Dissent shows no signs of quieting

[webfact]

EDITORIAL:

Dissent shows no signs of quieting

By The Nation

 

By trying to seal a pot slowly coming to a boil, the junta can be sure of the unrest it so fears
 

Premier Prayut Chan-o-cha has expressed concern about possible social unrest following a small protest at the weekend, but the way the authorities are reacting to such incidents guarantees they will be unable to maintain order, and in fact will likely fuel more insurrection.

 

Arresting peaceful demonstrators and subjecting them to legal harassment are tactics that never work, other than underscoring the ruling junta’s insecurity amid fierce public criticism over the deputy premier’s collection of luxury wristwatches.

 

It was Prayut and the junta’s blundering that got this dangerous snowball rolling, even before the watch affair. Had they not made legislative moves seemingly aimed at perpetuating their stay in power, and had the National Legislative Assembly not found a technical trick to delay the promised November election by another 90 days, we would not be in the present predicament.

 

The result was predictable. Infuriated politicians and activists began exercising their long-suppressed right to freedom of expression. The junta sought to suppress it further.

 

Warrants were issued and arrests threatened. Nevertheless, on January 27, about 100 activists gathered on the skywalk in front of Bangkok’s MBK shopping mall, demanding that an election be held in November as pledged. They deliberately defied the junta’s ban on political gatherings of more than five people. 

 

Police arrested 39, who became known as the MBK39. These activists were summoned to hear charges against them last Thursday.

 

Police released 28 without pre-conditions, while five additionally accused of sedition were taken to court for a ruling on whether they could be detained further. The court found no basis for doing so and ordered them freed. 

 

There were several other activists, however – including Rangsiman Rome, Sirawit Serithiwat, Ekachai Hongkangwan and lawyer Anon Nampa – who faced the same charges but had failed to answer the police summons.

 

On Saturday they held another public gathering, at the Democracy Monument, and then surrendered to Pathumwan district police.

 

Citing a vast trail of paperwork if they were to be bailed out, police kept them in custody until late that night. Around 200 supporters staged a candlelight vigil outside, appealing for an immediate end to their prosecution for having done nothing more than peacefully expressing political opinions.

 

Four of the people detained were finally released, but Rangsiman was taken by van to northeastern Khon Kaen province, some 450 kilometres from the capital, to answer charges in connection with a speech he gave at a university forum there in July 2016.

 

A squad of supporters tracked the van the whole way, wanting to make sure Rangsiman remained safe. He met his accusers, acknowledged the charge and was freed on bail on Sunday, returning to Bangkok at his own expense.

 

Rangsiman and the rest will have to make many more appearances at police stations and in courtrooms while this dismaying chapter in Thai history plays out.

 

Anyone who values rights and freedoms must applaud them for their determination to prevent democracy being postponed any longer. In no way should anyone feel so cowed by the state’s actions that they refuse to express their opinions and demands.  

 

Pryaut can resolve this crisis quickly by clearing the path to the election. Instead, he has instructed Army chief General Chalermchai Sitthisart to closely monitor the activists lest they spark a public wildfire against the junta. In doing so, he’s only making matters worse himself.

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/opinion/30338699

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2018-02-13

[darksidedog]

It happens everywhere. You can only repress people for so long and it seems that that time in Thailand is fast approaching. The end of the Junta is nigh.

[greenchair]

And where is aphisit now? 

How quiet all the parties are, leaving the brave people that want to vote to fend for themselves.

Good luck pockets of people. 

 

[Samui Bodoh]

Repression and/or oppression can work for a while, but as a tactic/strategy they have limited life-spans. Simply put, you can hit a man only so long before he stops feeling it and decides to hit back. The Thai people have decided to hit back; It is small now, but it will grow and grow until sated.

 

There is great danger in Thailand at the moment. I think that Thais were willing to allow the Junta to stay in power until the end of the Mourning period and the Funeral, as well as oversee the new Coronation; these were key events in Thai culture and Thais wanted everything to go smoothly.

 

However, once these events were taken care of, any reason or legitimacy for the Junta to stay on vanished; they said that they were going to go and when they try to renege on that, people sit up and notice in a big way (BTW to all politicians out there- reneging on a promise is 100 times worse than not making a promise!).

 

The Junta's days are numbered. The only remaining question is how are things going to occur; will it be a peaceful transition? Or something much more unpredictable?

 

I truly hope that common sense and wisdom break out soon, but I fear the worst...

 

Edited February 12, 2018 by Samui Bodoh
Lack of coffee

[yellowboat]

1 hour ago, webfact said:

Pryaut can resolve this crisis quickly by clearing the path to the election.

Like a Bangkok city bike path ?  "Thai media has said that plans to introduce bicycle lanes across Bangkok are in ruins."  Not unlike the credibility of the junta one could say. It is embarrassing watching these guys horse around at the expense of the entire country.  They need to stop looking foolish by setting a reasonable date campaigning to start and elections. 

 

[canuckamuck]

1 hour ago, darksidedog said:

It happens everywhere. You can only repress people for so long and it seems that that time in Thailand is fast approaching. The end of the Junta is nigh.

The big question is how messy will that be?

[LazySlipper]

1 hour ago, darksidedog said:

It happens everywhere. You can only repress people for so long and it seems that that time in Thailand is fast approaching. The end of the Junta is nigh.

High hopes... unfortunatley

[impulse]

44 minutes ago, Samui Bodoh said:

Repression and/or oppression can work for a while, but as a tactic/strategy they have limited life-spans. Simply put, you can hit a man only so long before he stops feeling it and decides to hit back.

 

It's been working for the rich and powerful for many decades.  (and not just in Thailand) 

 

It's not as if elections are going to change the power structure at all.  Just the public face of the real power brokers.  And maybe the order of the queue feeding at the trough.  But the queue will be just as greedy, and the masses will still be screwed.

 

[Samui Bodoh]

5 minutes ago, impulse said:

 

It's been working for the rich and powerful for many decades.  (and not just in Thailand) 

 

It's not as if elections are going to change the power structure at all.  Just the public face of the real power brokers.  And maybe the order of the queue feeding at the trough.  But the queue will be just as greedy, and the masses will still be screwed.

 

I think that you have raised the 64,000 dollar question; is the change in Thailand permanent or will things go back to the way they were?

 

We disagree as a matter of nuance; yes, the rich (in every country) do tend to have things their way to an extent, but I think Thailand changed permanently around the turn of the century. In a nutshell, no government anymore will ever have real legitimacy without a mandate (of some kind) from the people. And when a government requires a mandate from the people, there is a slow but steady change in a culture; the rich will lose some influence to the masses and that loss means some power bleeding over to the masses.

 

Are the rich going to be treated the same as the poor in Thailand anytime soon? Nope. But, things will improve, slowly.

 

PS: Please- if you are going to quote my post(s), please quote all of it. TIA.

 

[impulse]

1 minute ago, Samui Bodoh said:

I think that you have raised the 64,000 dollar question; is the change in Thailand permanent or will things go back to the way they were?

 

We disagree as a matter of nuance; yes, the rich (in every country) do tend to have things their way to an extent, but I think Thailand changed permanently around the turn of the century. In a nutshell, no government anymore will ever have real legitimacy without a mandate (of some kind) from the people. And when a government requires a mandate from the people, there is a slow but steady change in a culture; the rich will lose some influence to the masses and that loss means some power bleeding over to the masses.

 

Are the rich going to be treated the same as the poor in Thailand anytime soon? Nope. But, things will improve, slowly.

 

PS: Please- if you are going to quote my post(s), please quote all of it. TIA.

 

 

Apologies for that, but forum rules don't allow underlining or highlighting the pertinent part of a post being quoted.  Rather than quote a whole, long post and leave people guessing which part I'm responding to, I quote only that part.   (Not to mention the pages and pages of repetitive quotes when it's a long one being quoted again and again- and my favorite, the same photo showing up on 20-30 posts in a row.)  I try to stay true to the meaning, but sometimes I fail.

 

 

[tigermoth]

Most democratic countries require about 3 months to prepare for an election, regardless of what current issues may be outstanding in the government.

[JAG]

32 minutes ago, tigermoth said:

Most democratic countries require about 3 months to prepare for an election, regardless of what current issues may be outstanding in the government.

That is because they are rather lazy, and leave the outcome up to the electorate. Here, by contrast, much energy diligence and effort is being expended by the incumbent (junta) government to ensure a satisfactory result - this all takes time...

 

Those naifs amongst us who believe that the point of an election is to determine the will of the electorate really should study "Thai Niyom" which takes the whole business to a higher plane.

 

Of course, once "Thai Niyom" takes effect properly, and society becomes seamlessly content, with no conflict and replete with happiness there will be no further need for such messy inconvenient and time-consuming matters as elections. When will that be? Only time will tell, and the no 2 chappie is well equiped for that particular task....

Edited February 13, 2018 by JAG

[debate101]

Clips of impassioned speeches given by the protest leaders calling out Prayut and Prawit directly are making the rounds on Thai social media, although there is a television blackout on coverage. 70,000+ shares in the past 20 hours. I think the public is finally losing its fear...

Edited February 13, 2018 by debate101

[steven100]

1 minute ago, debate101 said:

Clips of impassioned speeches given by the protest leaders calling out Prayut and Prawit directly are making the rounds on Thai social media, although there is a television blackout on coverage. 70,000+ shares in the past 20 hours. I think the public is finally losing its fear...

Nothing new here. Khun Prayut knows when to act and how. It is fine if the parties can maintain law and order but there lies the problem.

This government will be here for the long haul. You think the general will let Thailand sink back in anarchy as before. Not likely.

[Enoon]

4 hours ago, yellowboat said:

 They need to stop looking foolish by setting a reasonable date campaigning to start and elections. 

 

 

They will sacrifice whatever "need" anyone might think they have to the one certain need that they have themselves, in their own minds:

 

The need for power.

 

Forget any of the philosophies/aspirations or calculated political ideals that overlaid/drove the rise of the West.

 

Everything here is subordinate to the one overriding principle.............Dominion.

 

It remains to be seen if the end of one era has resulted in them having the unfettered ability to maintain that dominion.

 

 

Edited February 13, 2018 by Enoon

[Enoon]

20 minutes ago, steven100 said:

 

This government will be here for the long haul. You think the general will let Thailand sink back in anarchy as before. Not likely.

 

History is not that kind to old men whose only hope is to live out their retirement in quiet, comfortable, undisturbed tranquility......even though it is being maintained (for them) by thuggish oppression.

 

That's just the way it is Steven.

 

 

Edited February 13, 2018 by Enoon

[debate101]

3 minutes ago, steven100 said:

Nothing new here. Khun Prayut knows when to act and how. It is fine if the parties can maintain law and order but there lies the problem.

This government will be here for the long haul. You think the general will let Thailand sink back in anarchy as before. Not likely.

If I had to guess, a counter-coup by another conservative military faction with the appropriate blessings given and the two P's scapegoated is the most likely outcome, but they may be running out of time to douse this fire. Those two are becoming political dead weight.

[jcsmith]

5 hours ago, darksidedog said:

It happens everywhere. You can only repress people for so long and it seems that that time in Thailand is fast approaching. The end of the Junta is nigh.

The one thing that you can consistently count on in this country is that the junta will return in a few years. =(

Edited February 13, 2018 by jcsmith

[samsensam]

5 minutes ago, jcsmith said:

The one thing that you can consistently count on in this country is that the junta will return in a few years. =(

 

indeed, i think the future political landscape will follow a fairly predictable course. politics here is polarised, political party's represent segments of society rather than political or economic ideologies which can sway/attract the voter. add to that the corruption at high levels and the vote buying at low levels and you're never going to get an electoral outcome that the population as a whole will respect and accept. plus ca change...

[Enoon]

25 minutes ago, debate101 said:

If I had to guess, a counter-coup by another conservative military faction with the appropriate blessings given and the two P's scapegoated is the most likely outcome, but they may be running out of time to douse this fire. Those two are becoming political dead weight.

 

The big question is the blessings.

 

Will they legitimise, unify, divide, or will they even play a role?

 

 

Edited February 13, 2018 by Enoon

[Srikcir]

8 hours ago, webfact said:

the way the authorities are reacting to such incidents guarantees they will be unable to maintain order, and in fact will likely fuel more insurrection.

I'm sure it's "insurrection" from Prayut's viewpoint but from the viewpoint of the Thai people it's simply an exercise of their constitutional rights. The Nation needs to use the correct context or it implicitly empowers the junta to excuse its excesses against human rights by claiming insurrection.

[marko kok prong]

Where i live in rural Thailand no ones care's as long as they can eat most of the day and drink whisky at night and have sanook.

[chainarong]

A very fine piece of honest reporting from a country showing signs of impatient with the Junta, for Prayuth the honeymoon was well n truly over middle of 2017, it's up to the people to find the road map to piece,  not a government top heavy with bloated belligerent Generals....................  

[holy cow cm]

8 hours ago, steven100 said:

Nothing new here. Khun Prayut knows when to act and how. It is fine if the parties can maintain law and order but there lies the problem.

This government will be here for the long haul. You think the general will let Thailand sink back in anarchy as before. Not likely.

Do you think the soldiers of high and low rank partisan to the color red might just of had enough of his self absorbed BS? Just don't think there is only one side, but perhaps a silent suppressed side ready to say I'm full and had enough sleep.  

[Jools]

Thailand will never change until the old Generals die off. Power is the goal here and they will not relinquish power easily.

[tukkytuktuk]

I vote for Uncle P and his 20 year road map!

Now, let me just check how Cambodia is getting on, hmmm, copycat.

[DrTuner]

1...2... C

[robblok]

23 hours ago, samsensam said:

 

indeed, i think the future political landscape will follow a fairly predictable course. politics here is polarised, political party's represent segments of society rather than political or economic ideologies which can sway/attract the voter. add to that the corruption at high levels and the vote buying at low levels and you're never going to get an electoral outcome that the population as a whole will respect and accept. plus ca change...

The problem is not the population, its the leaders, they all want to be in power and will incite their followers to be violent or by other means bring down the government. The population themselves won't act without being incited by their leaders and their leaders only want to be in power to steal from the country.