1st LD Writethru: Article 44 of interim charter can be constructive: Thai deputy PM

Article 44 of Thailand's interim constitution, under which an order has been issued to replace the martial law, can be constructive, Thai deputy prime minister said on Tuesday.

Article 44 can be used to solve thorny problems that may take a long time or "quite impossible" for normal practices to tackle, Wissanu Krea-Ngam told a press conference.

The National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO), which staged a coup on May 22, 2014 to oust the Yingluck Shinawatra's government, will exercise the constitutional power authorized by Article 44 to issue other orders to cope with problems related to civil aviation, agriculture and special economic zones, Wissanu said.

Article 44 stipulates that for the sake of reform, promotion of unity and reconciliation, national security, monarchy, economy or state administration, the NCPO head, with the consent of the NCPO, may issue any order or take any action with the legislative, executive or judicial sanctions. Such order, action and performances of anyone accordingly are legal and final.

On April 1, NCPO chief Prayut Chan-o-cha issued Order No. 3 with the authority granted by Article 44 to replace the martial law, which had been enforced since last May.

Article 44 is not a weapon that can be used under all circumstances, but "one must understand that we are now under an unusual situation," he stressed.

The use of Article 44 is not without precedent in Thai politics, Wissanu said, citing similar articles in five previous interim charters.

On why authorities chose not to invoke the emergency law and internal security law instead of Order No. 3, the deputy premier said prior to the coup, these two laws were applied to tackle the political crisis, but failed.

The military needs power, which is less than under the martial law but should be clearer than under the emergency law, "because some dangers or public disorder are sill anticipated," Wissanu emphasized.

Given anticipated troubles, the authorities still need some power to deal with crises in the wake of the revocation of the martial law, he noted.

Order No. 3 only applies to four types of offenses, including those against the monarchy, threatening to national security, involving weapons and violations of NCPO orders, according to the deputy prime minister.

"Peace and Order Maintenance Officers," who are military officers appointed by the NCPO chief to act according to Order No. 3, have power to summon, arrest, search, seize, enter into any place under some conditions, prohibit dissemination of information that disturbs national security, peace and order, as well as put the suspected person in custody for not more than seven days, Wissanu said. Endi