the constitutional monarchy, and on August 7, MFP became the latest in a series of Thai political parties to be dissolved by judges.
The European Union, United States, United Nations and human rights groups blasted the court’s dissolution of MFP, with the EU saying it harmed democratic openness in Thailand.
Natthaphong urged the international community not to stint in its criticism when Thailand breached democratic norms, saying the kingdom “deserves to know when it’s doing wrong.”
Natthaphong said the new party would talk to conservative groups and courts to try to convince them about its plans for reform.
But he insisted PP would not back down on the substance, even on the sensitive subject of royal defamation laws — known in Thailand as 112 from the relevant section of the criminal code.
“The only thing we are going to change is the methodology or the approach,” he said.
“We are not going to change the principle. The principle is... to accept that the 112 law has a problem.”
Thailand has some of the world’s strictest lese-majeste laws shielding King Maha Vajiralongkorn from criticism, and human rights groups say they have been abused in recent years to stifle legitimate debate.
PP is targeting a clear majority in the next general election, due in mid-2027, but there are inevitably fears that the party will suffer more judicial intervention or be blocked from taking office again.
In either event, Natthaphong said the party would not encourage its supporters to take to the streets for the kind of mass protests seen repeatedly in Thailand in the last 20 years.
“I think that the only reason our MPs or the PP would engage with street protests would be if Thailand has its next coup d’etat,” he said.
“We are going to move on from street protests because we are not going to give a reason to the army to do a coup d’etat.”


Russia rules out nuclear talks with US given its stance on NATO expansion

Updated 36 sec ago
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Russia rules out nuclear talks with US given its stance on NATO expansion

Russia rules out nuclear talks with US given its stance on NATO expansion
“We see no point in dialogue with Washington without respect for Russia’s fundamental interests,” Zakharova said

MOSCOW: Russia has dismissed the possibility of nuclear talks with the United States citing Washington’s stance on NATO expansion, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Wednesday.
“We see no point in dialogue with Washington without respect for Russia’s fundamental interests. First of all, this is the problem of NATO’s expansion into the post-soviet space, which poses threats to common security,” Zakharova said.
On Tuesday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Russia will not discuss signing a new treaty with the United States to replace an agreement limiting each side’s strategic nuclear weapons that expires in 2026 as it needs to be broadened and expanded to cover other states.

Ukraine probes allegations Russia killed 16 POWs

Ukraine probes allegations Russia killed 16 POWs
Updated 53 min 52 sec ago
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Ukraine probes allegations Russia killed 16 POWs

Ukraine probes allegations Russia killed 16 POWs
  • “This is the largest known case of the execution of Ukrainian prisoners of war on the front line,” Ukrainian prosecutor general Andriy Kostin said
  • The probe — into allegations of the “violation of laws and customs of war” and “premeditated murder” — was launched based on videos shared on social media

KYIV: Ukraine is probing allegations the Russian army shot dead 16 prisoners of war near the eastern city of Pokrovsk, Kyiv’s prosecutor general said Tuesday.
Russia and Ukraine have repeatedly accused each other of killing POWs since Moscow launched its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
“This is the largest known case of the execution of Ukrainian prisoners of war on the front line,” Ukrainian prosecutor general Andriy Kostin said in a statement.
Kostin said the alleged incident showed that the “killing and torture of prisoners is not an accident but a deliberate policy of the Russian military and political leadership.”
The probe — into allegations of the “violation of laws and customs of war” and “premeditated murder” — was launched based on videos shared on social media that appeared to show the execution of Ukrainian soldiers, Kostin said.
Video images captured by a drone showed captured Ukrainian troops, under Russian control, coming out from a wooded area and lining up, Ukraine’s prosecutors said.
The Russians then “deliberately opened fire with deadly force,” Kyiv said.
Those still showing “signs of life” were then “finished off at close range with automatic fire.”
AFP could not independently verify the reports.
The Ukrainian prosecutor’s office said Tuesday that “measures are currently being taken to verify the published material.”
The alleged incident was reported to have taken place close to the villages of Sukhiyi Yar and Mykolayivka near Pokrovsk, a strategic hub that Russia is trying to capture.
It is the latest allegation of POWs being killed during the conflict.
In March 2023 a video showing an imprisoned Ukrainian soldier shouting “Glory to Ukraine!” moments before being executed by shooting squad, went viral.
The UN has documented “numerous violations of international humanitarian law against prisoners of war, including cases of summary execution of both Russian and Ukrainian POWs,” a spokeswoman for the UN Human Rights Office told AFP last year.


Philippines struggles to repatriate workers as Israel invades Lebanon

Philippines struggles to repatriate workers as Israel invades Lebanon
Updated 02 October 2024
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Philippines struggles to repatriate workers as Israel invades Lebanon

Philippines struggles to repatriate workers as Israel invades Lebanon
  • Dozens of Filipinos sought shelter at the Philippine government’s Migrant Workers Office in Beirut
  • Authorities in Manila seek charter flights, sea and land routes to evacuate nationals from Lebanon

MANILA: The Philippines is trying to arrange flights for hundreds of overseas Filipino workers in Beirut, the government said Wednesday, as it struggles to bring them to safety in the wake of Israel’s invasion of Lebanon.

More than 11,000 Filipinos are living and working in Lebanon, which has faced a series of Israeli attacks that began in mid-September, with pagers exploding at shops and hospitals around the country, followed by relentless bombing targeting densely populated areas.

Israeli forces have killed more than 1,000 people across Lebanon and wounded nearly 3,000, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry.

The UN estimates that more than a million people across the country have been displaced by the strikes, with the numbers expected to rise as Israel also launched its ground invasion of Lebanon on Tuesday.

Dozens of Filipinos in Beirut have sought shelter at the Philippine government’s Migrant Workers Office. As its vicinity was bombed by Israeli forces over the weekend, they have since been sheltered in a hotel in Beit Mery, a town overlooking Beirut, as they await repatriation.

“There are presently 101 Filipino workers in our shelters ready to be repatriated,” DMW Undersecretary Bernard Olalia told reporters in Manila.

“The challenge is that we do not have flights … We’re talking to some airline companies so that the chartered flights will be able to accommodate for example no less than 300 overseas Filipino workers from Beirut.”

Olalia said that while the government was facing several challenges, including securing landing rights for chartered flights, other options were also being considered in case the situation escalated.

“The DMW is also studying the possibility of other routes. Apart from the air route, we will be assessing the sea and the land route, should … the situation there worsen,” he said.

“We have men on the ground. They work around the clock. And we augmented our staff both in Lebanon (and) nearby posts to be able to provide (the) safest route to evacuate and ultimately to facilitate the repatriation of our OFWs.”

Migrante International, a global alliance of overseas Filipino workers, told Arab News on Tuesday that the Philippine nationals it has been in touch with have expressed “urgent concern” for their safety.

“They are worried about the bombings and the explosions coming closer to their homes, in their communities. So, they are worried for their safety, they are worried for their life and not being able to go back home safely to their families,” Migrante International President Joanna Concepcion said.

“They feel there is nowhere safe anymore. They feel that Israel can target anywhere, anytime.”


UN: More than 700,000 displaced in Haiti, half of them children

UN: More than 700,000 displaced in Haiti, half of them children
Updated 02 October 2024
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UN: More than 700,000 displaced in Haiti, half of them children

UN: More than 700,000 displaced in Haiti, half of them children
  • One of the world’s poorest countries plunged into anarchy, with gangs taking over the capital
  • UN report says around 75 percent of those displaced were now sheltering in the country’s provinces

GENEVA: More than 700,000 people are now displaced from their homes in Haiti, more than half of whom are children, the United Nations said Wednesday, as gang violence ravages the country.
One of the world’s poorest countries has been plunged into anarchy, with gangs taking over the capital, Port-au-Prince, and the security and health systems collapsing.
The UN’s International Organization for Migration agency said that by early September, some 702,973 people were displaced in the Caribbean country.
“These latest figures show a 22 percent increase in the number of internally displaced people since June, highlighting the worsening humanitarian situation,” the IOM said.
The agency called for greater international attention on the crisis.
“The sharp rise in displacement underscores the urgent need for a sustained humanitarian response,” said Gregoire Goodstein, the IOM’s chief in Haiti.
“We call on the international community to step up its support for Haiti’s displaced populations and the host communities that continue to show remarkable resilience in the face of these challenges.”
The report said around 75 percent of those displaced were now sheltering in the country’s provinces.
The remainder are in Port-au-Prince “where the situation remains precarious and unpredictable,” said the IOM, with people often living in overcrowded sites, with little to no access to basic services.
The agency said 83 percent of displaced people were being hosted by families.
“The strain on resources is immense, with the majority of host households reporting significant difficulties, including food shortages, overwhelmed health care facilities, and a lack of essential supplies on local markets,” it said.
“It is crucial that efforts to restore stability and security across the country continue, alongside humanitarian aid to alleviate the immediate suffering of those affected.”
On Friday, the UN human rights office said more than 3,600 people had been killed this year in “senseless” gang violence in Haiti.
In October 2023, the UN Security Council approved sending a multinational stabilization force, led by Kenya, to assist the Haitian police.
The Security Council on Monday extended its authorization of the multinational policing mission in crime-ravaged Haiti, but without any call to transform it into a UN peacekeeping mission, as floated by Port-au-Prince.


Israel declares UN chief ‘persona non grata’ over Iran attack response: foreign ministry

Israel declares UN chief ‘persona non grata’ over Iran attack response: foreign ministry
Updated 02 October 2024
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Israel declares UN chief ‘persona non grata’ over Iran attack response: foreign ministry

Israel declares UN chief ‘persona non grata’ over Iran attack response: foreign ministry

JERUSALEM: Israel declared UN chief Antonio Guterres “persona non grata” on Wednesday, accusing him of failing to specifically condemn Iran’s missile attack on Israel.
“Anyone who cannot unequivocally condemn Iran’s heinous attack on Israel does not deserve to step foot on Israeli soil,” said Foreign Minister Israel Katz in a statement.
“This is an anti-Israel Secretary-General who lends support to terrorists, rapists, and murderers,” he said.
Katz added that Guterres, who he said supported the “murderers of Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, and now Iran, the mothership of global terror, will be remembered as a stain on the history of the UN for generations to come.”
Following Iran’s missile attack on Israel late Tuesday, Guterres condemned the “broadening conflict in the Middle East,” slamming “escalation after escalation” in the region.
“This must stop. We absolutely need a ceasefire,” said Guterres.
Israel has been a harsh critic of the UN, with ties between the state and the international body souring even more after the October 7 Hamas attacks.
Guterres has repeatedly called for a ceasefire to halt the fighting in both Gaza and Lebanon.