Organization: Central Michigan University
Newsgroups: bit.listserv.seasia-l
Date:         Fri, 9 Oct 1992 09:00:54 EDT
From:         Elliott Parker <3ZLUFUR@CMUVM.CSV.CMICH.EDU>
Subject:      TH: Committee to reform Judicial Commission

=======================  Forwarded  Message  ===========================
Date: Thu, 8 Oct 92 23:44:08+0700
From: Kamol Hengkietisak <kamol@ipied.tu.ac.th>

THE Lower House yesterday agreed to set up a 42-man special
committee to study the structure of the Judicial Commission and
ways to rebuild the image of the judiciary after the damage
caused it by more than a year of internal squabbles.

The House decision was based on four separate urgent motions
proposed by the Democrat, Palang Dharma, Chart Thai and Chart
Pattana parties.

The parties called for the establishment of a special committee
to study the commission's structure following the House decision
Wednesday to dump an executive decree to restructure the
commission proposed by the previous Anand Panyarachun Government.

The special committee will comprise members from all political
parties as well as six outsiders who will include legal experts
and judges who opposed the decree's introduction by the Anand
Panyarachun Government.

Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai said it was the Lower House's choice
to nominate several dissident judges and their supporters to sit
on the special committee.

He said the action had nothing to do with the Government.

The Government will set up its own committee to study the issue
and will accept proposals from the House special committee for
consideration only if it feels they are worthwhile.

Mr Chuan also said the Government would not pay any attention to
whether the House special committee came up with recommendations
which would allow the future Judicial Commission to exercise its
power to help politicians affected by the assets seizure order.

"If we are to be concerned with this, we may have to be concerned
with everything," he said.

The Premier said the Government would stress the new structure of
the Judicial Commission but not pay any interest to the
individuals appointed to help study the issue.

In another development eight elected members of the former 12-man
Judicial Commission have said they would be willing to resign to
make way for a new election, an informed judicial source said
yesterday.

After Parliament rejected the Judiciary Reform Decree, the source
said, the eight former commission members agreed among themselves
that they should quit to give the judges a chance to elect a new
commission.

The old commission was made up of 12 members -- eight elected and
four ex-officio. The commission created by the decree will have
28 members.

The eight include Supreme Court chief judge Pramarn Chansue, vice
president Kiang Boonperm, former presidents Prawit Kamparat,
Banyat Suchiva and Sophon Rattanakorn, former vice president
Surat Sri-anupan, chief judge Veerachai Sootsuwan, and former
Appeals Court chief justice Yongyuth Lerlop.

The source said a krathin tour to Kanchanaburi was also planned
for October 30 by dissident judges to "cleanse the judiciary of
bad luck."

Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai yesterday stressed the need to
reform the commission, but said judges would be allowed a say in
the restructure.

He said he would like the reforms to be acceptable to all
parties. He said a judiciary reform bill will likely be submitted
to Parliament after he presents the Government's policy statement
in Parliament.

Asked if he is afraid of being "influenced" by certain commission
members who would be invited to consider the reforms, Mr Chuan
said he was not, and that he is duty-bound to solve the problem.

"I sympathise with the former government for not being able to
solve this problem. It is our duty to carry on the task," he
said.

He doesn't believe there is a powerful clique in the Justice
Ministry, "but personal popularity is another matter," he said.
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