Thai police have recommended ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra be charged with three counts of lese majeste which could put him in jail for 45 years, police chief Sereepisut Taemeeyaves said Tuesday.

The recommendation to public prosecutors was under consideration, he told a news conference marking six months since Thaksin was ousted in a bloodless coup.

"The prosecutors want us to provide them more evidence on some of the cases before they decide whether to charge Thaksin in court," Sereepisut said.

The three potential charges of offending revered King Bhumibol Adulyadej stemmed from remarks to a group of taxi drivers, his weekly national radio address, and his supporters waving Thai flags saying "Long Live His Majesty".

Sereepisut and Attorney-General Patchara Utithamdamrong declined to give more details, citing the sensitivity of cases involving the world's longest reigning monarch who has exalted status in Thailand.

"The National Police Bureau and the Attorney-General's Office agree that any political activities or any political conflicts must not drag down the monarchy," Patchara said without saying how long it would take the prosecutors to decide.

A charge of lese majeste carries a penalty of three to 15 years in jail in Thailand, one of the few countries that prosecutes strictly anything deemed to demean the royal family.

Few other countries have lese majeste on the books and prosecutions are infrequent.

Law experts say a major problem is that the law is vague and almost anyone can level an accusation of lese majeste, thereby triggering a police investigation, allowing political opponents to accuse each other of offending the monarch.

Last year, Thaksin and his enemies hurled scores of lese majeste accusations at each other. Thaksin's alleged disrespect for the monarchy was one of the reasons for the coup.

Elections promised

Thailand's junta chief vowed elections by the end of the year in a nationally televised press conference Tuesday.

But the briefing of more than 2 hours shed no new light on the military's ambitions and did little to ease criticism that the junta-selected government is no better than the administration it replaced.

General Sonthi Boonyaratglin's comments at army headquarters were carried live on all Thailand's television stations.

"We will have free and fair elections on schedule," he said, but refused to rule out the possibility that he would keep a political role after the polls.

"I'm Thai, and I want to protect the national well-being, so I will do anything I can for the good of the country."

The military has long promised to hold a referendum on a new constitution followed by general elections before the end of the year.

Efforts to write a new charter have been held up by contentious debate over issues ranging from whether the prime minister should be appointed to whether Buddhism should be declared the official religion.

Political parties complain that a military ban on their activities prevents them contributing to the constitution or preparing for eventual elections.

(China Daily via agencies March 21, 2007)