Thailand

New Prime Minister elected, as Asean charter goes into effect

Article published on the 2008-12-15 Latest update 2008-12-15 14:26 TU

Abhisit Vejjajiva
(Photo: AFP)

Opposition leader Abhisit Vejjajiva was elected as Thailand’s new Prime Minister Monday. Abhisit said he will not speak about policies until he is officially installed, likely Tuesday, but he did say he wants to host a postponed Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) summit in February. This comes as the association’s new charter comes into force, transforming it into a legal entity.

“I will not be speaking about my political stance before the royal command is issued,” said Abhisit, 44, the leader of the opposition Democrat Party, after he was elected in parliament. An official decree from the king installing him officially is expected Tuesday.

He rallied together a coalition of several small parties from the previous ruling coalition, and won 235 votes in parliament. The former ruling party, which had regrouped under a new name after it was dissolved by the Constitutional Court, put forward Pracha Promonog, who received 198 votes.

“The defectors from the former government coalition consist mostly of people from the northeast,” Kraisak Choonhavan, deputy leader of the Democrat Party, told RFI.

"The defecting MPs were not forced to join us at gunpoint,” he continued. “They honestly think that we are a solution, and many of them I know personally, had wanted to defect for some time, but were waiting for the moment, because they feel that continuing a partnership with Mr Thaksin and his surrogates… is bound to fail over and over again.”

British-born and Oxford-educated, Abhisit tried to turn the focus of his campaign away from former premier Thaksin Shinawatra, whom the previous government had supported.

He faces the job of rebuilding the country economically after months of anti-government protests and a week-long shut-down of the capital’s two airports.

Kraisak said the biggest task facing the new government is to address food prices.

“Agricultural prices have declined drastically, and we need to address that immediately,” he said. “There are not only people protesting in the streets in Bangkok but people are taking actions in the countryside because of declining prices.”

Abhisit will lead the country as it is chair of the 10-member Asean group, whose summit planned for earlier in December, had to be postponed because of the airport blockade.

“I will push to move the Asean summit to February,” announced Abhisit.

Asean was transformed Monday into a legal body as its new charter came into force, 30 days after Thailand ratified it, the last country to do so.

“This is a momentous development when Asean is consolidating, integrating and transforming itself into a community,” said Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

The new charter is the first step towards a European Union-style community. The structure for a rights body will be discussed at a meeting of foreign ministers in July.