Thai govt turns to populist subsidies to ease farmer tensions

[webfact]

Thai junta turns to populist subsidies to ease farmer tensions
BANGKOK | BY AMY SAWITTA LEFEVRE

BANGKOK: -- Thailand's junta has approved $1.3 billion in rural subsidies, akin to the populist policies of the government it ousted, to appease disgruntled and politically powerful farmers who are struggling with record low commodity prices and weak exports.

The rural heartland of Thailand's deposed leader Yingluck Shinawatra and her exiled billionaire brother Thaksin is hurting as a result of the military government's economic policies, stirring discontent and the threat of protests.

The military government had pledged to wean farmers off expensive subsidies used by the previous government which it ousted in a 2014 coup.

Full story: http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/11/04/us-thailand-politics-subsidies-idUSKCN0ST0J520151104

-- Reuters 2015-11-04

[from the home of CC]

Big difference here is there is no ongoing election and no votes for sale.

[mikemac]

Votes for sale ? I thought that was a viscous lie spread by Shin bashers.

[chainarong]

Dejavoo time Prime Minister Prayut-O .......

[Hawk]

It was only a matter of time before he had to backdown to appease the rural folk.

[bangrak]

It seems to me the word 'populist' is used abusively in this case, the general tone of the piece is 'inflammatory' IMO, would the tentacles of the Shins' PR and lobbying octopus have attached to some correspondent of the, normally respected, Reuters news agency too now, or has this release been the work of some 'local' biased and/or manipulated 'talent' Reuters made the mistake to trust with it?

It is a 'subsidy' indeed, a clearly stated amount in expenses which has been taken into the Thai State's yearly budget, and will as such be, quite transparently, kept under the controls specified by the Rule of Law, NOT AT ALL 'akin to the populist policies of the ('caretakers') government (desperately clinging to power, ...and the money trough) it ousted', this is misleading, Reuters!

Plus, though, extremely, 'expensive', indeed, it were NOT 'subsidies' the previous government 'used'! It was an 'ouside budget'(!) amount (at the start of what clearly became a scam) of about 450Billion Baht, when I'm correct, which was supposed to finance the puchase of first Thai rice harvests to be stored away to reduce the offer on the world market, in order to make the demand rise, and as a consequence the prices go up, to be then sold, with profit, making the whole a self-feeding one time fund generating income for the State. So it was described, after being conceived by 'the great leader' as part of his 'thaksinomics' master plan. NOT 'subsidies'!

That the man is a total megalomaniac barely touching the ground with his feet, that nor the Indian, nor the Vietnamese, etc. Governments were found ready to play a role in this pantomime (all the opposite, they increased their production as much as they could to recuperate the markets Thailand did not positively answer the demands of), resuting in huge stocks of rice bought at wrongly estimated prices double the value, of dropping quality (to say the least), stored at high costs, etc., the long story of this disaster is well documented... 'Subsidies', this, Reuters?

[Thailand]

It's just a little weaning.

[bangrak]

Dejavoo time Prime Minister Prayut-O .......

Deja what time, 'chainawrong'? Oh, but, bien sûr, you meant the French expression '(c'est du) déjà vu'! For you then: time... to go kneel in the corner with the appropriate hat on your head, maybe?

[stoneyboy]

It was only a matter of time before he had to backdown to appease the rural folk.

You mean the masses.

[62strat]

Must be that Thainess so often invoked when the 'Good People with Guns' (with self-granted imunity), do the things they prosecute and pillage others for, yet assert they have higher moral ground. Falang just can't bend their brains to get the twisted logic. TIT

[tbthailand]

the junta has been plagarizing the PTP policies since May 22nd. This is not new, it's just a new version of their attempt to keep enough people happy that a real resistance cannot spread.

The junta has maintained a stranglehold on the country and if there is any kind of opposition to their rule, they will need to crack down on it ... up to now, the opposition has been tamed through Art 44, LM, AA mini-vacations, and heavy censorship. I would imagine that these dinosaurs are not soooo dense as to ignore their own history and the impact of street-protests followed by a crackdown and killings. Think 1973 and 1976...

[Reigntax]

It seems to me the word 'populist' is used abusively in this case, the general tone of the piece is 'inflammatory' IMO, would the tentacles of the Shins' PR and lobbying octopus have attached to some correspondent of the, normally respected, Reuters news agency too now, or has this release been the work of some 'local' biased and/or manipulated 'talent' Reuters made the mistake to trust with it?

It is a 'subsidy' indeed, a clearly stated amount in expenses which has been taken into the Thai State's yearly budget, and will as such be, quite transparently, kept under the controls specified by the Rule of Law, NOT AT ALL 'akin to the populist policies of the ('caretakers') government (desperately clinging to power, ...and the money trough) it ousted', this is misleading, Reuters!

Plus, though, extremely, 'expensive', indeed, it were NOT 'subsidies' the previous government 'used'! It was an 'ouside budget'(!) amount (at the start of what clearly became a scam) of about 450Billion Baht, when I'm correct, which was supposed to finance the puchase of first Thai rice harvests to be stored away to reduce the offer on the world market, in order to make the demand rise, and as a consequence the prices go up, to be then sold, with profit, making the whole a self-feeding one time fund generating income for the State. So it was described, after being conceived by 'the great leader' as part of his 'thaksinomics' master plan. NOT 'subsidies'!

That the man is a total megalomaniac barely touching the ground with his feet, that nor the Indian, nor the Vietnamese, etc. Governments were found ready to play a role in this pantomime (all the opposite, they increased their production as much as they could to recuperate the markets Thailand did not positively answer the demands of), resuting in huge stocks of rice bought at wrongly estimated prices double the value, of dropping quality (to say the least), stored at high costs, etc., the long story of this disaster is well documented... 'Subsidies', this, Reuters?

Subsidy, populist, charity, welfare, cheap loans, funding are all the same no matter how you wish to spin them.

Thats exactly what governments do, they collect taxes and spend those taxes to provide services to create economic growth and minimal humane services to those less fortunate.

Governments are not businesses, they are more like charities.

Call them what you want, they are populist policy to stop the masses rebelling and this junta is learning very quickly.

[MZurf]

Dejavoo time Prime Minister Prayut-O .......

Deja what time, 'chainawrong'? Oh, but, bien sûr, you meant the French expression '(c'est du) déjà vu'! For you then: time... to go kneel in the corner with the appropriate hat on your head, maybe?

Pointing out other posters spelling mistakes. How ingenious. You must be really, REALLY smart!!

[ikke]

Dejavoo time Prime Minister Prayut-O .......

Deja what time, 'chainawrong'? Oh, but, bien sûr, you meant the French expression '(c'est du) déjà vu'! For you then: time... to go kneel in the corner with the appropriate hat on your head, maybe?

You must be a teacher who likes the Junta and is blind for the true .

[TheCruncher]

Big difference here is there is no ongoing election and no votes for sale.

And they are trying to get enough support ensure that there will be no votes for sale for a long time to come.

[phoenixdoglover]

As best I can tell, the Junta has rolled out 3 programs in the past 6 months:

1) A village loan program with extremely lenient repayment terms

2) A mini rice buying program that pays well in excess of market value

and

3) This subsidy program...the details of which remain to be seen.

Given the price trends for rice and rubber, these actions are unsurprising. Rice export price is down about 20% over the past year, and quantity exported is down this year as well, a double whammy. Rubber prices have been on decline since peaking in 2011.

Edited November 4, 2015 by phoenixdoglover

[from the home of CC]

If they can keep up prosecuting the rampant corruption they may start having some extra funding to make this less painful.

[billd766]

As best I can tell, the Junta has rolled out 3 programs in the past 6 months:

1) A village loan program with extremely lenient repayment terms

2) A mini rice buying program that pays well in excess of market value

and

3) This subsidy program...the details of which remain to be seen.

#1 The village loan program is a continuation of the one that Thaksin ran but was NOT his idea. I cannot remember the Thai persons name but he is now working for the government. It is also a bit more transparent and accountable.

#2 Can you fill in the details of how much the rice is actually bought for and what the current market price is. Without any details or figures your words are meaning less. Is it more that the PTP prices or less?

#3 Having told the rice farmers NOT to grow rice due to the water shortage and the drought I would think it only fair that the government SHOULD help the farmers, don't you? As you point out no details are available yet so nobody really knows what the cost will be. Doesn't the EU pay farmers not to grow crops when there is a surplus? At least that is budgeted for in the accounts.

[phoenixdoglover]

As best I can tell, the Junta has rolled out 3 programs in the past 6 months:

1) A village loan program with extremely lenient repayment terms

2) A mini rice buying program that pays well in excess of market value

and

3) This subsidy program...the details of which remain to be seen.

#1 The village loan program is a continuation of the one that Thaksin ran but was NOT his idea. I cannot remember the Thai persons name but he is now working for the government. It is also a bit more transparent and accountable.

#2 Can you fill in the details of how much the rice is actually bought for and what the current market price is. Without any details or figures your words are meaning less. Is it more that the PTP prices or less?

#3 Having told the rice farmers NOT to grow rice due to the water shortage and the drought I would think it only fair that the government SHOULD help the farmers, don't you? As you point out no details are available yet so nobody really knows what the cost will be. Doesn't the EU pay farmers not to grow crops when there is a surplus? At least that is budgeted for in the accounts.

The mini rice scheme is reported here

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/867030-measures-set-to-stop-rice-prices-falling/

[farmerjo]

Fuel subsidies would be a good start for farmers.,

[bangrak]

Dejavoo time Prime Minister Prayut-O .......

Deja what time, 'chainawrong'? Oh, but, bien sûr, you meant the French expression '(c'est du) déjà vu'! For you then: time... to go kneel in the corner with the appropriate hat on your head, maybe?

You must be a teacher who likes the Junta and is blind for the true .

'Déjà vu' too, to the point, please, 'gij'? ...And I'm a true (adj.) person, liking the truth (noun), you missed a few classes too, hmm, you, the teacher, I'm not, would say... Sorry too about the rest of your analysis: I don't 'like' the 'Junta', but: as long as it remains 'the least bad' government this country has had in this millenium, I'd prefer them to go on instead of seeing 'the grand master's plan' become reality...

[bangrak]

Dejavoo time Prime Minister Prayut-O .......

Deja what time, 'chainawrong'? Oh, but, bien sûr, you meant the French expression '(c'est du) déjà vu'! For you then: time... to go kneel in the corner with the appropriate hat on your head, maybe?

Pointing out other posters spelling mistakes. How ingenious. You must be really, REALLY smart!!

Don't think so, just trying to avoid the few Thais reading our stuff on TV to be infected by the poor vocabulary and grammatics used by possibly undereducated Farangs here, the poor lads and gals already don't get much of an opportunity to learn decent English at school, do they?

Edited November 4, 2015 by bangrak

[bangrak]

It seems to me the word 'populist' is used abusively in this case, the general tone of the piece is 'inflammatory' IMO, would the tentacles of the Shins' PR and lobbying octopus have attached to some correspondent of the, normally respected, Reuters news agency too now, or has this release been the work of some 'local' biased and/or manipulated 'talent' Reuters made the mistake to trust with it?

It is a 'subsidy' indeed, a clearly stated amount in expenses which has been taken into the Thai State's yearly budget, and will as such be, quite transparently, kept under the controls specified by the Rule of Law, NOT AT ALL 'akin to the populist policies of the ('caretakers') government (desperately clinging to power, ...and the money trough) it ousted', this is misleading, Reuters!

Plus, though, extremely, 'expensive', indeed, it were NOT 'subsidies' the previous government 'used'! It was an 'ouside budget'(!) amount (at the start of what clearly became a scam) of about 450Billion Baht, when I'm correct, which was supposed to finance the puchase of first Thai rice harvests to be stored away to reduce the offer on the world market, in order to make the demand rise, and as a consequence the prices go up, to be then sold, with profit, making the whole a self-feeding one time fund generating income for the State. So it was described, after being conceived by 'the great leader' as part of his 'thaksinomics' master plan. NOT 'subsidies'!

That the man is a total megalomaniac barely touching the ground with his feet, that nor the Indian, nor the Vietnamese, etc. Governments were found ready to play a role in this pantomime (all the opposite, they increased their production as much as they could to recuperate the markets Thailand did not positively answer the demands of), resuting in huge stocks of rice bought at wrongly estimated prices double the value, of dropping quality (to say the least), stored at high costs, etc., the long story of this disaster is well documented... 'Subsidies', this, Reuters?

Subsidy, populist, charity, welfare, cheap loans, funding are all the same no matter how you wish to spin them.

Thats exactly what governments do, they collect taxes and spend those taxes to provide services to create economic growth and minimal humane services to those less fortunate.

Governments are not businesses, they are more like charities.

Call them what you want, they are populist policy to stop the masses rebelling and this junta is learning very quickly.

Now, you are truly 'spinning' it, and my guess is you know quite well the difference between these 'subsidies' and the 'populist policies' from PTP(?), but when you'd admit it, you'd have to question what happened in puppet Poo's days, but, reading what you wrote, you, at least, sympathise with the PTP denialists, so...

[bangrak]

the junta has been plagarizing the PTP policies since May 22nd. This is not new, it's just a new version of their attempt to keep enough people happy that a real resistance cannot spread.

The junta has maintained a stranglehold on the country and if there is any kind of opposition to their rule, they will need to crack down on it ... up to now, the opposition has been tamed through Art 44, LM, AA mini-vacations, and heavy censorship. I would imagine that these dinosaurs are not soooo dense as to ignore their own history and the impact of street-protests followed by a crackdown and killings. Think 1973 and 1976...

'tbt', you're a work of art, your attitude reminds me of what a befriended criminal attorney was advising his clients to do: 'Deny, deny, deny, lie, lie, lie, maybe something of it might stick, but whatever happens, never ever, change your system' (translated)... Or Saddam Hussein's minister of propaganda who had gathered the international press in Bagdad to tell them the Americans had been pushed back into the sea, ...while the cameras rolling there could film humvees driving on the other bank of the river... When you truly believe the stuff you write, over and over again, I pity you.

[tbthailand]

the junta has been plagarizing the PTP policies since May 22nd. This is not new, it's just a new version of their attempt to keep enough people happy that a real resistance cannot spread.

The junta has maintained a stranglehold on the country and if there is any kind of opposition to their rule, they will need to crack down on it ... up to now, the opposition has been tamed through Art 44, LM, AA mini-vacations, and heavy censorship. I would imagine that these dinosaurs are not soooo dense as to ignore their own history and the impact of street-protests followed by a crackdown and killings. Think 1973 and 1976...

'tbt', you're a work of art, your attitude reminds me of what a befriended criminal attorney was advising his clients to do: 'Deny, deny, deny, lie, lie, lie, maybe something of it might stick, but whatever happens, never ever, change your system' (translated)... Or Saddam Hussein's minister of propaganda who had gathered the international press in Bagdad to tell them the Americans had been pushed back into the sea, ...while the cameras rolling there could film humvees driving on the other bank of the river... When you truly believe the stuff you write, over and over again, I pity you.

and you are clearly a junta-hugger, so what do I care about your pity or your blindness to what is happening now and to what has been happening for the last 70 years?

[Reigntax]

It seems to me the word 'populist' is used abusively in this case, the general tone of the piece is 'inflammatory' IMO, would the tentacles of the Shins' PR and lobbying octopus have attached to some correspondent of the, normally respected, Reuters news agency too now, or has this release been the work of some 'local' biased and/or manipulated 'talent' Reuters made the mistake to trust with it?

It is a 'subsidy' indeed, a clearly stated amount in expenses which has been taken into the Thai State's yearly budget, and will as such be, quite transparently, kept under the controls specified by the Rule of Law, NOT AT ALL 'akin to the populist policies of the ('caretakers') government (desperately clinging to power, ...and the money trough) it ousted', this is misleading, Reuters!

Plus, though, extremely, 'expensive', indeed, it were NOT 'subsidies' the previous government 'used'! It was an 'ouside budget'(!) amount (at the start of what clearly became a scam) of about 450Billion Baht, when I'm correct, which was supposed to finance the puchase of first Thai rice harvests to be stored away to reduce the offer on the world market, in order to make the demand rise, and as a consequence the prices go up, to be then sold, with profit, making the whole a self-feeding one time fund generating income for the State. So it was described, after being conceived by 'the great leader' as part of his 'thaksinomics' master plan. NOT 'subsidies'!

That the man is a total megalomaniac barely touching the ground with his feet, that nor the Indian, nor the Vietnamese, etc. Governments were found ready to play a role in this pantomime (all the opposite, they increased their production as much as they could to recuperate the markets Thailand did not positively answer the demands of), resuting in huge stocks of rice bought at wrongly estimated prices double the value, of dropping quality (to say the least), stored at high costs, etc., the long story of this disaster is well documented... 'Subsidies', this, Reuters?

Subsidy, populist, charity, welfare, cheap loans, funding are all the same no matter how you wish to spin them.

Thats exactly what governments do, they collect taxes and spend those taxes to provide services to create economic growth and minimal humane services to those less fortunate.

Governments are not businesses, they are more like charities.

Call them what you want, they are populist policy to stop the masses rebelling and this junta is learning very quickly.

Now, you are truly 'spinning' it, and my guess is you know quite well the difference between these 'subsidies' and the 'populist policies' from PTP(?), but when you'd admit it, you'd have to question what happened in puppet Poo's days, but, reading what you wrote, you, at least, sympathise with the PTP denialists, so...

You may need to explain to the rest of us what the role of government is. Yes, I understand the difference between each of the "subsidies" listed and the purpose is only a variation as to how they function.

I dont sympathise with any former group, however "puppet poo" and Thaksin were both elected which makes them legitimate. You can spin the current junta however you like but they have committed treason and knowing this sought an amnesty for self preservation.

The only remaining question is, when you have the military who keep taking over the government by force, each time writing a new constitution, why does the country end up in the same position after only a few years?

And of course, why do people support the same action and expect that somehow, this time there will be a different result?

More surprising, is that after 18 or so failures and justifications of coups, people actually still support this action whereas every intelligent being, not blinded by anti Shin sentiment, knows it will fail. Again!

The daily announcements by appointed officials are nothing more than a comedy of errors and incompetence but some still believe they have genuine intentions.

I think the biggest problem in Thailand is that everyone is only interested in themself and as long as they receive some type of benefit, they will support any means by which it is achieved. They also want the benefit right now, not in 5 or 10 years and this typifies a subsistance culture with each considering themself as the centre of their own little world.

It is unfortunate but I have to admit I wait in anticipation for the daily comical announcements.

Edited November 4, 2015 by Reigntax

[Reigntax]

Bangrak,

In reference to your "puppet poo", she was elected Pm, she is rich, she is good looking, she has access to most world leaders and the Influencials and until "us experts" on TV achieve the same, I dont think we can justify providing her with advice until we have at least achieved the same, nor do I think anybody is really interested.

[smutcakes]

Poster Bangrak has got very heated and defensive on this thread.

I wonder why that would be, when those you are supporting do something so clearly against what they all belittle and criticize others for, i suppose the only thing to do is come out swinging.

[Emster23]

"Meet the new boss, worse than the old boss"

Maybe they could fast track current rulers and line jump at supreme court for negligence and dereliction of duty? Clean up active and most recent examples of these populist rip offs? seize assets equal to $1.3 billion (don't worry, they can afford it)?

[soalbundy]

Dejavoo time Prime Minister Prayut-O .......

Deja what time, 'chainawrong'? Oh, but, bien sûr, you meant the French expression '(c'est du) déjà vu'! For you then: time... to go kneel in the corner with the appropriate hat on your head, maybe?

You must be a teacher who likes the Junta and is blind for the true .

blind for the true what ? Learning to spell can help you be understood