Pm Thaksin Needs To Pause And Think

[george]

PM needs to pause and think

What can go wrong will go wrong. From the euphoric New Year's Eve celebrations just three months ago, when the country and the world lay at his feet, Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra has fallen dramatically into a nightmare world of unexpected disasters, confusion and crisis.

Nobody could have predicted the speed and depth of his descent. In fact, on New Year's Eve, quite the opposite question was on everybody's mind. ''What could possibly shake the prime minister's iron grip on the country?'' The answer for most people was little or nothing at all.

Then came the explosion in the deep South, bird flu and the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand privatisation debacle.

Each crisis saw the prime minister react without thinking, although in retrospect each crisis was predictable to a certain extent. In the arrogance of complete victory and dominance, knee-jerk reactions were the order of the day.

The initial (and ongoing) response to the problems in the deep South has been to slap faces and stomp on people. Even as late as last week, the prime minister was quoted in this paper as saying: ''Settling problems in the South is like making apple juice. The apple has to be chopped and crushed in the blender, which will make a loud noise. If we can put up with that, we'll get the apple juice.'' Speaking as he was to security officials, one shudders to think exactly what kind of message Mr Thaksin was intending to send. Do we really think that heavy-handed suppression is the solution?

For a start, nobody I have talked to seems to understand what actually is going on in the deep South. What is the motivation for the terror attacks? Is there external support? Why now?

To be sure, the basic situation is starkly clear. The area is deprived economically. Unemployment among young Muslim Thais is very high. The entire Muslim population suffers from decades of colonial-style exploitation by Bangkok. Thai Muslims are woefully under-represented in every branch of officialdom, especially those areas of government service that most directly affect the people. Add to this recipe for disaster, the anger and despair felt by all Muslims around the world and the fact that the South in general has been regarded as a front-line political battleground by the Thai Rak Thai party in its efforts to finally annihilate all opposition, and perhaps the only surprise is that the explosion took so long.

Clearly violent suppression tactics, including the imposition of martial law, the disappearance of a high profile civil rights lawyer and the beating up of suspects in custody, will not win the day. As the Israelis have yet to learn, violence will beget violence, and anybody who thinks that just because they have more violence at their disposal, they will win, will be proven wrong.

With accusations of terrorism now being made against sitting members of the House of Representatives and the Senate, the situation is reaching crisis proportions. Kid gloves rather than apple crunching machines might be considered the order of the day. Money for a major development in the deep South should help, but the first and overwhelming priority is to establish a consensus among the Thai citizens of this region themselves.

This is not a problem susceptible to externally-imposed solutions. That is the basis of the underlying resentment. Bangkok does not know what these people fear or need. They do. Playing musical chairs with more or less incompetent ministers and military and police officials only serves to attempt to blame others for their lack of success and hide where the real responsibility lies.

The prime minister wants to run this country like a company. He promotes his CEO style of dynamic action at every opportunity. Part of that style must be the acceptance of responsibility. In this case, the prime minister is being tested.

- Kanjana Spindler is Assistant Editor, Editorial Pages, Bangkok Post 2004-03-31

[Dove]

Maybe they should change the PM, we didn't have so much problems under the old PM. Thailand was okay and not so materialistic. Wealth creates dissatisfaction especially when there is are great gaps in wealth.

[sonthaya]

Yes, let's have a new one, and I hope one who isn't so hostile towards Farangs who would like to settle in Thailand.

[dr_Pat_Pong]

Yes, let's have a new one, and I hope one who isn't so hostile towards Farangs who would like to settle in Thailand.

I think this one will run back to private enterprise if he keeps staggering from crisis to crisis. A sad lot of adverse happenings because of lack of thought.

[KenUdon]

I think this one will run back to private enterprise if he keeps staggering from crisis to crisis. A sad lot of adverse happenings because of lack of thought.

Coupled with not a small degree of arrogance Dr!!

[plachon]

PM needs to pause and think

What can go wrong will go wrong. From the euphoric New Year's Eve celebrations just three months ago, when the country and the world lay at his feet, Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra has fallen dramatically into a nightmare world of unexpected disasters, confusion and crisis.

Nobody could have predicted the speed and depth of his descent. In fact, on New Year's Eve, quite the opposite question was on everybody's mind. ''What could possibly shake the prime minister's iron grip on the country?'' The answer for most people was little or nothing at all.

Then came the explosion in the deep South, bird flu and the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand privatisation debacle.

- Kanjana Spindler is Assistant Editor, Editorial Pages, Bangkok Post 2004-03-31

I don't know: the decline of Toxin's star wasn't that unpredictable. All the signs were there about 18 months ago that his amazingly extended honeymoon period was not going to last forever and the bill for his profligate, populist but immensely damaging to the nation, self-serving policies were going to come back and haunt him sooner rather than later. ######, even some of the normally upbeat mor - du's were predicting a crisis for Tox around April this year, so if they could see it coming, then anyone with an ounce of gnauss, had this one singing out of their crystal balls.

Having said that, Kanjana Spindler is one of the most perceptive and normally rational contributors to the Bangkok Post editorial page and deserves full marks for this courageous piece in the age of shunts to inactive posts for Post editors. Let's hope she keeps eternally active in exposing the present follies of a bare emperor, to an audience who probably needs little convincing. The main problem is connecting with the millions of voters out there, hooked like junkies on TRT credit and pacifying game shows on the box.

[Khun Larry]

PM needs to pause and think

Each crisis saw the prime minister react without thinking, although in retrospect each crisis was predictable to a certain extent. In the arrogance of complete victory and dominance, knee-jerk reactions were the order of the day.

The initial (and ongoing) response to the problems in the deep South has been to slap faces and stomp on people.

Playing musical chairs with more or less incompetent ministers and military and police officials only serves to attempt to blame others for their lack of success and hide where the real responsibility lies.

The prime minister wants to run this country like a company. He promotes his CEO style of dynamic action at every opportunity. Part of that style must be the acceptance of responsibility.

- Kanjana Spindler is Assistant Editor, Editorial Pages, Bangkok Post 2004-03-31

That is a great and ballsy editorial.

Looks like the old 1, 2, 3 punch right in Thaksin's gut.

Will his arrogance prevail?

It's great to be a guest and not a captive (citizen)