One of the parties in Thailand’s current coalition government has issued a formal statement saying it “cannot accept the principles” of the government’s casino legalisation move, due to moral and other objections.
The announcement by the Prachachat Party – which draws its support from the predominantly Muslim south of the country – was made on Tuesday.
It came after Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra shelved plans for a Wednesday reading of the enabling legislation, the Entertainment Complex Act, in the National Assembly. The reading of the bill has now been postponed until at least July, when the new parliamentary session begins, according to reports by Thai media.
Prachachat has nine MPs that support the coalition government led by the Pheu Thai Party, a successor organisation to a Thai political party founded by Ms Shinawatra’s father, Thaksin Shinawatra, himself a former prime minister.
Prachachat said in its statement posted in Thai: “The Prachachat Party would like to clearly state that it cannot accept the principles of the Entertainment Complex Act.”
It added that was “because the content of the said bill violates the teachings of Islam and may have a negative impact on society, culture, and morality of the youth and people in the area, which are all important dimensions that the Prachachat Party has always given importance to.”
Eight of the Prachachat MPs are Muslim.
The statement said: “The Prachachat Party would like to confirm that every decision of the party is aimed at adhering to the interests of the country, the peace of society, and living together with respect for religious and cultural diversity equally.”
The party’s opposition, though expected, was only officially confirmed for the first time on Tuesday’s statement. According to local media reports, members of other government coalition parties have also expressed doubts about supporting the bill.
The Nation newspaper reported on Monday that four religious organisations in Thailand – respectively representing the Buddhist majority, as well as Muslim and Christian minorities – had jointly called on the government to withdraw the casino bill.
On Tuesday, the Bangkok Post stated that Sukarno Matha – one of eight Muslim MPs from Prachachat – had said in a Facebook post that party leader Tawee Sodsong, also Minister of Justice in the coalition, had voiced concerns about the potential negative impact of casino legalisation, such as an increase in crime rates, including corruption among state officials.
A Wednesday report in the Bangkok Post newspaper saw a former Thai prime minister reiterating his opposition to the casino policy, which he had voiced in February.
In his latest remarks, Abhisit Vejjajiva was cited saying: “I don’t think there are many international visitors who decided not come to Thailand because there are no casinos here.”
He warned that China, which opposes ‘overseas gambling’ and online gambling among its citizens, could warn its people against visiting Thailand, which he indicated could have negative economic repercussions.
China’s leader, President Xi Jinping, took the step of mentioning specifically to Ms Shinawatra – during a February visit to China by the Thai Prime Minister – what he said were the social risks of legalising casinos.
Mr Abhisit mentioned on his comments reported on Wednesday: “I cannot see what we could gain from [casino bill]. I can only see the downside.”
