A Repeat Of The Nation 2003 Vote

[marshbags]

From The Nation

Sat, December 30, 2006 : Last updated 7:33 am (Thai local time)

Quote:-

The reason why we did not choose Thaksin

It was much easier in December, 2003, but even then the newsroom nearly erupted.

Thaksin Shinawatra not getting the Person of the Year title - how on earth could that be? That year belonged to the man, undeniably and unequivocally. Growth of more than 6 per cent, one of the highest rates in Asia, a successful, albeit controversial crackdown on drugs, unprecedented consolidation of political power, the new heights of populism and mind-boggling political agendas like the planned purchase of Liverpool Football Club. To mention just a few.

How many leaders in this world can rule and sell stuff and buy government properties and recycle everything for personal and political benefits all at the same time? How many democratically elected leaders can pour scorn on democracy, show contempt for human rights, install relatives in the top armed-forces posts, destroy the country's system of checks and balances, reap tremendous benefits for their own business empires and yet still manage to remain highly popular? How many world leaders can cast such an inescapable net of influence on their citizens? One way or another, his cheap homes, his cheap healthcare, his cheap computers, his cheap insurance, his scholarships, his low-budget airline, his bank, his hospital, his TV, his radio, his personal loans, his entertainment, his phone bills were affecting our lives like no political produce of Thailand had ever done.

Through clenched jaws, our editorial department forced itself not to recognise the forming of the biggest political empire the country had ever known. "Amid Thaksin's looming omnipresence, something important is lacking" was our rationale, or a mere message of defiance if you like. "Over the past year, the role of citizenship has receded alarmingly. The rights to participate, to air grievances, to demand transparency, or to criticise have all but vanished. Since the Thanom regime, Thais have clamoured and fought for those rights, giving up their lives and shedding blood and tears along the way, but now it's "Believe the leader and the nation will survive" all over again."

Cue 2006 and the dilemma of three years ago suddenly seems small. This passing year has seen Thaksin virtually consume everyone, prior to and after his political demise. A schoolgirl drew a satirical cartoon of "Ai Na Liam" for her mother. A taxi driver committed suicide to protest his fate. Cabbies pulled over to throw out his opponents in the middle of their trips. Members of countless families became estranged debating his pros and cons. Friendships soured doing the same.

Hundreds of thousands of largely middle-class people joined protracted weeks-long protests against him around Government House. An election was boycotted by opposition parties and a large portion of voters marked abstention. Journalists and newspapers took unprecedented hard-line stances against him, giving birth to proclaimed alternative media outlets. And it was not just limited to Thais.

A western diplomat, stunned by our anti-Thaksin aggressiveness, walked into The Nation's newsroom to virtually give a lecture on the danger of media over-zealousness. "Diplomatic" functions often turned into anything but at the mere mention of his name. The Economist called his downfall a big blow to democracy, a stand joined by most western media in the wake of the September 19 coup.

His Majesty was restless and deeply worried. The judges were called upon to resolve a deadlocked crisis. The long-subdued military eventually woke up and seized the bull by the horns, for better or worse. The world was shocked and bewildered. And if Thaksin's rule had caused a great divide, its end and consequences have expanded it beyond any reconciliation.

For the full article please go to the following url:-

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2006/12/30...es_30022918.php

This again demonstrates a brave opinion with foresight.

When you consider the reasons given at the time (2003 ) and the present situation ( 2007 ) it is indeed a very profound observation, with sound judgement, both then and now.

In the later years i doubt they would have got away with the 2003 due to stringent censorship on the news media and it,s honest opinions.

marshbags

Edited December 30, 2006 by marshbags

[Jai Dee]

So who won The Nation's "Person(s) of the Year" award?

PERSONS OF THE YEAR

Starter & finisher

Thailand seemed destined for a long, irreversible 'Thaksin course' when Sondhi Limthongkul and Sonthi Boonyaratglin came along, for better or for worse...

It took two "Sonthis" - Sondhi, the media tycoon and Sonthi, the military strongman - to change Thai history for good.

In English the two names are spelled differently but in Thai they are spelled and pronounced the same.

The first, Sondhi Limthongkul, agitated the public with his oratorical skills. Through his ASTV, Manager Media Group and public forums, he incited the middle-class to take to the streets with the single clarion call to boot Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and his corrupt regime out of office.

The political tension built up for almost a year, from November 2005 to its boiling point in September.

Sondhi's solo mission from the outset captivated the hearts and minds of the Bangkok middle-class and elite before transforming itself into a broader political movement under the banner of the People's Alliance for Democracy.

It was a strange and unnatural phenomenon. The middle-class and elite might not trust Sondhi - for all of his questionable financial and business dealings in the past - as a messenger. But that was not important because they liked his message.

All the second Sonthi, or General Sonthi Boonyaratglin, the Army chief, needed to do was wait for the right timing before finishing it up with a bloodless, Thai-style military coup on September 19. The constitution of 1997 was ditched after a decade of trials and errors in search of the best possible political system for Thailand.

Instead of street protests against the military takeover, Sonthi's tanks were greeted with red roses and cheers from the middle-class and elite. Finally, they felt a great relief that the political conflicts could be brought to a peaceful end.

The Nation has named Sondhi, the media man, and Sonthi, the leader of the National Security Council, as Thailand's Persons of the Year 2006 for their independent roles in influencing and changing the course of Thai politics, for better or worse.

The international community was alarmed by the Thai coup. But the political problems here were so unique that a confrontation between Thaksin and his political opponents could only be resolved by a power play.

The collapse of the Thaksin regime was spectacular, surpassing any political calculations and imagination.

The telecom billionaire had thought that his regime was invincible. Indeed, his government, founded on the Thai Rak Thai Party, looked almost unassailable.

Thaksin led Thai Rak Thai to a landslide victory in 2001 on the back of populist policies and then presided over an economic recovery after the 1997-1998 financial hangover. He became the first prime minister to complete a four-year term. In the February 2005 election, he made a convincing comeback with 377 MPs out of 500 and virtual control of Parliament.

He went on to consolidate his power by subduing all the institutions of checks and balances. It was an era of money politics, artfully crafted with the singular objective of elevating Thaksin to the top of the social pyramid.

The independent organisations created under the 1997 charter became crippled by money politics and cronyism. The police force answered to Thaksin's directive. His classmates dominated the military to help prop up his regime. The bureaucracy followed his policies in earnest.

Bypassing governors, Thaksin built strong support among headmen around the country, who were political canvassers. His family along with 10 other clans held the stock market in their sway. Pork-barrel projects were doled out to reward the Thai Rak Thai cronies staying on in power.

Thaksin had expected that he would stay in power for at least 20 years, long enough to permanently imprint his personality cult on Thai politics. He had in mind Mahathir Mohamad of Malaysia and Lee Kwan Yew of Singapore as his models.

Most important, Thaksin enjoyed international recognition, as he was an elected leader who was put in power by a democratic system.

But Thai democracy had already succumbed to money politics on a grand scale. It was carrying on in name only. In the meantime, Thaksin's arrogance knew no boundaries.

Ironically, the man instrumental in bringing down Thaksin was his former friend. Sondhi started the ball rolling in November 2005 when he used his rhetorical skills to attack Thaksin, who had ordered the pulling of his weekly TV talk show, "Muang Thai Rai Sapada". Before that he and his Manager Media Group had only nice words to say about the Thaksin regime.

Sondhi was a nak leng, a combination of Robin Hood and mafioso in English, so he was not afraid of Thaksin. At first, Sondhi attracted a small following. He went on to Thammasat University and used its auditorium to hold his weekly talk show. Before long, his audience expanded to the tens of thousands.

This encouraged him to move his talk show to Lumpini Park, where up to 50,000 people listened to him on Friday evenings in the early part of this year.

Sondhi had never expected that he would become a political force to be reckoned with. At first, he was trying to protest against the injustice suffered by his talk show. But all of a sudden, his followers expected more from him. Soon he took up the torchlight to cleanse politics and restore democracy and the royal institution to their rightful places in Thailand.

When Thaksin sold his family's shares in Shin Corp to Singapore for Bt73.3 billion, the public was shocked. How could a leader sell off his own assets, some of which had national security implications, to a foreign government without any regard for his own country? Even more outrageous, the Shin Corp sale was branded as tax-free.

The Shin Corp deal sealed the political demise of Thaksin. Sondhi rallied for Thaksin's removal and petitioned His Majesty the King to appoint a new prime minister in line with Article 7 of the 1997 constitution. This political movement attracted other allies such as Chamlong Srimuang to jump on board before evolving into the People's Alliance for Democracy. The PAD's rallies at the Royal Plaza and Sanam Luang drew tens of thousands of like-minded citizens.

International observers were still raising their eyebrows: How could a street protest remove a sitting government that came to office through democratic means?

There followed the April 2 election with its disastrous outcome after the opposition parties decided to boycott it. Thaksin still came up victorious, although there were massive dissenting ballots and abuses of election procedures. This led to the Constitution Court nullifying the election results and politics finding itself paralysed.

On September 19, the day before a clash was expected between the PAD and Thaksin's supporters at the Royal Plaza, Sonthi moved his tanks onto Bangkok streets and usurped the country. He was a reluctant coup leader, becoming the country's most powerful Muslim ever in the process.

From his suite at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in New York, Thaksin tried to fight back.

He sacked Sonthi, but his military backers in Bangkok could not hold off Sonthi's power play.

The coup finished it off in one day, without any spilling of blood or loss of lives. Thaksin had to seek refuge in London.

Sonthi went on to draft an interim constitution and install an interim government headed by Surayud Chulanont. He promised to return democracy to the country within a year.

Thai politics would not have changed radically without Sondhi, the media man, and Sonthi, the military man. Thaksin will remember their names as long as he lives.

Source: The Nation - 30 December 2006

[marshbags]

Sondhi Limthongkul was equally courageous considering Thaksins standing and ruthlessness in getting rid / silencing of certain opponents.

Sonthi Boonyaratglin must have had some doubts / reservations on the outcome of their actions and the fact that it could have rebounded on them.

Yes we all know the backing was there but who could have predicted a bloodless coup and the downfall of Thaksin and his associates.

So yes, they deserve their recognition.

Personally i would nominate all the officials and academics who stood up and voiced their opinions that Thaksin would definitely not have approved of, especially when he was running the countries interests.

That is according to what he thought was best for him and his fellow puppeteers.

In particular, i would single out Auditor-General Jaruvan Maintaka.

marshbags

Edited December 30, 2006 by marshbags

[Sing_Sling]

Two well-written articles.

Man of the Year? How about The King for his role in supporting Gen. Sonthi and bringing about peaceful change from the pit of high-level corruption on a masive scale.

[marshbags]

Two well-written articles.

Man of the Year? How about The King for his role in supporting Gen. Sonthi and bringing about peaceful change from the pit of high-level corruption on a masive scale.

HRH the King is without question Thailands Man of the Year for all the great and good he does for all his subjects.

I left this unspoken, out of consideration for possible censor.

Without exception all citizens and guests accept this and will echo / second your comments S.S.

marshbags

[aaaaaa]

well, all you guys have guessed it wrong: not HRM but a Gen Sonthi is named a Man of the Year:

Sonthi voted Man of the Year

Council for National Security chief Sonthi Boonyaratkalin has been voted "Person of the Year 2006" for leading the Sept 19 coup which defused the protracted political crisis, according to an Abac Poll.

Deposed prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra came second, followed by interim Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont, Privy Council President Prem Tinsulanonda and media mogul Sondhi Limthongkul, who spearheaded the anti-Thaksin rallies prior to the former prime minister's ouster.

Top of the five most displeasing news stories of the year was the confrontation between pro- and anti-Thaksin protesters early this year.

Mr Thaksin's challenge to a "person with charisma" came second.

Third was Gen Surayud's alleged improper use of forest land.

as you can see, HRM wasn't even mentioned among any of the candidates. perhaps because he is beoynd the comparison.

however Thaksin was second nevertheless.

and Sonthi's win for siezing power by coup - what a wonderfull choise! so much for democracy