Thailand's junta dithers on democracy

BANGKOK - It is becoming less clear when Thailand's military rulers will step aside, as some supporters call for the junta to stay in power for two more years.

Some figures in the conservative camp, which is at odds with supporters of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, are plotting to delay the as yet unscheduled general election. They aim to get the junta to keep governing longer.

Proponents of continued military rule say reform should come before any election. Little is said about what sorts of reform are needed, though.

These conservatives seek to prevent pro-Thaksin forces from regaining power.

Petition

An anti-Thaksin political activist, the Buddhist monk Luang Pu Buddha Isara, was on June 9 surrounded by reporters in the lobby of the Parliament House in Bangkok. He was at the building to hand a letter calling for an extension of the military rule, backed by 50,000 signatures, to Paiboon Nititawan of the National Reform Council.

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