Back in April 2006 the king made one of his political interventions that is always explained as not being an intervention. He called for the judiciary to intervene to sort out the political mess that he considered had resulted from the April 2006 election. Under pressure from PAD, that election had been boycotted the Democrat Party and other opposition parties. The Thai Rak Thai Party won, but the result had been contested. With the king’s mandate, senior judges sprang into action, declaring the election invalid.
After that, the judiciary became the centre of attention as it dissolved several political parties, banned hundreds of politicians, tried Thaksin Shinawatra, decided several constitutional issues and, of course, has presided over the ever growing list of lese majeste cases.
PPT has to admit some scepticism regarding the sudden elevation of judges and the legal system. The courts have long been considered corrupt, prosecutors partisan and the police beneath contempt.
Now the Bangkok Post (12 July 2009: “Poll finds most don’t trust the judiciary”) reports a survey of 1,104 people across the country from July 6 to 9 on trust in the judicial system. Not a huge sample, but the results are worthy of some consideration.
The report states: “Most respondents questioned in a recent Suan Dusit poll feel that the judicial system is plagued by double standards and that not everyone can hope to get justice. Of those polled, 59% called on judges to adopt a uniform standard in trying court cases and said they should strictly base their verdicts on evidence and facts.”
The results are not easily read (see Bangkok Pundit’s summary here) but the trend seems clear. BP says that “40% have confidence and trust the judiciary, 27% in public prosecutors, 19% in the Department of Corrections, and … 15% in the police.”
Interestingly, the survey found that most respondents felt that neither the yellow nor red shirts currently “facing criminal prosecution would get a fair trial.”
