Local consumer movements joined forces in solidarity with their counterparts around the world to celebrate World Consumer Rights Day yesterday.
The international day is to remember the vision of the late US President John F Kennedy who on March 15, 1962 highlighted consumer rights in a special message to Congress.
From there emerged a global movement which resulted in the adoption of UN Guidelines for Consumer Protection by the UN General Assembly in 1985.
In Thailand, homegrown consumer rights advocacy groups started their work in the 1980s as an NGO coordinating committee on fundamental health, and more than a decade later became an active force in consumer protection, with the Foundation for Consumer Protection registering as a legal entity in 1996.
It has gathered strength with the spread of consumer networks to every region across the country.
It has notched up a series of successes. The campaigns to reduce sugar consumption, get food labelling in place, and battle toxic farm chemicals have made remarkable progress.
Yet they have still struggled to meet their ultimate goal of having an independent body on consumer rights protection.
They want a body that is free from the control of the state which hinders its work with red-tape bureaucratic processes.
Arguably, the business interests involved in consumer issues are so strong that in some areas, consumer protection exists in name only, so the independent body will have to be strong enough to counter business lobby groups as well.
In past years, the state consumer protection body has dealt with such difficult and complicated issues as food safety regarding the use of hazardous farm chemicals that are banned in developed countries; and telephone charge rates which have affected millions of phone users.
Such issues need to be attended to immediately for the sake of the public interest. Worse, the agency has done too little in the area of empowering consumers.
Back in 2013, the consumer protection network achieved a milestone when the kind of independent body they sought was set up as stipulated by Section 61 of the 2007 charter.
A related draft law passed its third reading in parliament and was ready to be enacted.
It is unfortunate that the political upheaval that ended with the House dissolution, following the mass demonstrations against the then Pheu Thai government, and eventual 2014 coup, meant the process was never completed.
It wasn't until the country installed a new constitution early this year, much delayed after the first charter draft was rejected, that the people's sector kick-started the process anew.
The old Section 61 reincarnated as Section 46 under the new charter also recognises the role of this independent body and stipulates a new organic law which will make the role of the consumer body clear.
It will also have the necessary authority as well as budget support from the state.
This week, an important move on the part of the activist networks took place when they submitted the revised version of the law to the coup-installed National Legislative Assembly (NLA), in the hope that it will be vetted in parallel with the state version which was filed by the Consumer Protection Office.
They have also kicked off a 10,000-signature campaign that will add legitimacy to the people's version law.
Needless to say, the NLA has a moral obligation to accept the people's version of the draft, ensuring the draft be endorsed and examined.
After such a long delay, the country needs a genuine consumers rights protection agency that is free from bureaucracy and strong enough to counter business interests.
The bottom line is to empower consumers with a process to enable them to get information and make informed decisions.
