Amid rising coup rumors, army top brasses continuously deny

The last coup occurred three years ago, on Sept. 19, and, then premier Thaksin was removed from office while he was attending the UN General Assembly.

Thaksin was accused of corruption, and kept in exile since then. In February, 2008, Thaksin returned to Thailand to face corruption charges, but he later fled into exile again and was convicted in absentia.

On last Saturday, General Chaisit Shinawatra, former supreme commander and a cousin of Thaksin, said he supported a coup if it would improve the country's situation.

General Chaisit said if one does take place, politics would have to start anew then the country's conflicts could end.

But, army commander-in-chief General Anupong Paojinda said Friday Thailand's armed forces have no thought about staging a coup since it will damage the country.

"There will be no military coup, despite all the speculation," General Anupong said.

General Apichart Penkitti, permanent secretary for defence, has echoed the army chief's statement saying that the military will not resort to another coup to settle the country's problems.

The idea of a coup is out of date, and current conditions do not warrant a coup, General Apichart said.

General Apichart said he is confident that no commander of the country's armed forces has plans for a coup when Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva attends the UN General Assembly meeting in New York next week.

"The country's political problems are being resolved by democratic means," navy chief Adm Kamthorn Phumhiran said Tuesday.

Political observers predict no coup

"Will there be unpredictable consequences? It would take more than total chaos, and probably wholesale slaughter, for any attempted coup by military opportunists or half-crazed generals hoping to share the spoils from Thaksin's frozen assets, to succeed. The country has yet to fully recover from the effects of the previous coup," according to Sopon's opinion published in The Nation's website.

Senator Prasarn Marukhapithak has also expressed his confidence that no coup will happen due to the rally on Saturday, the Nation' s website reported on Monday.

There will be no justification for a putsch as the government can control the rally situation and no violence will arise, the senator said.

Thaksin can not maneuver much abroad since his host countries, including the United Arab Emirates, will limit his political movements, the senator explained.

"The rally would be held just to try to extend the life of the red-shirted movement," said Senator Prasarn.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Abhisit said it is weird the coup speculation sprang up, saying that actually nobody should have talked about a coup again since they have been calling for democracy.

"Now, why has it changed into a call for a change through a coup?" the Thai prime minister said.

Political crisis to deteriorate thailand's global competitiveness

In a related development, Thailand's top brasses in the economic sector have warned that the country's economic development will be dampened further if the rally turns violent or will lead to another coup.

Hence, the Democrat-led government is not only expected to ensure peace at the mass rally, but also to end the domestic political crisis quickly, otherwise the country's long-term global competitiveness will be deteriorated.

In the recent World Economic Forum's Global Competitiveness Report 2009-2010, Thailand has lost its global competitiveness, ranking number 36, the fall from the 34th place of last year.

"The country's competitiveness suffers from protracted instability. Unsurprisingly, the quality of public institutions continues to deteriorate," said the World Economic Forum's Global Competitiveness Report 2009-2010.

Thailand has already wasted its time for over three years to correct the country's political problem, said Thanit Sorat, vice chairman of the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI), Krungthep Turakij Online reported recently.

If the political problem is not solved quickly, the country's global competitiveness will be damaged further over the next four to five years, says Thanit.

"Consequently, no (new and additional) private investment will occur, which will affect the country's employment," the FTI vice chairman has warned.

The latest survey by the Asia Foundation, which conducted on 1, 500 Thais in 26 provinces, discovered that some 58 percent of the respondents have believed the country is going in a wrong direction.

And, some 67 percent of the respondents feel their own economic situation has deteriorated in the past two years, the survey said.

Those views are supported by Somchai Sajjapongse, the director of the Fiscal Policy Office, who was quoted by local media Friday as warning that if the anti-government rally turns violent and is prolonged, foreign investors will delay their investment plans in Thailand, which will adversely affect the economic recovery.

Applications with the Board of Investment for investment promotions during the first eight months of 2009 totaled 250 billion baht (7.42 billion U.S. dollars), down from 280 billion (8. 30 billion U.S. dollars) in the same period last year.

"To lure foreign direct investment, Thailand needs to show a clear policy in investment promotion and also communicate with foreign investors, particularly SMEs (small-and medium-sized enterprises), about what Thailand will throw its support to," said Yo Jitsujakata, president of the Japan Chamber of Commerce in Bangkok, the Bangkok Post's website reported Tuesday.

(Xinhua News Agency September 19, 2009)