The Associated Press
Published: July 15, 2008
BANGKOK, Thailand: Protesters in Thailand launched impeachment proceedings against the government Tuesday for allegedly losing disputed territory to neighboring Cambodia.
The protesters, led by the People's Alliance for Democracy, have staged daily demonstrations for nearly two months against Prime Minister Samak Sudaravej. They claim he is a proxy of Thaksin Shinawatra, whom the military ousted in a 2006 coup.
Samak denies this and says the protesters are trying to undermine his democratically elected government.
The alliance recently latched onto the volatile issue of disputed territory near Cambodia's ancient Preah Vihear temple as a means of intensifying its attack on Samak's six-party coalition government.
Opponents say the government supported Cambodia's application for UNESCO World Heritage Site status for the temple, thus undermining Thailand's claim to an area near the 11th century Hindu-influenced monument.
Tensions over the issue escalated Tuesday when Cambodia said Thai soldiers had entered its territory near the temple. Thailand denied the charge, saying the soldiers were on Thai land.
The Thai Constitution states that Thai citizens have the right to initiate impeachment of a government if they can produce the signatures of at least 20,000 eligible voters. The alliance says it has gathered more than 40,000 signatures calling for Samak's government to be impeached.
The speaker of the Senate, the upper house of Parliament, must first verify the signatures then send the petition to the National Counter Corruption Commission for investigation before the Senate can proceed with a debate and vote.
"The ministers of the Samak Sundaravej government have violated the Constitution, which resulted in the country losing some territory, sovereignty and dignity," said Chamlong Srimuang, a key leader of the protest alliance.
Vichienchot Sukchokrat, the government spokesman, declined to comment on the impeachment bid, but said the government was "ready to prove that (its) actions did not compromise the country's sovereignty" in the dispute with Cambodia.
Chamlong also led street demonstrations that climaxed with the coup that toppled Thaksin in 2006. The former prime minister returned from exile earlier this year to face a slew of court cases related to alleged corruption and abuse of power during his term in office.
Opponents say Thaksin is a key, behind-the-scenes power broker in the Samak government, despite his being banned from politics.
Published: July 15, 2008
BANGKOK, Thailand: Protesters in Thailand launched impeachment proceedings against the government Tuesday for allegedly losing disputed territory to neighboring Cambodia.
The protesters, led by the People's Alliance for Democracy, have staged daily demonstrations for nearly two months against Prime Minister Samak Sudaravej. They claim he is a proxy of Thaksin Shinawatra, whom the military ousted in a 2006 coup.
Samak denies this and says the protesters are trying to undermine his democratically elected government.
The alliance recently latched onto the volatile issue of disputed territory near Cambodia's ancient Preah Vihear temple as a means of intensifying its attack on Samak's six-party coalition government.
Opponents say the government supported Cambodia's application for UNESCO World Heritage Site status for the temple, thus undermining Thailand's claim to an area near the 11th century Hindu-influenced monument.
Tensions over the issue escalated Tuesday when Cambodia said Thai soldiers had entered its territory near the temple. Thailand denied the charge, saying the soldiers were on Thai land.
The Thai Constitution states that Thai citizens have the right to initiate impeachment of a government if they can produce the signatures of at least 20,000 eligible voters. The alliance says it has gathered more than 40,000 signatures calling for Samak's government to be impeached.
The speaker of the Senate, the upper house of Parliament, must first verify the signatures then send the petition to the National Counter Corruption Commission for investigation before the Senate can proceed with a debate and vote.
"The ministers of the Samak Sundaravej government have violated the Constitution, which resulted in the country losing some territory, sovereignty and dignity," said Chamlong Srimuang, a key leader of the protest alliance.
Vichienchot Sukchokrat, the government spokesman, declined to comment on the impeachment bid, but said the government was "ready to prove that (its) actions did not compromise the country's sovereignty" in the dispute with Cambodia.
Chamlong also led street demonstrations that climaxed with the coup that toppled Thaksin in 2006. The former prime minister returned from exile earlier this year to face a slew of court cases related to alleged corruption and abuse of power during his term in office.
Opponents say Thaksin is a key, behind-the-scenes power broker in the Samak government, despite his being banned from politics.
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