With 20 days to go, the first full-blown election campaign in eight years is quickly taking shape. Candidates are mostly in dawn-to-midnight campaign mode. TV stations are preparing to air the neutral advertisements that give each party 10 clear minutes to state their policies. Top party candidates are mostly -- excluding the prime minister -- preparing for face-to-face debates. Troublemakers are busy with outright law-breaking and stretching campaign laws and resources to or past the limits.
This last group should trouble everyone involved in the 2019 election, most especially millions of voters. Defacing or destroying candidates' signs along streets and roads appears to be almost fashionable. But it is not, and it must be hoped authorities will put extra effort into tracking and detaining those behind this sad business. Ruining these terse adverts for local candidates is not about disrespect for the people on the sign. It is attacking at a base level the very process of electing a House of Representatives and putting the country back on a democratic track.
Such tactics go far beyond the mindless graffiti and tearing down election banners. An unfortunate number of supposedly serious people are resorting to the dirtiest of election tricks. An activist who calls himself the head of the Association for the Protection of the Constitution wants to influence and speed up a weak case of "fake news" against the Future Forward Party (FFP) of Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit.
The activist, Srisuwan Janya, has occasionally been on the right side of issues during his many one-man crusades. He is far out of line here. His call to the Election Commission to investigate alleged deception by the FFP is a demand for extra-judicial action by the EC. The charge already is under legal investigation, and Mr Srisuwan's high-profile action amounts to more than subverting the intent of free and fair elections.
After that, it gets worse. A man claiming to lead "People Protecting the Constitution" demands -- demands -- extra-legal efforts to ban Future Forward for violating Section 112 of the legal code, concerning lese majeste. The previously unknown Boonthavorn Panyasit claims Mr Thanathorn and aides illegally attacked the monarchy in reference to the unfinished work to bring Thailand to democracy.
Sadly, Mr Boonthavorn's petition to the EC even regurgitates a nasty old charge from the past. He says FFP leaders have called for changes to the lese majeste law and directly conflates that with actual violation of the law. It is time to stop this old and bullying canard. Calls for review of a legal statute in no way are the same or comparable to personal attacks, let alone on the high institution.
Such attacks in the midst of an election campaign are unacceptable. It is arrogant of the activists to claim the extremely limited time of the Election Commission on their personal claims. The alleged misdoings of parties are already on record.
Two parties, Thai Raksa Chart and FFP, are already answering to the Constitutional Court and prosecutors' office respectively. The return of questioning opponents' adherence to the Section 112 law is a bullying tactic that must be dropped.
