How Do You Feel About Thaksin Working For Cambodia?

[awd]

I think ths is Cambo's and Thaksin's equivalent to a public "mooning" of the Thai govt. His position may have little value, but it apparently has a big face value.

And many Thai citizens, perhaps the majority, even if they do not support Thaksin, are very happy to see the present Thai government face a public "mooning" as you put it. The disdain for the present government and those who back it goes far deeper than any Thaksin-No Thaksin debate.

[LooseCannon]

I think ths is Cambo's and Thaksin's equivalent to a public "mooning" of the Thai govt. His position may have little value, but it apparently has a big face value.

And many Thai citizens, perhaps the majority, even if they do not support Thaksin, are very happy to see the present Thai government face a public "mooning" as you put it. The disdain for the present government and those who back it goes far deeper than any Thaksin-No Thaksin debate.

Whilst the Thai people may or may not hold the government in disdain, the ultimate backers of said government are held in high regard & are shown unquestioning loyalty.

Some see it as a 'mooning' of said backers despite all shallow protestations to the contrary.

[Sheryl]

I think ths is Cambo's and Thaksin's equivalent to a public "mooning" of the Thai govt. His position may have little value, but it apparently has a big face value.

Yes but the question is why.

Is Hun Sen merely acting out of anger (and he does have considerable reason to be angry with the Thai government) or is it a calculated move intended to produce an effect -- and if so, what effect exactly?

I don't know.

[dr_Pat_Pong]

If you're any what familiar with his work and extensive material regarding Thailand, you'll find that his bias and agendic positions are quite obvious.

Agendic isn't a word. Perhaps it is in Sisaket.

Any political commentator has a point of view. It is not the same function as straight news reporting which is supposed to strive for objectivity.

A rural dialect ?

[wintermute]

Conclusion - Thaksin should feel quite at home in Cambodia were such things as 'rule of law', 'democratic participation', 'accountability' & 'freedom of the press'(all measured indicators used) fail miserably. Whilst Thailand is not exactly a 'beacon of democracy', it is certainly in front of Cambodia.

Thailand being slightly in front of Cambodia when it comes to democracy rating is like being the second to last cripple in the special olympics.

[Siripon]

The title seems to assume that Taksin's position as economic advisor is genuine. I'm in Phnom Penh now and have been throughout this little "episode". There is lots of local speculation as to what Hun Sen is up to, no-one seems to really know, but of the many theories being bandied about the one thing they all have in common is that absolutely no-one takes his "advisor" post seriously or literally.

For sure, this little manuever hurts Taksin politically and was, for him, a foolish one.

The much more interesting question is what Hun Sen's reasons were/are, and that remains unclear. Not knowing what he was aiming for, one can't begin to assess how effective this was/will be in achieving it.

Hun Sen and Thaksin have had business connections for many years, the coup and now the Democrats must have hurt some of those plans personally (a casino delayed perhaps) and nationally, no further progress on Khao Pra Wihan and the gas and oil fields in the Gulf.

Kasit's words may have mildly hurt but Thailand's role as chairman of ASEAN with the articulate, bilingual, intelligent young Apisit in the forefront must have rankled the gruff veteran.

Thaksin wants to bait the government and keep a high profile, Hun Sen wants to embarrass the upstart basking in the forums, so they create the post of advisor as cover.

As usual with Thaksin truth is not important.

[Huey]

The title seems to assume that Taksin's position as economic advisor is genuine. I'm in Phnom Penh now and have been throughout this little "episode". There is lots of local speculation as to what Hun Sen is up to, no-one seems to really know, but of the many theories being bandied about the one thing they all have in common is that absolutely no-one takes his "advisor" post seriously or literally.

For sure, this little manuever hurts Taksin politically and was, for him, a foolish one.

The much more interesting question is what Hun Sen's reasons were/are, and that remains unclear. Not knowing what he was aiming for, one can't begin to assess how effective this was/will be in achieving it.

Hun Sen and Thaksin have had business connections for many years, the coup and now the Democrats must have hurt some of those plans personally (a casino delayed perhaps) and nationally, no further progress on Khao Pra Wihan and the gas and oil fields in the Gulf.

Kasit's words may have mildly hurt but Thailand's role as chairman of ASEAN with the articulate, bilingual, intelligent young Apisit in the forefront must have rankled the gruff veteran.

Thaksin wants to bait the government and keep a high profile, Hun Sen wants to embarrass the upstart basking in the forums, so they create the post of advisor as cover.

As usual with Thaksin truth is not important.

That would explain the seemingly odd nautical boarder claims by Hun Sen and his new side kick.

[Sheryl]

The business connections are well known and there is no question that the departure of Taksin/arrival of the Democrats has set these back, both HS-Tk "private' deals and officially signed off on bilateral agreements as present govt has opted to "rethink" or disregard many of same that were signed by the previous administration, including a plan for joint development of some of the offshore oil.

It is also pretty clear that HunSen has concluded that negotiations of any sort with the current thai administration are futile, and not without reason.

But what still remains unclear is what Hun Sen hopes to accomplish by this highly public embrace of Taksin, i.e. is he so out of touch with Thai political realities as to think that this would actually help Taksin's bid to regain power? Is he simply angrily seeking revenge even though it will in no way help-- and in fact, will likely hurt -- his primary ($$) agenda? Does he think that by demonstrating his ability to cause them trouble and embarassment he will finally win som e respect from the current Thai administration (if so, probably a very bad judgement call)? Or did he do this precisely for the effect it did have (eroding Taksin's support base) inwhich case who put him up to it and with what inducements?

[rixalex]

But what still remains unclear is what Hun Sen hopes to accomplish by this highly public embrace of Taksin,

My feeling is Hun Sen feels, like a good number of members on this forum, that the current Thai government's days are numbered and that there will be some wholesale change in the not too distant future that will ultimately see Thaksin back here, perhaps not as PM, but certainly not as a convict, more likely as a statesman of great stature. Should that happen, Hun Sen would then cash-in, and cash-in handsomely on his current actions which have rather put him out on a limb.

[Huey]

I'm not sure but I would bet if Taxsin came back he would be shot. You have allot of Thais that still respect and love the "Powers that be" (the group who can not be named due to forum rules) That would put a hole in him rather than see him return to use his mob of illiterate serfs to further sully Thailand's image and exploit it's people.

[ozzieovaseas]

Got to hand it to the guy..In typical thai style his logic in attempting to further his deranged cause by using cheapshots and dirty pool only serves him to fall deeper in the <deleted>.

Its a bit like the tourism stooges being in denial and sitting on their hands doing nothing constructive,and pretending that all will be dandy in Dodge when in fact the industry is becoming the S.E.A hub of coffin nails.

Its hard to pick the worst of Taxins troubles and even harder to pick the most stupid of his antics..borderline legal issues with his backdoor agenda of challenging the powers that be, making an Ar5e of himself and Thailand in the worldwide media, inciting violence , dividing the country for his own egomaniacal causes, and if being a criminal on the run wasnt enough, now he sides with the troublesome neighbours!!..oh and what of those promises? (havent heard much about his you-beaut scholarship birthday gift thingy for the kiddies)

Surely he must now be considered a traitor, even by some of his old gaurd hardliners..and surely the uneducated northern country cousins must be starting to wipe the cr4p away from their eyes by now..especially since he hasnt thrown em a bone for a while

What a joke it all must be in the eyes of the world that he is left to his own devices and allowed to fly about about willy-nilly in his private jet all the while embarking on stupid childish antics that do the country no favours at all.

PS. havent heard much convincing argument from the usual TV tingtong thai taksin task squad defenders on these boards lately

Edited November 16, 2009 by ozzieovaseas

[zzaa09]

If you're any what familiar with his work and extensive material regarding Thailand, you'll find that his bias and agendic positions are quite obvious.

Agendic isn't a word. Perhaps it is in Sisaket.

Any political commentator has a point of view. It is not the same function as straight news reporting which is supposed to strive for objectivity.

A rural dialect ?

Yes. Very rural.

[Mali]

Judging by the poll at present it looks like he may be insane.

[color="#0000FF"]Absolutely agree with you. He really in need of a team of good shrinks.

Mali[/color]

[Mali]

The Thai people have no love lost for their present government, though there are isolated regions of support in the South and Bangkok..

And how have you come to that conclusion, awd? Clairvoyance? Polls say otherwise.

Issan & most of the North are red voters,

No need to be Nostradamus to know that a national poll would get about 70% for the reds.

Forget the polls truncated by the present government, its a joke.

And yeah thats why a national general democratic election wont happen anytime soon with the current government

As we all know; it is easy to fool the poor, uninformed and uneducated to do many things for you for B500.

[Huey]

Mali, you don't even have to FOOL them. I have seen em do soooo many things for 500Baht knowing full well what they were doing.

[quiksilva]

I can not see how siding with age old enemy Cambodia will endear him to patriotic Thais.

This seems like a last gasp effort, a favour from Hun Sen to Thaksin and his old buddy Chavalit who is working hard (but failing) to bring additional international pressure from Thailand's neighbours...

[wintermute]

I can not see how siding with age old enemy Cambodia will endear him to patriotic Thais.

This seems like a last gasp effort, a favour from Hun Sen to Thaksin and his old buddy Chavalit who is working hard (but failing) to bring additional international pressure from Thailand's neighbours...

I don't believe he has any intention of returning to Thailand ever again. I don't think he's that deluded. More than likely he's positioning himself business wise to take advantage of the rift that's going to develop when Thai politics hits a crisis once a certain figure who keeps the country unified passes on. Thaksin still has lots of business friends and he can influence Thai via proxy elsewhere through money. Plus with his presence in SE Asia he can have his cake and eat it too.

[LooseCannon]

Nirmal Ghosh of the Straits Times interviews Thaksin...

As for Thailand’s continuing political turmoil, he said: “I want this war ended on the negotiation table. I want to see Thailand as one nation.”

Would he compromise? “I avail myself for compromise all the time,” he replied without hesitation.

Asked what he would bring to the table, he became animated, saying: “Whatever, they are in power, why don’t they offer? We are ready to talk.”

(full article:http://themalaysianinsider.com/index.php/world/43661-the-long-shadow-of-thaksin-shinawatra)

Somebody needs to tell him it doesn't work that way.

[fridgemagnet]

Toxin may well be good for Cambodia, economically speaking.

Hun Sen may end up with the next Thai PM owing him a big favour.

Being so close to Thailand will make overseeing the paid for political unrest, and the buying of votes & support, that much easier.

He is close to his money.....