Coup chief: Elections could occur in a year

Associated Press

BANGKOK

In his first address to the public since taking control of Thailand in a bloodless coup, the head of the military junta said Friday that it could take more than a year for new elections to take place because peace and reforms must be achieved first.

Army commander Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha repeated warnings against protests or resistance to the army’s May 22 takeover, saying they would slow the process of bringing back “happiness” to the Thai people.

A return to democracy will not happen if there are still “protests without a true understanding of democracy,” he said.

The speech was meant to reassure Thais that the army has a plan to keep the country stable and restore democracy.

But it was unlikely to win favor among supporters of the ousted civilian government because it laid out broadly the same program advocated by government protesters who demonstrated aggressively for seven months to try to topple it, clashing with police and occupying government offices.