タイ首相失職 混乱を助長する憲法裁の判断

The Yomiuri Shimbun 8:55 pm, May 09, 2014
Ouster of Yingluck does nothing to open path out of Thailand’s chaos
タイ首相失職　混乱を助長する憲法裁の判断

Thailand’s prime minister has been driven from her post. And no hint of a path out of the chaos of Thailand’s drawn-out political turmoil has yet emerged.
　タイの首相が失職に追い込まれた。長引く政治の混迷を脱する道筋は全く見えない。

The Southeast Asian country’s Constitutional Court handed down a verdict Wednesday finding that Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra had intervened illegally in personnel affairs involving the head of the secretariat of the National Security Council in 2011, in order to promote a relative to the position of chief of the Royal Thai Police, and that her behavior was unconstitutional.
　タイの憲法裁判所は７日、インラック首相が、親族を国家警察長官に登用するために、国家安全保障会議事務局長の人事に不当に介入したことが、憲法違反にあたるとする判決を言い渡した。

Because of the highest court’s ruling, Yingluck has been stripped of her office. Nine members of her Cabinet who were in office at the time of the personnel affairs issue were ordered by the court to step down. Deputy Prime Minister Niwatthamrong Boonsongpaisan, one of the remaining 24 ministers, has been appointed acting prime minister.
　これによって、インラック氏は失職した。人事の閣議決定に加わった閣僚９人も失職し、残った２４閣僚のうち、ニワットタムロン副首相が首相代行に決まった。

The House of Representatives, the lower chamber of the Thai National Assembly, has remained dissolved after the results of a February general election were pronounced null and void by the Constitutional Court. In the absence of both a prime minister and a functioning lower house, Thailand as a state is in a critical situation.
　タイの下院は、２月に行われた総選挙が、憲法裁によって「無効」と判断されたために、解散したままになっている。首相も下院議員も不在という、国家として危機的な状況である。

In Thailand, forces supporting former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, Yingluck’s elder brother, have been locked in fierce rivalry with those who oppose him.
　タイでは、インラック氏の兄であるタクシン元首相を支持する勢力と、それに反対する勢力が激しく対立している。

The pro-Thaksin camp, which draws its support mainly from the poor and from farmers in populous rural areas, has won every general election in recent years. The anti-Thaksin bloc has a larger share of bureaucrats and other empowered elites, as well as support from the urban middle class.
　タクシン派は、人口の多い貧困層や農民を基盤とし、近年の総選挙では連勝中だ。反タクシン派には、官僚など実権を握るエリート層や都市中間層が多い。

Groups opposing Thaksin have staged repeated and vehement anti-government demonstrations since last year, with the aim of toppling the Yingluck administration.
　反タクシン派は昨年来、インラック政権打倒を目指し、激しいデモを繰り返してきた。

Economy badly damaged

This most recent case was brought before the Constitutional Court by a group including members of the upper house of the Thai parliament, where the anti-Thaksin bloc holds great sway. There can be no doubt that the anti-Thaksin forces, facing no chance of winning an electoral victory, have resorted to judicial tactics to force the prime minister from office.
　今回の裁判は、反タクシン派の影響が強い上院の議員らが訴えたものだ。選挙では勝ち目がないとみて、法的な手段によって、首相を辞職に追い込むための戦術だったのは明らかだ。

The Constitutional Court has issued harsh decisions against successive pro-Thaksin administrations. And this latest ruling is clearly in line with the will of anti-Thaksin groups, but it can also be said that this outcome has served only to plunge Thailand deeper into political chaos.
　憲法裁は、これまで、歴代のタクシン派政権に厳しい判決を出してきた。今回の判決も、反タクシン派の求めに沿ったもので、結果的に混迷を深めたと言えよう。

The crux of the problem is that nothing has appeared that might help lead the country toward a resolution of its ongoing imbroglios and impasses.
　問題なのは、事態の打開策が全く見えないことである。

Under the leadership of the acting prime minister, the Cabinet is set to hold a fresh general election, currently scheduled for July 20.
　首相代行の率いる内閣は、７月２０日のやり直し総選挙を予定通り実施する方針だ。

Anti-Thaksin forces are demanding that an interim government be established without an election, and stand poised to continue with anti-government demonstrations, indicating as well that they are likely to repeat in July their boycott of the previous election. There also are fears of violent clashes with the pro-Thaksin forces. Each camp is strongly urged to restrain itself and to avoid becoming mired in violence.
　だが、選挙を経ない暫定政権樹立を訴える反タクシン派は、デモを続ける構えで、再び選挙妨害を行うことも示唆している。タクシン派との衝突も誘発しかねない。各派には自制が求められる。

The prolonged political turmoil has exerted further strain on the Thai economy. The country’s tourism industry is suffering an ongoing slump, and a chill hangs over domestic consumption. One estimate warns that the Thai economy for this year may see negative growth for the first time since 2009. Japanese capital investment, which has helped boost Thailand’s economy, is also under threat.
　混乱の長期化は、経済に一層の悪影響を与えている。観光業は不振で、消費も冷え込み、今年は２００９年以来のマイナス成長になるとの予測もある。成長を支えてきた日系企業の投資の減少につながる可能性も否定できない。

Under the circumstances, the political heft of Thailand, a nation that has played a leading role in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, is bound to shrink further. It is imperative for Thailand to escape this crisis in its political system and return to normality as soon as possible.
　これまで主導的役割を演じてきた東南アジア諸国連合（ＡＳＥＡＮ）内部での政治的発言力も、低下する一方だろう。一刻も早い政治の正常化が必要だ。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, May 9, 2014)