Prime Minister’s Office Minister Paradorn Prissanananthakul has pledged to hold public forums on the two contentious Memorandums of Understanding (MoU) 43 and 44 with Cambodia, stating that the people deserve a clear understanding of the bilateral accords.
Mr Paradorn made the statement after receiving a letter on behalf of Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul from protestors with the Network of Students and People for Thai Reform and the Dhammayut Army, calling for a clearer explanation of the two contentious agreements.
The move followed the latest National Institute of Development Administration (Nida) poll, which found 44% of the public does not understand the function of the two MoUs.
MoU 43 — officially the Memorandum of Understanding between Thailand and Cambodia on the Survey and Demarcation of [the] Land Boundary — was signed on June 14, 2000, during the government of then-prime minister Chuan Leekpai.
MoU 44 — the Memorandum of Understanding between the Government of the Kingdom of Thailand and the Government of the Kingdom of Cambodia Concerning the Area of Their Overlapping Maritime Claims to the Continental Shelf — was signed on June 18, 2001, under the government of Thaksin Shinawatra.
On Tuesday, the protesters staged a demonstration at Chamai Maruchet Bridge in front of Government House.
Led by Pichit Chaimongkol, the groups gathered to press nine urgent demands, including a call for the government to cancel MoUs 43 and 44 rather than hold a referendum.
Police deployed personnel to maintain order and closed traffic at the base of the bridge during the demonstration.
Earlier, the government said it planned to organise a referendum on the MoUs alongside a general election expected early next year.
The protesters called on the government to cancel MoUs 43 and 44 and avoid a referendum they view as offloading responsibility to citizens while permitting open public debate.
They also want the government to take decisive action to protect Thai sovereignty, especially at Ban Nong Chan in Sa Kaeo on the border with Cambodia, with a deadline of Oct 10; and they are calling to demolish casino structures that encroach on Thai territory in Sa Kaeo.