Thailand totters back on track, uncertainty remains
http://www.huanqiu.com 来源：新华网 进入论坛 2007-12-17 11:02
BANGKOK, Dec. 16 (Xinhua) -- As the year 2007 draws near the end, political parties in Thailand are gearing up with the last campaigning efforts for the general election on Dec. 23.
Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont, who came to power after the Sept. 19 coup, seemed determined to hold the elections as scheduled in order to keep the interim government's promise to "restore democracy" by the end of the year.
However, the cloud of political uncertainties is still lingering, as the nation is still deeply divided under the spell of ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, which makes observers believe that a possible victory by the "old power clique" under a new banner in the elections would spring a new round of confrontation.
THE JUNTA'S MIXED ACCOMPLISHMENT
When the military, led by then Army Chief Sonthi Boonyaratkalin, launched the coup on Sept. 19, 2006 to oust Thaksin, they claimed it was aimed to bring the country out of political chaos, rampant corruption and serious division brought by the Thaksin administration.
In 2007, the junta made a series of attempts to remove the trait of the former regime and to justify their efforts against it.
Junta-appointed investigation agencies led by the Assets Examination Committee have ordered a freeze of some 1.6 billion U.S. dollars worth of Thaksin family's assets, and formal arrest warrants were issued for the former prime minister and his wife on charges of corruption and abuse of power.
In August, the junta-appointed National Legislative Assembly (NLA) and the interim government pushed through a new constitution in a national referendum, which threw the elections into gear.
Gen. Anupong Paochinda, who played a key role in the coup as then Assistant Army Chief and succeeded Sonthi as the Army chief after the latter's retirement, has promised there would be no new coup to oust an elected government.
However, doubts are cast over the military top brass' willingness to stay out of politics in future.
