By Kittipong Thavevong
Foreign Affairs Minister Kasit Piromya yesterday refuted the opposition's allegations against him and questioned the credibility of some of their charges directed at him during the censure debate. Kasit insisted that he had no leading role in the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) and that he was involved with the PAD as a guest speaker during its rallies.
"I never stayed overnight [at rally sites]. I always went home after addressing the protesters," he said.
The foreign minister said he joined the PAD's protests because he agreed to its campaign against a lack of good governance and the "Thaksin regime", which he said referred to one-party rule led by ex-PM Thaksin Shinawatra.
Kasit, a veteran envoy serving as the ambassador in five different countries, said he once worked for Thaksin as an adviser and was "very close" to him while he was a career diplomat almost 10 years ago. "We were friends. We were comrades. We worked together."
He said that he was then confident in Thaksin and believed the then-PM was one of the region's best and most-promising leaders. However, he later became disillusioned and joined the campaign against the Thaksin regime after his retirement.
In a remark directed at opposition MPs, Kasit said it appeared their censure was against the PAD, and not him. "Don't use me as a proxy. If you don't like the PAD, fight against them with your ideology and your brains," he said.
As for the allegation that he was "cruel" with his colleagues at Thai embassies overseas while serving as the ambassador, Kasit explained that he often made sure the missions condoned no irregularities or improper acts, which he said led to damaging gossips against him.
He said that the inaccurate information about the matter reflected "poor capability" of the opposition's "war room" intelligence taskforce.
On the allegations involving the ties with Cambodia, the foreign minister rejected the allegation that Thailand lost some territory to that country in a disputed border area near Phra Viharn (Preah Vihear) temple ruins. He said that bilateral negotiations were under way about border demarcation. And he called for patience, saying it took decades for many countries to solve their border disputes.
"It's untrue that we lost sovereignty" over part of the territory, he said, adding that Thai soldiers were still stationed in the disputed area.
He said that ties with the two countries were peaceful, with no border skirmishes, over the recent months since this government came to power.
On his severe criticism of Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen before he became the foreign minister, Kasit said that his fiery remarks came shortly after Hun Sen issued an ultimatum to Thailand due to an incorrect report from a military leader that Thai forces were sent to the disputed area. Kasit said that he acted out of patriotic sentiment.
Kasit spent slightly over half an hour to respond to the opposition's allegations against him.
Kasit earlier in the afternoon requested for the meeting chair's permission for a two-hour absence from the debate. He explained that he had to lead a group of diplomats for an audience with HRH Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn.
The foreign minister also drew many protests from opposition MPs. One senior politician accused him of inappropriate gesture while speaking.
Source: The Nation
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