In Shift, Thai General Issues Warning to Protesters
By THOMAS FULLER
The head of Thailand’s army, after months of neutrality, tells government opponents to “compose yourselves.”
Thailand's Leader Accuses Critical Panel of Appearing Biased
Updated Feb. 20, 2014 9:19 a.m. ET
Thai Prime Minister Yingluck says she is innocent
against corruption charges despite her rice subsidy program paying local
farmers at 50% above market rates. The WSJ's Warangkana Chomchuen has
the details.
BANGKOK—Embattled Thai Prime Minister
Yingluck Shinawatra
fought back on Thursday, accusing the anticorruption agency alleging she mismanaged a multibillion-dollar rice subsidy of appearing biased and in a rush to judgment.
"If
there is real justice and if there is no hidden agenda, the [agency]
shouldn't finalize my case in a rushed manner…that will play into the
hands of those who want to overthrow the government," she said in a
posting on her official Facebook page.
Ms. Yingluck's comment was one of her
most assertive in recent weeks against opponents who have pummeled her
with challenges in the streets and courts, while her power to counter
them has been curtailed. Protesters have pushed Ms. Yingluck to dissolve
Parliament, leaving her to function in a caretaker capacity.
Ms.
Yingluck warned that the actions of the National Anti-Corruption
Commission so far put it at risk of being seen as siding with her
opponents. The panel, which has powers to launch impeachment or criminal
trials against politicians, is entrusted to maintain impartiality.
The agency's spokesman didn't return calls seeking comments.
Ms.
Yingluck said the anticorruption panel spent three weeks on the
investigation, too little time from her perspective while similar
complaints against the previous administration were still pending.
The
anticorruption panel said on Tuesday it intended to formally charge Ms.
Yingluck for failing to prevent massive financial losses to the state
that stem from her flagship rice subsidy. Ms. Yingluck maintained that
she was innocent.
Ms. Yingluck was
summoned to hear charges on Feb. 27 and defend herself. If found guilty,
she would be suspended from duty and sent to an impeachment trial in
the Senate.
On Thursday, Ms. Yingluck
reiterated that she was innocent and the program was aimed at helping
farmers, key supporters of her Pheu Thai Party. The government has been
buying rice from local farmers at up to 50% above market rates.
In another blow to Ms. Yingluck, Thailand's Civil Court on Wednesday stripped the government of power under the state of emergency
to quell monthslong antigovernment protests. The court left the
emergency decree in place, but barred the authorities from using force
to disperse the demonstrators, dismantle protest sites and block
protesters to use certain areas, determining it would violate the
protesters' right to rally.
The
government's special security command said in a statement Thursday that
it would appeal the civil court's decision, which it said has left the
country without adequate law enforcement to deal with the unrest.
Judges
cited a previous ruling by the country's Constitutional Court that the
protests have been peaceful and ordered that demonstrators' rights be
protected.
The ruling has raised eyebrows after footage of clashes between riot police and protesters
on Tuesday showed that some of the protesters were armed with guns.
Four protesters and a policeman were killed. At least 20 riot police
suffered injuries from grenade explosions.
Emboldened
by the court's ruling, hundreds of protesters rallied Thursday outside
offices of the Shinawatra's property development company to pile
pressure on Ms. Yingluck, who served as a chairwoman before taking
office. Though declining in number, protest leader
Suthep Thaugsuban
and his followers vow to keep up their fight to overthrow Ms.
Yingluck's government and root out what they see as the influence of her
older brother, former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who was ousted
by a military coup in 2006.
Ms.
Yingluck has been struggling to return to power after she dissolved
Parliament in December. Snap elections on Feb. 2, which her Pheu Thai
Party is expected to win, were partly disrupted by protesters.
The
country's independent body to organize the vote has been slow to hold a
rerun vote in the disrupted areas against the government's wish to hold
it sooner. The Election Commission's most outspoken commissioner has
also threatened to seek a court's ruling whenever a disagreement arises
between the agency and the government.
According
to the agency's estimate, a new government may not be formed until at
least May. Until then, Ms. Yingluck's caretaker government has limited
power. Any major decisions, such as spending approval, are subject to a
final green light by the Election Commission.
泰國政治動盪衝擊外國汽車製造商
泰國政治僵局正在衝擊外國汽車製造商的銷售，
中国取消购买120万吨泰国大米
泰国商业部长称，
泰國大米計劃——作繭自縛的遊戲
企圖控制市場往往會招致市場的報復。泰國總理英拉(Yingluck Shinawatra) 的大米計畫?
企圖控制國際大米價格的泰國已經遭到報復，喪失了世界大米最大出口國的地位，總理英拉(Yingluck Shinawatra)因涉嫌失職面臨調查，成千上萬個像Thongma一樣的農民深陷債務泥淖。
Thongma的悲劇是從兩年半以前開始的，當時英拉政府推出了農業補貼政策，承諾以大約每噸18,000泰銖（合550美元）的價格從農民手中收購大米，較市場行價高出50%左右。
英拉和她的顧問們認為，通過將這些從農民手中買來的大米囤積起來，他們能推高國際市場的大米價格。
他們的根據是，全球用於進出口貿易的大米只佔大米總產量的7%，這意味只要一個地方的大米出口中斷，國際價格必將受到重大影響。2008年，印度和越南等 國因為擔心國內米價不斷上漲而暫時限制了大米出口，導致國際米價從每噸300美元飆升至1,200美元，在海地和菲律賓等國引發了糧食騷亂。http://chinese.wsj.com/big5/20140206/bas134505.asp?source=whatnews
印度政府正就華為公司涉嫌竊聽印度國有電話公司Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd.一事展開調查。
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