The weekly cabinet meeting on Tuesday approved in principle the Internal Security Act which will be promulgated on Phuket and the area within a radius of 5 km, Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said in Bangkok.
The government will seek advice from the Council of State to ensure its legality and suitability as the new law is expected to take effective from July 10 to 24, Abhisit said on Tuesday.
He said the law is necessary to facilitate the work of officials in a bid to ensure security for leaders of countries attending the 42nd ASEAN Ministerial Meeting and the 16th ASEAN Regional Forum to be held in Phuket during July 17-23.
Foreign ministers from Asia and elsewhere, including U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, meet to discuss mainly security issues on Phuket, three months after anti-government protesters forced a regional summit in the Thai resort of Pattaya to be abandoned.
Phuket is a stronghold of Abhisit’s Democrat Party, which heads a coalition government struggling to revive an economy hobbled by the global economic downturn and prolonged political strife at home.
After a period of calm, more than 20,000 “red shirts” rallied in Bangkok on Saturday to call for a general election, but the demonstration passed off peacefully.
Their leaders say they have no intention of trying to disrupt the Phuket meetings.
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