EDITORIAL
Honesty is shown by actions, not superstitious ritual
The Nation

The fashion for swearing oaths has undermined public accountability

BANGKOK: -- The Football Association of Thailand (FAT) last week came up with a "noble" way of tackling the country's match-fixing problem by getting 130 referees to swear an oath before the Emerald Buddha statue in Bangkok.

The ritual was meant to restore the referees' integrity and give the football clubs and their supporters confidence that the officials would now perform their duties honestly. However, the move has left many observers baffled, with both fans and international media unconvinced it will end corruption in the game.

The sport's governing body was following a fashion already well established among politicians. In recent years lawmakers such as Chalerm Yoobamrung and Snoh Thienthong have take oaths at the same temple in a bid to convince voters of their integrity. Whether they succeeded is another matter. People tend to be sceptical of such acts, viewing them as a convenient mask for liars to hide behind. Trust, after all, must be earned rather than pleaded for. Honesty has to be demonstrated through concrete actions, not superstitious rituals.

The FAT oath-taking ceremony made headlines outside Thailand and been greeted with ridicule. News that referees who faced allegations of corruption and poor performance insist they are now ready to uphold the laws of the game has been taken as evidence of a weird and backward society. Even more ridiculous is that most of them apparently believe that taking the oath has wiped clean the slate of their past misdeeds.

The root cause of the match-fixing allegations is poor refereeing decisions during games. These have sometimes led to post-match violence among fans. But rather than tackling the problem with a rigorous investigation of bad refereeing, the FAT has chosen superficial quick fixes that do nothing to improve the quality of officials on the pitch. Now fear is growing that leading Thai Premier League clubs upset by poor refereeing might break away and form a separate organisation. But instead of allaying that fear and strengthening the health of Thai football, the oath-taking ceremony seems to have been a face-saving exercise on the part of the FAT.

It also underlines a wider problem concerning Thais' approach to honesty. "Actions speak louder than words" is a maxim rarely heeded in Thailand. One of the referees was adamant that the oath-taking ceremony would lead to improvements. If everyone joins him in that conviction, Thai football is doomed.

We all like to present ourselves as honest people, and few of us are willing to take responsibility for our wrongdoing. But when such lack of personal accountability infects officialdom in a popular sport like football, we risk passing on the amorality to youngsters. They should not be taught that they could evade accountability for their actions by swearing an oath.

Honesty is not the same as fear of supernatural punishment. Rather, it is fear of betraying one's principles and professional ethics. Referees will uphold the laws of the game only when they are afraid of making mistakes that could ruin their professional reputations.

Meanwhile they can swear as many oaths as they like, but it will never improve their performance on the pitch.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/opinion/Honesty-is-shown-by-actions-not-superstitious-ritu-30240291.html

[thenation]2014-08-06[/thenation]

I've seen the cheating that goes in in the under 8 soccer games. No way will they stop cheating at higher levels.

I think Thais will stick with superstition and meaningless oath taking etc.

 

Honesty however is a different ball game and no pun intended.

Taking an oath at the Emerald Buddha was not option for me. Every time I went there they tried charge me 400 baht, so I decided to bite the bullet and just be uncertified honest.

Taking an oath at the Emerald Buddha was not option for me. Every time I went there they tried charge me 400 baht, so I decided to bite the bullet and just be uncertified honest.

 

 why didnt you ask for the Thai price?

Seems like taking an oath is a bit like Catholic confession without even the semblance of remorse. Thais seems to love being selfish, personally irresponsible and a little bit deceitful and wash it all away with the idea that a few words and small gift to the Wat will set everything right. Isn't it all just an excuse for immoral behaviour to continue rather than aspiring to be better people as Buddhism teaches?


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Edited August 6, 201411 yr by timewilltell

Seems like taking an oath is a bit like Catholic confession without even the semblance of remorse. Thais seems to love being selfish, personally irresponsible and a little bit deceitful and wash it all away with the idea that a few words and small gift to the Wat will set everything right. Isn't it all just an excuse for immoral behaviour to continue rather than aspiring to be better people as Buddhism teaches?


Sent from my iPad using ThaiVisa app

 

When I was a kid I used to pray every night for a new bicycle. Then I realised that the Lord doesn't work that way so I stole one and asked Him to forgive me.
Emo Phillips.

 

Sums it up really nicely.

 

Taking an oath at the Emerald Buddha was not option for me. Every time I went there they tried charge me 400 baht, so I decided to bite the bullet and just be uncertified honest.

 

 why didnt you ask for the Thai price?

 

No,  you not Thai pepen

It is a great challenge to see people who "walk their talk." 

This selfish attitude to the religion is a universal vice.  When i am overcome with the desire to give some particularly pathetic beggar  or some other worthwhile charity (no, in neither case, wearing a brown uniform), my wfe always wants me to pray before I hand it over so I get the correct Buddhist merit for my action.  To keep her quiet, I frequently pretend to pray, but I am an athiest.and I am fed up with my own double standards.  Next time I will tell her I give  ONLY because i want to give.  NOT because I wish to make it conditional that I receive when I give.  

 

Giving should be like wearing adult daipers.  The warm feeling alone should be enough without any outside acknowledgement. (O.K. that is no Emo Phillips!!!!!!)

Edited August 6, 201411 yr by The Deerhunter

Superstitious ritual?

 

Surely this article wasn't written by a Thai, was it?

Wow, I agree with the writer.

The only way to convince fans of a new honesty is to fire a mess of old referees, coaches and players. Really corruption in soccer? How ridiculous.