Rallies reflect populism's limited reach

[webfact]

Rallies reflect populism's limited reach
Hataikarn Treesuwan
The Nation



Top officials try to keep distance from street protests

BANGKOK: -- AS THIS GOVERNMENT enters its halfway mark, more and more protesters are taking to the streets - not because of their political ideology, but because they are suffering from the "unfortunate side-effects" of this administration's populist policies.

Yet, Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra appears to have adopted a hands-off approach, getting her Cabinet members or other state officials to deal with farmers, poor villagers, taxi drivers, rural doctors or whoever else might be protesting.

Usually, it is politicians who are close to Yingluck's older brother, former PM Thaksin Shinawatra, who persuade the protest leaders to calm down or offer advice to the government on how to deal with the problem. They seem to have helped pull this administration out of many bad situations.

Yet, the government believes it is good at the job, as it was successful in handling a major protest two years ago.

A Pheu Thai source said party leaders usually kept a close eye on rallies to see if things get out of hand and evaluate the situation based on three points:

Is the issue old or new?;

Is the protest in Bangkok or upcountry?; and

Are there any politicians behind the protest?

Any rallies held in the capital pose "high risk" for this government.

"Ordinary protesters", such as indebted farmers or the People's Movement for a Just Society (P-Move) get little attention from the government as their demands seem to be unchanged. However, rice and rubber farmers got more attention because it was the government's own policies that affected them.

"Situations like this are an emergency that need to be handled carefully," the source said. "We learned that the rubber growers in the South were backed by Democrat MPs, while 'Mr S' from another opposition party organised the rubber farmers' protest in the Northeast. We tried to make a deal with them [the politicians] but they did not accept our conditions. If the talks failed, our strategy was to brand them as 'fake protesters'."

The source, who is one of Thaksin's aides, said another factor that needs to be considered is the nature of protesters. For instance, taxi drivers are aggressive compared to farmers.

"We need to be alert and careful when dealing with hardliners. They might burn or block some places. But, eventually, our strategy will help us survive all protests," he said.

As for Yingluck's policy to keep the role of her government and her Pheu Thai Party separate, it only worsens the situation sometimes.

"Big names don't want to deal with protesters because they don't want to be criticised. That's the reason why PM's deputy secretary-general Suporn Atthawong has been assigned to monitor protests.

However, he is a junior politician with no authority, so he cannot win protesters' trust," the source said.

P-Move coordinator Kridsakorn Silarak said this government, unlike the previous Democrat-led one, does not have one key person to deal with protesters. Satit Wongnongtaey, then-PM's Office minister, was the "go-to" man for protesters during the Abhisit Vejjajiva government, the activist said. Since they had a contact point, the protesters knew who to take their demands to, he explained.

Kridsakorn said it was embarrassing for the government that Deputy PM and Finance Minister Kittiratt Na-Ranong was unable to strike a deal with the rubber farmers when he met them in Bangkok. In fact, things were so bad that Deputy PM Pracha Promnog had to meet the angry rubber growers again in Nakhon Si Thammarat on the following day.

He went on to say that this might just be the right time for people to put forward their demands. "The prime minister is expected to dissolve the House of Representatives soon, and the government needs to appease its voters. So, if we push for our demands now, we will probably get a response. Protesters become strong when the government is weak," he said.

Meanwhile, a source at the National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA) said the government ignored the "Fight for Science" protest because it did not think NSTDA's movement could affect its image, as it was an internal problem. The protesters were accusing then-science minister Worawat Auapinyakul of lacking good governance and interfering in the NSTDA's budget. The protest initially began with the distribution of flyers, but then started gaining momentum via social media.

However, the source said the group calmed down because Worawat lost his position in the Cabinet reshuffle, and now they need to focus on preparing their case for the House ad-hoc committee for the 2014 budget bill as Worawat has cut the NSTDA budget. "A protest can only be deemed successful if all demands are met, not by the number of protesters," the source said.

Narong Phetprasert, a lecturer at Chulalongkorn University's Faculty of Economics, said many people had taken to the streets because they were upset by the government's policies. Besides, the government has created a rift in society.

For instance, he said, rubber growers - many of whom are southerners and seen as Democrat supporters - got little attention compared to the rice farmers in the North and Northeast who are openly Pheu Thai supporters.

"Now the discontent is mostly in the South. Though the government appears to have got other regions under control, in reality it is only controlling its own supporters. So, I'm not sure how long the government can keep the general public calm," he said.

Narong also noted that past political crises in Thailand, such 1973, 1976 and 1992, seem to have coincided with global economic crises.


-- The Nation 2013-09-16

[worgeordie]

The Government has opened Pandora's box with these populist

polices,Ok for buying votes using tax payers money,but does not

benefit Thailand in the long run,too many people relying on

Government help for everything, next it will be mom and pop stores

wanting Govt. hand outs, because a Tesco/Lotus or Big C has

opened up nearby ,and on it goes, don't see how they can stop it

now,too afraid to lose votes,but if it continues could result in what

has happened in Greece,Italy,Spain,and Portugal,

regards Worgeordie

[phantomfiddler]

The Thaksin government honed the populist policy to it,s finest point, and in doing so has caused the greatest damage ever inflicted on this lovely land and people. "Vote for me and I will give every village in Thailand 1 million baht" ! In one disastrous move the fate of the country was sealed, money for nothing, while the ruler basked in the idolation of the poor and reaped untold benefits. The piper has to be paid, and the unstable equation slowly brings the country to it,s knees.

[CUNJU]

So Sad Nothing seems To Change, and The Poor Continue To Suffer!