The source said that Kraisak was seriously weighing the pros and cons of the offer, but was concerned about strong doubts expressed by the international community over the legitimacy of the coup on Tuesday night that overthrew caretaker Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

Kraisak told a gathering at the Foreign Correspondent's Club of Thailand last night he had had a hard time explaining why the coup was acceptable.

"Four years of human rights violations, four years of abuse of power, four years of uncaring for due process of law ... I was amazed that my lengthy explanations fell on deaf ears," Kraisak said. He said he had been giving interviews to foreign journalists since yesterday morning until late afternoon.

Another speaker at the FCCT, Thitinand Pongsutthirak, a lecturer in the Political Science Faculty at Chulalongkorn University, said the coup, though understandable, represented a 15-year step back in time for Thai democracy.

"Thai democracy took a blow last night [Tuesday night], but democracy is not a one-size-fits-all project."

Thitinand said he did not condone the coup, but hoped that people would take a nuanced view of the situation. He warned that Thaksin could still stage a comeback. "There is potential for a counter-coup in the making," he said.

Pravit Rojanaphruk

 The Nation