Thailand’s Charter Rewrite Hits Final Stretch as Drafting Clash Looms
Thailand’s next constitutional rewrite is inching toward a decisive stretch. After sifting through every clause for months, the joint committee of MPs and senators says the text is finally ready for the marathon debate that will dominate Parliament’s special sitting in mid-December. The tight schedule, the unresolved quarrel over who gets to draft the new charter, and the looming requirement for another nationwide referendum all hover in the background, raising the stakes for citizens already weary of legal fine print but keenly aware of how a constitution can shape daily life.
Procedural Clock is Ticking
The vetting panel confirmed on Wednesday that it has wrapped up scrutiny of the 50-section bill and polished the wording during a last closed-door huddle. Its next stop is the special sitting set for 10-11 December, where MPs and senators will tackle the second reading. If the debate spills over, a third day will run straight into the opening of the new regular session. Lawmakers expect dawn-to-dusk discussions, echoing past charter marathons. Committee spokespersons Norasate Prachyakorn and Phanida Mongkolsawat insist that every contested paragraph now carries both majority endorsements and preserved minority opinions. Even so, they concede that the exact phrasing of the mandatory referendum question remains unresolved, a detail that could still derail the timetable if rivals refuse to sign off. The document will be dispatched to the House Speaker once translators finish cross-checking bilingual copies—a procedural step familiar to anyone who remembers the last overhaul in 2020.
Selection of Drafters Remains Flashpoint
Beneath the procedural calm, the fiercest disagreement concerns the future charter-drafting committee. The current text calls for 35 members selected under a “20 pick 1” formula that lets every bloc of 20 lawmakers nominate a drafter. Critics—led by Pheu Thai’s Dr Cholnan Srikaew—warn that the method hands effective control to the ruling coalition and its Senate allies, cementing elite influence before a single sentence of the new constitution is even penned. Cholnan’s counter-proposal would force any shortlist to win support from at least one-fifth of senators and 20 % of the opposition, diluting big-party dominance. Another Pheu Thai stalwart, Chousak Sirinil, still pushes an even bolder idea: let voters elect a 300-strong pool first and have Parliament whittle that down to 100. Reform-minded senators, meanwhile, publicly back a fully elected drafting body but privately admit the courts have already frowned on that route. These competing blueprints, all inserted as reserved clauses, guarantee fireworks when the chamber opens the bill line by line.
What Happens After the December Marathon
Should the bill clear the second reading, rules under the 2021 amendment impose a 15-day cooling-off period before the decisive third-reading vote. Only then can Parliament send the text to the Election Commission and schedule the constitution’s second nationwide plebiscite in less than a decade. Legal scholars note that Thailand’s Constitutional Court insists on up to three public votes for a wholesale rewrite, though two can run concurrently. Cabinet hopes to wrap everything before the New Year holiday, partly to defuse speculation that the Prime Minister is eyeing a snap dissolution to capitalise on renewed popularity. Government whips, however, admit any hiccup in December could push final approval well into 2026, prolonging uncertainty for investors already spooked by global headwinds.
Echoes of 2540 and 2550
Veterans of previous charter battles hear familiar echoes. The celebrated “People’s Constitution” of 1997 drew legitimacy from broad public participation, while the 2007 charter fought accusations of top-down control despite a popular referendum. Today’s process sits somewhere in between: more open than 2007 but far less participatory than 1997. Analysts warn that if the final document looks too much like an insider deal, street activism could return, just as it did when the 2020 movement challenged military influence embedded in the current 2017 text. For residents from Chiang Mai to Samut Prakan, what matters is simple: Will the new charter curb backroom deals, secure local budgets, and protect individual rights, or simply reshuffle power among the same old elites? December’s debate will offer the clearest clues yet—and the country’s political calendar may pivot on the answer.