An Old Idea Unlikely To Bear Fruit

[Lite Beer]

EDITORIAL

An old idea unlikely to bear fruit

The Nation

BANGKOK: -- ​Chalerm's push for a curfew will win him few fans in deep South

It is not only sad but somewhat upsetting to see top security officials debating whether a curfew should be imposed in the three southernmost provinces where ongoing violence has so far claimed more than 5,000 lives since January 2004.

It wouldn't have been so bad if the two men were just ordinary lawmakers. But they were people in charge of newsjssecurity policy and their decision would have a direct impact on the lives of troops sent to the restive region to quell a bloody ongoing insurgency with no end in sight.

The two men in the spotlight are, of course, Deputy Prime Minister Chalerm Yoobamrung and Defence Minister Sukampol Suwannathat.

Chalerm has blasted Sukampol for publicly disagreeing with his proposal that a curfew be set up in the deep South.

Disagreement is fine but the manner that it's being carried out is somewhat disturbing.

Chalerm told the former air chief marshal to ask the prime minister to give him the job if he thinks he can do it better.

In a way, Chalerm was telling Sukampol that while the ruling party may respect his blind loyalty to the ruling Pheu Thai Party for going after opposition leader Abhisit Vejjajiva with all his might over the latter's time in service, he shouldn't let it go to his head.

In other words, Sukampol needs to learn his place in the Pheu Thai Party line-up. Confident over his own position, Chalerm even dragged the prime minister into the argument.

"I am the director of the new operations centre dealing with insurgent violence in the deep South, and what do I do if I am given the post but not allowed to propose ideas to do the job," Charlerm said.

Humility is not exactly a strong trait of Thai politicians. And so Sukampol noted that Chalerm was well within his right to make such a statement simply because he was superior in terms of political rank.

"The committee will meet next Friday to solve the matter, so how can ACM Sukampol conclude the military disagrees?" Mr Chalerm said.

"Maybe only one airforce officer disagrees," he quipped.

Luckily for both men, and for Thailand for that matter, this mudslinging between two men with inflated egos didn't turn into a military-versus-police stand-off.

Affecting Thailand's credibility

What is really sad is these policy-makers don't seems to understand that what they say publicly, or do, affects Thailand's credibility in the eyes of its citizens and the international community.

Lives and livelihood are at stake here and it's not just the officials sent to the restive region but the local residents as well.

A curfew in the region is nothing new as previous governments have tried it before and it did nothing in terms of curbing the violence, whether insurgency-related or just pure criminal acts with no political linkage.

Thai authorities have not been able to distinguish between insurgency violence and criminal acts and continue to conveniently blame the separatists for everything.

Besides having virtually no impact on the violence, a curfew would, needless to say, disrupt the locals' way of life economically and culturally. Aside from the fact that local residents tap rubber trees early in the morning, just hours after midnight, many funerals, as well as daily prayers, are conducted after the sun goes down.

Meanwhile, many attacks on government troops are carried out in broad daylight - not at night.

Chalerm's proposal is in line with the thinking of some hawkish military personnel who believe that by making the lives of the local Malay Muslims much harder, they would be inclined to support the government's efforts to curb the insurgency.

But such a zero-sum game mentality does nothing in terms of addressing the root cause of the conflict, which is imbedded in the historical mistrust between the ethnic Malays and the Thai State in this highly contested region. In the end, Chalerm's half-baked measure will do nothing except widen the trust gap between the two sides.

-- The Nation 2013-02-11

[Pib]

Humility is not exactly a strong trait of Thai politicians.

Boy, ain't this the truth.

[hellodolly]

The problem lies in the government trying to run the show from the back seat. They send the army in to do the work and then hand cuff them with idiotic thing's like putting Chalerm in charge. A man with an ear medicine problem who's only claim to the ability to do the job is well noted by the color of his nose.

If the job was turned over to the Army with out handcuffing them we would have seen results long ago and I really don't think The death count would be as high as it is. Also now it is just an on going thing it is not over. All so the death count would be more insurgents and less innocent people.

Indeed it would be a bitter pill to swallow but the over all and long lasting results would be worth it.

One draw back on the whole thing is they would have to pick a man for the job based on his ability not his political connections.

A whole new concept for Thailand.

Edited February 11, 2013 by hellodolly

[jamhar]

"An old idea unlikely to bear fruit"

Gawd!! I thought someone was talking about ME!!!

[h90]

The problem lies in the government trying to run the show from the back seat. They send the army in to do the work and then hand cuff them with idiotic thing's like putting Chalerm in charge. A man with an ear medicine problem who's only claim to the ability to do the job is well noted by the color of his nose.

If the job was turned over to the Army with out handcuffing them we would have seen results long ago and I really don't think The death count would be as high as it is. Also now it is just an on going thing it is not over. All so the death count would be more insurgents and less innocent people.

Indeed it would be a bitter pill to swallow but the over all and long lasting results would be worth it.

One draw back on the whole thing is they would have to pick a man for the job based on his ability not his political connections.

A whole new concept for Thailand.

Now there were so many things done wrong in south, that even for the best one it would be hard to repair the problem......But an independent country would be surely very interesting for some people, considering the oil and gas resources.....

[Thai at Heart]

As i wrote elsewhere, conducting this type of strategic discussion through the press, rarely gets a good outcome.

If these idiots would bite their tongue occasionally instead of blurting out every plan they have ever had to a hoard of microphones, this apparent disagreement might not happen.

[Phatcharanan]

"An old idea unlikely to bear fruit"

Gawd!! I thought someone was talking about ME!!!

Why is it that only 'noobies' laugh at their own comments?

This has puzzled me for some considerable time.

[Buchholz]

And at the end of the day, the bottom line is...

A curfew in the region is nothing new as previous governments have tried it before and it did nothing in terms of curbing the violence

[IMA_FARANG]

Go to an relatively unbiased source (if you can find one) and look up the history of those provinces in the last century or so,

They were given to Thailand by the British to the then government of Thailand (then called Siam) in exchange for the Thais giving up any claim to the Eastern part of what is now Malaysia.

For the first 30 years (roughly) they were given a relatively free rien by Thailand .... even to having a local government and a Islamic schook system they ran locally.

Then in the 1930's under what can only be called a Military dictator who was then in power in Thailand the Thai government took away theserights.

no need to get into the Thai politics of that time .... and that avoids any controversy and any sensitive subjects.

Anyhow that removal of those privaledges by the Thais is the basis of the fitst opposition to Thailand's rule over those provinces.

By now this silliness has become a matter of Thai national honor .... to the point where any rational discussion of the issues involved by either side has become impossible.

It's a sad thing ... but irational men always prefr "politics" over common sense and compromise.

In every country,

[Briggsy]

The problem lies in the government trying to run the show from the back seat. They send the army in to do the work and then hand cuff them with idiotic thing's like putting Chalerm in charge. A man with an ear medicine problem who's only claim to the ability to do the job is well noted by the color of his nose.

If the job was turned over to the Army with out handcuffing them we would have seen results long ago and I really don't think The death count would be as high as it is. Also now it is just an on going thing it is not over. All so the death count would be more insurgents and less innocent people.

Indeed it would be a bitter pill to swallow but the over all and long lasting results would be worth it.

One draw back on the whole thing is they would have to pick a man for the job based on his ability not his political connections.

A whole new concept for Thailand.

Thaksin tried this in the early 2000's by sending in Special Forces, the result was an upsurge in killings of villagers by mysterious men in black and ended with the Tak Bai massacre. This massacre of protestors damaged Thailand's reputation and resulted in a change of Army personnel in the South and a change in the way the area's security was dealt with.

That misguided policy coupled with the unaccountibility of the Army is largely responsible for the decade of violence we have seen.

[hellodolly]

The problem lies in the government trying to run the show from the back seat. They send the army in to do the work and then hand cuff them with idiotic thing's like putting Chalerm in charge. A man with an ear medicine problem who's only claim to the ability to do the job is well noted by the color of his nose.

If the job was turned over to the Army with out handcuffing them we would have seen results long ago and I really don't think The death count would be as high as it is. Also now it is just an on going thing it is not over. All so the death count would be more insurgents and less innocent people.

Indeed it would be a bitter pill to swallow but the over all and long lasting results would be worth it.

One draw back on the whole thing is they would have to pick a man for the job based on his ability not his political connections.

A whole new concept for Thailand.

Thaksin tried this in the early 2000's by sending in Special Forces, the result was an upsurge in killings of villagers by mysterious men in black and ended with the Tak Bai massacre. This massacre of protestors damaged Thailand's reputation and resulted in a change of Army personnel in the South and a change in the way the area's security was dealt with.

That misguided policy coupled with the unaccountibility of the Army is largely responsible for the decade of violence we have seen.

You might want to read my post. I specifically said with out handcuffing them. Thaksin ran the show mot the army they were his tools. They did what he authorized.

I also said a competent man. Not some dippsy do brown nosing graft seeking clown who knows some one. I base my ideas on solving the problem the past is a great guideline to people truly interested in solving the problem. Unfortunately that is not what many people do they point fingers and assign blame.

[Melyn]

I will wager a Yala coconut that neither of these bickering bozos has ever set foot in the 3 souther provinces

[renrut salohcin]

"An old idea unlikely to bear fruit"

Gawd!! I thought someone was talking about ME!!!

Why is it that only 'noobies' laugh at their own comments?

This has puzzled me for some considerable time.

There's plenty of established posters that do the same thing, some putting that irritating bloody icon (if that's the word) multiple times after their own comments.

[Locationthailand]

Huffing and puffing and no way to close any deal. I love the OP relating to the two inflated egos... excellent.

[jcb2001]

"An old idea unlikely to bear fruit"

Gawd!! I thought someone was talking about ME!!!

Why is it that only 'noobies' laugh at their own comments?

This has puzzled me for some considerable time.

Must be British humor!

[Artisi]

Just another day in the circus, the only problem being that the clowns in this circus seem to be the ones who call all the shots.

[Melyn]

"An old idea unlikely to bear fruit"

Gawd!! I thought someone was talking about ME!!!

Why is it that only 'noobies' laugh at their own comments?

This has puzzled me for some considerable time.

Must be British humor!

Where I come from mate, British Humour has a ewe!

[theajarn]

Go to an relatively unbiased source (if you can find one) and look up the history of those provinces in the last century or so,

They were given to Thailand by the British to the then government of Thailand (then called Siam) in exchange for the Thais giving up any claim to the Eastern part of what is now Malaysia.

For the first 30 years (roughly) they were given a relatively free rien by Thailand .... even to having a local government and a Islamic schook system they ran locally.

Then in the 1930's under what can only be called a Military dictator who was then in power in Thailand the Thai government took away theserights.

no need to get into the Thai politics of that time .... and that avoids any controversy and any sensitive subjects.

Anyhow that removal of those privaledges by the Thais is the basis of the fitst opposition to Thailand's rule over those provinces.

By now this silliness has become a matter of Thai national honor .... to the point where any rational discussion of the issues involved by either side has become impossible.

It's a sad thing ... but irational men always prefr "politics" over common sense and compromise.

In every country,

...and the Thais will teach it to their kids in History that the Thais were always right and the other side was always wrong... just as it was right to sell off to the Japanese invaders in 1941 and declare war on the the US and the UK in 1942 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_invasion_of_Thailand) but of course... Thailand was NEVER manipulated... never colonised...

[Rancid]

These stupid ideas will keep flowing as long as the real problems are not addressed and of course they never will be.

It should be the police controlling the area, however the police is a legalised criminal organisation with no useful training ourside of shakedowns and embezzlement. As such they are good for nothing.

The army should be assisting the police, however this is a business and golfing organisation with some drug running thrown in, that aside too many troops are kept around the population centres in case a coup is needed at short notice.

It has been suggested that a lot of the violence is drug and criminal related and as many in government at various levels are benefitting then it is allowed to continue. There can only be one possible expalantion as to why controlling the area is so completely ineffective - profit. I see larger Muslim areas constantly expanding around the country, seems the Muslims also want out of their Islamic Caliphate, suspect only the fanatics actually want to live in a totalitarian theocracy.

[MEL1]

"I am the director of the new operations centre dealing with insurgent violence in the deep South, and what do I do if I am given the post but not allowed to propose ideas to do the job," Charlerm said."

Well if you can't come up with new creative ideas, and resort to 18th century remit such as curfew, then what you are to do is "RESIGN", and give the job to somebody who can come up with innovative, up-to-date ideas, you idiot!

"I am the Director"..... blah blah..... whoopee for you! I know many Directors who couldn't organise a shag in a brothel, or keep well and flu at bay.

Ooops...... My sincere apologies, Mr C**T, I ffffkssake forgot - the latter you are an expert at!

-mel.

[MEL1]

"An old idea unlikely to bear fruit"

Gawd!! I thought someone was talking about ME!!!

Why is it that only 'noobies' laugh at their own comments?

This has puzzled me for some considerable time.

Must be British humor!

Where I come from mate, British Humour has a ewe!

I thought that was only the Welsh!

-mel.

[Melyn]

I thought that was only the Welsh!

-mel.

Its a patented tenderization process for export produce across Offa's Dyke

[hellodolly]

"An old idea unlikely to bear fruit"

Gawd!! I thought someone was talking about ME!!!

Why is it that only 'noobies' laugh at their own comments?

This has puzzled me for some considerable time.

There's plenty of established posters that do the same thing, some putting that irritating bloody icon (if that's the word) multiple times after their own comments.

In keeping in line with the posters here I have decided to add my nonsensical two satongs worth.

Edited February 11, 2013 by hellodolly

[BigSkip]

I have been there, have driven there, stayed there & don't want to go back. So sad that so many here(T.V.) have a opinion that really don't have a clue whats really happening down there. It's so complicated, but yet so simple whats happening for what ever reason. I will not repeat what my relatives are going through, but its not nice. And Yes..... I don't have the answers

Edited February 11, 2013 by BigSkip

[jamhar]

"This has puzzled me for some considerable time."

Dude, You need to get out more

Edited February 11, 2013 by jamhar