The Wall Street Journal-20080119-Politics - Economics- Court Clears Way for Thai Party to Govern
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Politics & Economics: Court Clears Way for Thai Party to Govern
BANGKOK, Thailand -- Allies of ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra took an important step toward forming Thailand's next government after the country's Supreme Court said it had no authority to rule on a case challenging the legality of the People Power Party, which won a plurality of seats in last month's parliamentary elections.
The court's decision removes legal obstacles to the pro-Thaksin PPP's forming Thailand's new government in a coalition with several other parties. It also gives a boost to Mr. Thaksin in his political struggle with Thailand's armed forces, who overthrew him in a coup in September 2006. Since then, the populist telecommunications billionaire has been living in exile.
Mr. Thaksin has previously said he plans to return to Thailand in the coming months to fight a series of corruption cases against him. But he said he isn't seeking to return to power as prime minister.
With Thailand's economy sputtering after 15 months of military rule, Friday's Supreme Court decision could provide an economic lift for the country, one of Southeast Asia's main engines of growth and an important manufacturing hub for companies such as Toyota Motor Corp. and Ford Motor Co.
Many stock-market investors and analysts believe the formation of a new democratic government will bolster consumer sentiment in Thailand and offset the threat of slowing exports, especially if the U.S. and other major overseas markets slip into recession.
The benchmark Stock Exchange of Thailand Index has declined about 3% since the Dec. 23 election, bucking a historical trend that generally sees Thai stock prices rise ahead of the formation of a new government.
The newly elected Parliament is scheduled to open on Monday; on Saturday, the PPP plans to announce the composition of a coalition government, which it says will control about 320 of the 480 seats in Parliament.
Party officials have said the PPP will pursue the same kind of pro- growth economic policies that characterized Mr. Thaksin's five-year tenure as prime minister.
Political analysts say the Supreme Court's decision not to disqualify the PPP could ease some of the political tension that has been building for the past month.
Giles Ungpakorn, a political-science professor at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, said the path to PPP forming the core of a new government was now clear. "The Supreme Court made a logical decision. It would have created an immense crisis of democracy if they had ruled against the PPP," Mr. Giles said. "The PPP had the democratic right to form the next government, whether one likes it or not."
Support for Mr. Thaksin is still strong in parts of Thailand, especially in northern rural areas, despite the 2006 coup. That is thanks mainly to his policies designed to reduce the economic gap between the impoverished north and the more prosperous regions surrounding the capital, Bangkok.
Mr. Thaksin used this rural support base to launch himself into the prime minister's job in 2001. He won two subsequent general elections before being overthrown by army generals, who accused him of corruption and of insulting Thailand's widely revered 80-year-old monarch, King Bhumibol Adulyadej.
Since the coup, Mr. Thaksin has been living in exile in England, where he bought the professional soccer club Manchester City -- a move that further enhanced his popularity in soccer-mad Thailand. He has said he intends to return to Thailand in April.
The case against the PPP was brought before the Supreme Court by a former member of the rival Democrat Party, which won the second- largest number of seats in last month's election. Chaiwat Sinsuwong argued that the PPP's leadership and the party itself are nominees of Mr. Thaksin and that the party should, therefore, be disbanded.
A military-appointed constitutional tribunal last year banned Mr. Thaksin and 110 key supporters from politics for five years and ordered the dissolution of his former party, called Thai Rak Thai, or Thais Love Thais.
Several other legal cases have been brought against the PPP, ranging from alleged voter fraud to distributing campaign DVDs featuring Mr. Thaksin to win over voters.
The PPP is led by Samak Sundaravej, who is enmeshed in a bitter feud with King Bhumibol's powerful senior adviser, retired Gen. Prem Tinsulanonda.
Mr. Samak openly referred to himself as Mr. Thaksin's proxy throughout December's election campaign. He is now likely to become Thailand's next prime minister.
