For the past four years, Thailand has been
overwhelmed by street demonstrations staged by various political
factions while police have found it difficult to maintain control over
the crowds without concrete laws to support their operations. The Public
Demonstration Bill is expected to be an effective tool to restore peace
and order in the kingdom.
Since the 2007 Constitution was promulgated, Thailand
has sustained extensive damages from political movements of various
groups, particularly the yellow-shirt People’s Alliance for Democracy
(PAD), which is responsible for the notorious besiegement of Don Mueang
and Suvarnabhumi Airports as well as the Government House, and the
red-shirt United Front of Democracy Against Dictatorship (UDD), which
took over Bangkok’s Ratchaprasong Intersection, intruded on
Chulalongkorn Hospital and launched a series of arson attacks in the
heart of the city.
Even though people have the rights to assemble
peacefully and without weapons as stipulated by Section 63 of the
Constitution, the allowed freedom is often exploited and cited by
protesters as an excuse for their prolonged demonstrations and
occupation of roads, which have caused great inconveniences to the
general public.
Based on the second paragraph of Section 63,
protesters cannot be deprived of such freedom unless a law is
specifically drafted to restrict their gathering for the public benefit.
Therefore, the Public Demonstration Bill was proposed by the National
Police Office to the Cabinet, which gave a green light to the bill on 4
May 2010 after it had been studied by the Office of the Council of
State. The bill was then forwarded to the House of Representatives and
was approved in principle in the first reading on 10 March 2011.
There are 39 sections under the Public Demonstration
Bill focusing on managing people’s rallies in public areas. Main points
of the bill are as follows:
Public gatherings must not obstruct entrances and
exits of important places, such as royal palaces, Parliament, Government
House, courts, government offices, airports, seaports, train stations,
transport terminals, hospitals, educational institutions, religious
places, embassies and consulates.
Rally organizers must inform the superintendent of
the local police station at least 72 hours in advance of their activity
with details on the date, time and location. The organizers must be
present at all times during the protest in order to ensure that the
situation is peaceful and that the activity is not prolonged beyond the
schedule.
If the assembly is deemed unlawful, police can seek a
court order for its immediate dissolution. If protesters refuse to
disband, the authorities can declare the area a special control zone and
set a deadline for the crowd to vacate the site. Anyone breaching the
given deadline is considered breaking the law and is subject to an
arrest.
As for punishments, those found causing
inconveniences to the public without prior notice to the police will
face a fine of not more than 1,000 THB. Any individual who persuades
others to join an unlawful gathering will be sentenced to a prison term
of not more than six months and/or a fine of not more than 10,000 THB.
Weapon possession during a protest is the most
serious violation. Those carrying improvised weapons will be given a
jail term of not more than one year and/or a fine of not more than
20,000 THB. Those found with heavy weaponry, such as guns and
explosives, will face up to five years in prison and/or a fine of up to
100,000 THB.
However, upon its enactment, the Public Demonstration Bill will not
have any retroactive effects. (NNT)
