News from Thailand – April 30, 2013
The collapsed bridge over the Pasak River in Ayutthaya was improperly repaired last year, the Engineering Institute of Thailand concludes after an inspection. During the repair, only the vertical cables were adjusted, but not the main cables, causing an imbalance.
Four officials from the attorney general's office arrived on the scene yesterday to investigate the tragedy. Four people were killed and 45 people were injured. The injured will receive 3.000 baht each from the Thai Red Cross Society and the relatives of the dead will receive provisional compensation of 25.000 baht from the Ayutthaya authorities.
– As already reported in the message 'Tension continues to rise at the Constitutional Court', Prime Minister Yingluck yesterday gave her an unusually fierce speech, in which she criticized the current constitution. Yingluck spoke at the Conference on the Community of Democracies in Ulan Bator (Mongolia). The controversial constitution was written after the military coup of 2006 and, she says, contains "mechanisms that limit the rights and freedom of the population."
Striking in her speech was the defense of her brother Thaksin, who lives in exile in Dubai. “The military coup against my brother was a blow to Thailand's international credibility and justice system. Many people who don't know me say: Why complain? It is normal for governments to come and go. If my family and I were the only ones suffering, I could ignore it. But that is not the case. Projects and programs started by my brother's government and based on the wishes of the people have been scrapped.”
Yingluck also reflected on the red shirt protests of April and May 2010, calling them a fight to regain freedom. “Many innocent people have been shot by snipers. The movement has been crushed and its leaders have been imprisoned or forced to flee abroad. Even now many political victims are still imprisoned.'
– Hassan Taib has one month to prove that he really represents the Barisan Revolusi Nasional (BRN) by reducing the number of violent crimes in the South. This was said by the Thai delegation leader Paradorn Pattanatabut after the second peace talks between Thailand and BRN, yesterday in Kuala Lumpur. The third meeting is scheduled for June 13.
According to Paradorn, the conversation was 'very stressfull' after the BRN had uploaded a list of five demands on YouTube. Thailand cannot accept those demands. Paradorn has asked Hassan if he can really contain the insurgents in the South, which Hassan confirmed. But Senator Anusart Suwangmongkol from Pattani says most residents have never heard of Hassan. The demands are also not supported by them.
Observers call BRN's demands a slap in the face of the government. Sunai Phasuk, an adviser to Human Rights Watch, says the BRN is out for separatism, while the government demands that the talks do not violate the constitution. According to Sunai, Hassan was forced by the Malaysian authorities to participate in the talks, although the BRN leadership is against the peace plan.
Opposition leader Abhisit says BRN's tone is unfriendly and does not help build confidence. “When we choose harsh words to respond, the peace process is affected. If we don't respond, it means we can't do anything.'
– 96 members of the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) came to court yesterday to attend the first hearing on the December 2008 occupation of Don Mueang and Suvarnabhumi airports. They are being prosecuted for terrorism and emergency ordinance violations . But the hearing was postponed to July 29 because not all defendants have a lawyer yet. Terrorism is punishable by death.
– Will there finally be salvation for the drought-ravaged Northeast? The Department of Water Resources will conduct 19 water management pilot projects in the Khon, Chi and Moon river basin. A feasibility study has now been completed.
The projects in 13 provinces consist of the construction of pipelines, reservoirs, increasing the capacity of reservoirs and dredging rivers and canals. The projects involve an amount of 3,8 billion baht. The agricultural area increases by 72.842 rai due to better watering. The Northeast has 75,68 million rai of farmland, of which 8,12 million rai is irrigated.
– A separate scholarship scheme for vocational education students separate from the existing One District One Scholarship program is a wish of the Vocational Education Commission. Most students fail to qualify for this.
So far this year, only 137 out of a total of 20.000 applicants (Mathayom 6 students) have passed the written test. Then they are interviewed. The lucky ones will receive a scholarship to study abroad. One scholarship will be awarded per district. In total there are 1.856 grants to be awarded.
– On 1 June, the BTS, the above-ground metro, will become more expensive. Currently a ticket costs between 15 and 40 baht; that will be 15 and 42 baht. The SmartPass for adults will be 2 baht per trip more expensive, for students 1 baht.
– In the Ban Mae Surin refugee camp in Mae Hong Son, a 3-year-old Karen girl died and four people were injured by falling trees during a tropical storm yesterday. The same camp was partly reduced to ashes on March 22.
– Our lives have not improved by raising the minimum daily wage to 300 baht, say half of the workers in a poll by the Bangkok University. 1.052 workers aged 18 and over were surveyed in the Bangkok area. 45,9 percent see no improvement; 44,2 percent do see that and 9,9 percent say they have become worse. The reason given by the naysayers is the higher cost of living or the lack of benefits when they are out of work.
– More than a hundred Thai tour guides yesterday demanded in Phuket Town Hall that foreign tour guides get a kick in the backside, because this work can only be done by Thais. 300 Chinese work as tour guides on Phuket. The demonstrators handed over a petition to the deputy governor of Phuket with their demand. They say illegal Thai tour guides are dealt with, but Chinese people are left untouched. If nothing happens, they'll be back next month.
www.dickvanderlugt.nl – Source: Bangkok Post
Breaking News Investors expect the Monetary Policy Committee to lower the so-called policy rate (from which banks derive their interest rates) by a quarter of a percentage point in an extra meeting today. The rate is now 2,75 percent. The Ministry of Finance and exporters have been calling for a reduction for some time because of the rise in the exchange rate of the baht.
According to Thanavath Phonwichai, vice-rector of research at Assumption University, the commission has two options: lower it and leave it the same, but in both cases it will have a psychologically beneficial effect. The extra meeting is an indication that the Bank of Thailand is seriously trying to rein in the baht. The committee's regular meeting is scheduled for May 29.
The Bangkok Post is wrong, Yingluck did not defend her brother Thaksin at all in her speech in Ulan Bator. The quote above is correct. That is the only sentence in which she mentions Thaksin. She only condemned the undemocratic way in which he was deposed and the events that followed.
She also offers thinly veiled criticism of the powers behind parliamentary democracy. The Thai press also called her speech 'courageous, candid and fierce.
Not so long ago, columnist Voranai of the Bangkok Post wondered where all those parliamentarians (from all parties that, according to their words, are all so keen on democracy) were on the day Thaksin was deposed. If they were all (with the exception of no one) so democratically minded, they could all have protested at the government building. Who was there? NO ONE !!!!
or: did all these people know WHY Thaksin was deposed and by whom?
chris
Dear Chris,
May I remind you of what happened when the population resisted the coups in 1973, 1976 and 1992? Hundreds of deaths were the result. The parliamentarians also know that history. Do you really think that the military cares about a number of parliamentarians? So I think they were wise to stay away so that no blood was shed. By the way, I think that many people had had enough of Thaksin's arrogant government style. But it remains undemocratic.
By the way, I am very curious about your opinion as to why Thaksin was deposed and especially by whom. I am sure you know the answer to that.
dear tina,
Of course you're right. But I wouldn't call Thailand a democracy. Thailand is on its way to becoming a democracy through trial and error. Thaksin's tactics to win the elections were typically Thai and actually quite simple: patronage on the one hand (mainly towards village chiefs who were then allowed to decide what to do with the money) and approaching local and regional popular and powerful people ( sometimes for a fee of millions of baht) to be a candidate for his party. No ideals, no party program: just a few catchy and easy-to-remember slogans (raise minimum wage, guarantee price for rice, one tablet per child, credit card for farmers, 35 baht health insurance).
I belong to the student generation of the 70s. We occupied buildings, we had ideals, we could improve the world, we demonstrated (Dodewaard, Kalkar) and allowed ourselves to be beaten by the riot police. We got political opinion on our side and THAT was the crux of the change. If you have a little courage, you will stand up for your ideals. The Thai parliamentarians chose the easy way: wait until the military government hands things over again and then ensure that you belong (again) to the greedy elite. No courage, no ideals (unless get rich quick), no trying to conquer public opinion.
I hope you understand that I cannot answer your last question on paper. What I want to say is that Thaksin has overplayed his hand. He thought he was the most important person in this country and got TOO arrogant.
chris
Dear Chris,
I don't call Thailand a democracy either. Let me not go into why that is the case at this point, I have written about that.
I belong to the same generation that still believed in the malleability of society. As my father-in-law used to say, "If you're not red at 25 you don't have a heart, but if you're still red at 50 you don't have a mind." I had to disappoint him, I'm still a bit 'red' but believe less in that 'manufacturability'.
I expected and somewhat provoked your last paragraph 'I cannot answer your last question on paper'. I think that this veil of suggestive secrecy that hangs over many political events in Thailand is paralyzing the development of a true democracy because democracy presupposes openness. I also think that this veil of appealing to a higher power, or the suggestion of it, is abused by many politicians to hide their true, more selfish, motives.