In a statement assessing the performance of the Council for National Security (CNS) and its interim government under Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont, the Campaign for Democracy said both had made little concrete progress towards announced goals. This raised many questions.

"In summary, the CNS and the government still lack an accurate assessment of public sentiment towards their work. They have laid down policies but given no exact timeframe of their implementation," the statement said.

On the goal of national reconciliation, the CNS and the gove  rnment lacked effective communication even among themselves to manage government media organisations vital to implementation of reconciliation plans in problem areas, the campaign said.

On anti-corruption activities, the campaign suggested alleged graft during the Thaksin government too complicated for common people to understand be used in-stead as case studies to educate people about how modern-day corruption had developed from the past.

It called for legal investigations of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra's alleged acts of lese majeste. The statement encouraged the CNS and government to allow increased public participation for real post-coup political reform.

The National Legislative Assem-bly (NLA) should consider dumping old laws hampering public participation in drafting a new charter.

In a related development, a group of academics from Bangkok and provincial universities sub-

mitted an open letter to the CNS yesterday asking leaders to cease expressing support for former Senate speaker Meechai Ruchuphan as NLA president.