Politicians, labor unionists, academics, and others urged the Thai junta to hold public referendum on the new constitutional draft, pointing out that people have the highest authority to determine the constitution.
According to a facebook page ‘Public referendum group’, over 150 leading academics, activists, and others such as Nidhi Eowseewong and Piyabutr Sangkanongul, a leading political scientist and a law scholar from Thammasat University, Chaturon Chaisang, the former Education Minister of Pheu Thai Party, and Pen-Ek Ratanaruang, a well known director, on Sunday signed a joint statement titled ‘[We] call for a democratic public referendum’.
The statement demands that the Thai junta must hold a public referendum on the new constitutional draft before its enactment and that if the public does not approve the draft, it should be redrafted by elected parliament members.
“If the National Reform Council (NRC) approved the new constitutional draft, the public referendum should be held within 30 days,” said the statement. “The election for the new Constitutional Drafting Committee (CDC) [to redraft the bill] should be held within 45 days after the referendum, if the draft is not approved by the public.”
The new constitutional draft must be redrafted within 90 days by the elected CDC members if the majority of people voted against the draft.
The statement also suggests that after the new constitutional draft is approved through the referendum, the national election shall be held within 30 days.
