General Surayut Chulanont, the Prime Minister of Thailand

Embargoed until 20 June 2007, 14.00 hrs

An Informal English Summary of Keynote Address by General Surayut Chulanont, the Prime Minister of Thailand on “The Future and Progress of Thailand” to the Thai-Japanese Association Napalai Ballroom, The Dusit Thani Hotel Bangkok Wednesday 20 June, 2007 ......

The President of Thai-Japanese Association, Members of the Executive Committee of the Association and the other members, Distinguished guests and friends,

First, I would like to express my appreciation to Mr. Staporn Kavitanon, the President of the Thai-Japanese Association, who invited me to speak here today. At the end of last year, Mr. Staporn and the Executive Committee of the Association came to see me at Government House to congratulate me on the occasion that His Majesty the King graciously appointed me Prime Minister. I mentioned to them that I wished to find an opportunity to meet and speak with the Members of the Thai-Japanese Association about the work of this Government and the policy direction of our nation. So, when I was invited to speak here today, I immediately accepted.

I believe that every Member of the Executive Committee and of the Association, especially the Japanese among you, gives great importance to the developments in Thailand. Several of you have visited me and members of the Cabinet as an expression of encouragement for our efforts in alleviating a situation which can only be described as one of the worst political crises in Thai history. On behalf of the Government, I wish to express my sincere appreciation to friends in the Japanese community who care about Thailand. 2

This year marks a very important occasion when the Thai-Japan diplomatic relations reaches the 120th anniversary. In fact, the friendship between our two countries dates back much longer than that in the order of several hundred years. I myself visited Japan last April to sign the Japan-Thailand Economic Partnership Agreement, or JTEPA, and was so warmly welcomed by the Japanese public sector, private sector, and the media alike. I had the great honour to be accorded an audience with His Majesty Emperor Akihito and Her Majesty Empress Michiko, and also met with Prime Minister Abe, the Speaker of the House of Representatives Mr. Kono, and also the Chief Cabinet Secretary Mr. Shiozaki. The trip made a warm and indelible impression on me during my short span as Prime Minister of Thailand.

Today I am very honoured to be here to talk to all of you about “The Future and Progress of Thailand”, which is very important to all of us.

Distinguished guests, Ladies and gentlemen,

To me, “the future” and “progress” always go hand in hand. No one talks about a future without progress. For the last 75 years, after 17 constitutions, 24 prime ministers, 1 revolution and 17 coups d’etat, no government or political faction ever fails to assure their constituencies that they are making progress for the country and taking it to a better future. This mantra has been repeated so many times that one cannot help thinking about what “the future” and “progress” really mean.

However, I’m not a politician. The peaceful intervention by the military on 19th September last year happened amidst great confusion in the Thai society about “the future” and “the true progress” of Thailand. The question then

Embargoed until 20 June 2007, 14.00 hrs 3 was whether or not the two are tied to the interests of a few selected groups of people. My duty now as Prime Minister is to return that “future” and “progress” to the Thai people during this important transitional period. I am convinced that I have the duty to do so because the future of our country must rest upon justice and democratic “progress”.

Democracy does not concern just the procedures, the elections. A country does not automatically become “democratic” just by staging an election. Democracy is not there for a selected group of politicians to exploit, through loop holes in the legal system, for their own benefits. Democracy must bring equality, good governance and stability of all in the society that it represents.

About ten days ago, on 10th June, I spoke to the public, through the T.V. Pool of Thailand, about the direction in which our country is moving forward. I emphasized two conditions that will bring stability to Thailand. First, the citizens of Thailand must take responsibility to participate in politics. Second, every one must reject corruption and hold true to the rule of law, since these two are the basis on which the progress of every society rests.

I also spoke clearly that, for this interim government to realize those two conditions for the Thai society, we must adhere to the following principles. First, we must uphold transparency and fairness, as well as be efficient and economical when using our resources. Second, we must deter and prevent actions by ill-intentioned people. Third, we must adhere to the rules of law. And fourth, we must reform our society, making it more just, by reforming the judicial process. All of these are not easy tasks to achieve, but I am absolutely convinced that we are on the right path.

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Right now, legal investigation against corruption allegations are bearing results for all to see. The truth will be laid bear in the court processes, which the government will not interfere. This is the just rule of law which forms part of a just state mechanism. This is not what the country has seen during the past five years.

The government has the duty to carry out the administration of the country towards progress and towards a general election as soon as possible. From now until the end of this year, during the next six months, we have to build confidence in the process of restoring democracy to our country. This will form a sound basis for the real “future” and “progress” of Thailand.

All of you know that Thailand now has a first draft of the new constitution which will go through a public debate. We have widely published it and received responses from the general public as well as various organizations. We’re waiting for the 2nd draft to come out soon. I have discussed with all parties concerned in the process, and have come to the conclusion that the sooner we can have the referendum of the draft constitution, the sooner Thailand will see the general election. All of us are waiting to see an election that is transparent and fair by the end of this year at the latest.

From the 19th of September 2006 until now, in parallel with the drafting of the new constitution, the government has been setting in place various components that will bring Thailand back to full democracy. We have lifted the martial law; we have recently revoked the Announcement of the Council for Democratic Reform that bans activities by political parties; and we have prepared for the setting up the Political Development Council.

The next six months from now is a very important transitional period for Thailand. But I’m confident that all sectors in the Thai society will join forces in overcoming all obstacles to make “progress” so that Thailand can become a leading democratic country in Asia once again, very soon.

I remember clearly that, on the day that Mr. Staporn and the Executive Committee of the Thai-Japanese Society called on me at Government House, I had the honour to receive two Japanese delegations: one is the Japanese Chamber of Commerce of Bangkok or JCC, the other is from Japan External Trade Organization or JETRO. I have emphasized to them that Thailand still has very strong and complete economic fundamentals and an environment which is enabling to trade and investment, which you can see from figures from the first quarter of this year in terms of export and GDP growth, which have expanded 18.5% and 4-4.5% respectively.

When I visited Japan last April, I met the President of Nippon Keidanren. I emphasized to him then, and let me emphasize to you all once again now, that the government of Thailand is implementing liberalization policies to promote business, trade, and investment, and to stimulate manufacturing sector. The government is moving forward our infrastructural policies on a transparent and fair basis. And on this important basis, we will carry on the cooperation with our international friends, which is another important component of the “future” and “progress” of Thailand. I am very pleased to learn that the Japanese private sector will continue with their existing plan for investment in Thailand or to further increase investment in our country.

I firmly believe that the signing of the JTEPA is an important signal to the Japanese private sector that Thailand places great importance to and uphold the principle of free market system. It is very encouraging to learn that the two governments are implementing appropriate steps to ensure the entry into force of JTEPA. When the Agreement is entered into force, it will be a template for conducting future bilateral economic partnership agreement between Thailand and other countries that could bring mutual benefits. Let me emphasize once again that, in any free trade agreement, there are always those who gain, those who lose, those who agree with it, and those who don’t. The government of Thailand has carefully and thoroughly considered this agreement before signing, and is sure that it will lead to our sustainable cooperation in many different fields. I will rely on the Thai-Japanese Association to be a key mechanism to foster understanding and to promote the maximum utilization of this Agreement.

This government may be an interim government, but sustainability is our utmost goal in everything that we do. On behalf of the Thai government, I can reaffirm that we are focusing on driving the overall economy forward. We are expediting the disbursement of fiscal budget; we are launching new projects such as the Eco-car; we are addressing the issues relating to the management of industrial parks, investing in logistical infrastructure as well as developing intellectual infrastructure. At the same time, the principle of sufficiency economy will generate self-immunity for citizens and corporations at all levels. The government’s economic policies may not be flashy but they are sound and sustainable. Our politics may have some fragility, but trade and investment, including foreign investment and your people, will be looked after and promoted.

Another matter of concern that the Japanese leaders have asked me about is about Thailand’s Southern restive region.

Since taking position as Prime Minister, I have pledged to give utmost importance to promoting national unity and reconciliation as well as addressing the situation in the southern border provinces. I have stressed the use of peaceful means to solve the problems, which means to restore justice and fairness. This is also closely connected with the “future” and “progress” of Thailand as it concerns youths and young people in the region. We aim to abolish the root causes of the unrest in the south, particularly in terms of justice, education, economic development as well as employment.

Admittedly, the root causes of the unrest in the southern border provinces are very complex, and hence cannot be solved overnight. The government’s main strategy is to reach out to the local people as much as we can, starting from myself. I have visited community and religious leaders as well as young people regularly. The government’s strategy is very much community oriented.

This government believes that the peaceful approach to restoring peace in the south will eventually destroy the basis of the insurgents. At the moment, some may see the government as being on the defensive side. But I have to tell you that the insurgents are actually trying to respond to our proactive policies, whether political or in terms of foreign affairs and other fields. If the government can truly reach the hearts and minds of the local public and eliminate the hardship that are the root causes of their plight, I believe that the insurgents will no longer be supported by the locals. This government will cooperate with our neighbours and friends in the international community, especially muslim friends in other countries and in the Organization of the Islamic Conference or the

OIC, so that the insurgents will not be supported in whatever form or under any condition.

The “future” and “progress” of Thailand is being watched closely by the international community. I, as Head of the Executive branch, would like to reiterate once again that this Government will ensure a smooth transition back to democracy, one that is stronger, in the six months that remains. Ours will be a society that is fairer, more equal and more sustainable

The developments and various actions which are being undertaken right now are not only for the benefit of Thailand, but they will also benefit the entire region as a whole as Thailand becomes a stronger and more sustainable partner into the future.

Before ending my remarks today, let me thank you all once again and let me wish you all the success in being a bridge of friendship between the peoples of Thailand and Japan, which is a very important friend of Thailand, so that the two countries can gain deeper understanding about each other and become ever more closer friends in the future.

Thank you. ********************

Embargoed until 20 June 2007, 14.00 hrs