The Nation ramps up its selective attack on Thailand’s poor:
What was wrong with Thaksin’s populist policies was that they were rife with corruption and they pandered to the unprincipled wants and needs of the beneficiaries. In many instances, cheap loans, such as those under the Village Fund, aimed to encourage villagers to develop entrepreneurial skills that would improve their livelihood. These loans were mistaken by the recipients for handouts, and were squandered on personal consumption instead of on profitable enterprise and community development projects that would raise their standard of living. [AW: Would some evidence be too much to ask for? And I'm sure The Nation has never encouraged personal consumption!]
The government must implement a public education programme to explain to the people, particularly those who benefited from populist policies, why Thaksin’s dishonest methods and ruthless manipulation are bad for the country. Next, the government must carefully evaluate Thaksin’s policies and decide which should be continued, which should be reoriented and which should be scrapped.
There is no such thing as a free lunch.
Most rural people I know make their own lunch or pay for it. I wouldn’t mind seeing where The Nation’s neo-sufficiency-economy advocates dine out.
5 responses so far ↓
1 Vichai N. // Nov 18, 2006 at 2:27 am
Of course ‘The Nation would ramp up its selective attack on Thailand’s poor:’ Why should such a distinguished newspaper care for the Thai poor? The Thai poor cannot read English newspapers, they are most certainly parasitically venal, and without the Thaksin hand-outs and populist village loans , rice subsidies and other ‘give-aways’, all those Thai poor would just raid Bangkok and harass the Thai elite to feed themselves! Right Andrew?
‘Insufficient Economy’ of the Thai poor demands Thaksin be returned for the sake of handouts and populist give-aways that these poor depend on for their survival.
On the other hand, Thaksin himself indulge on his own version of ‘Insufficiency Economy’, never ever understanding the meaning of ‘ENOUGH’ and more ill-gotten billions drive him for even more ill-gottens. The more ill-gottens the better the Thai economy – Thaksin’s version of ‘Insufficiency Economy’.
2 patiwat // Nov 18, 2006 at 7:22 am
When I hear hear Sondhi, I read The Nation, and I read Vichai, I can’t help but think that there is a fundamental class conflict going on.
At first I thought that they were just being hypocrites – that they were attacking populism because doing so would hurt Thaksin. And just as in the case of Khmer voodoo slander, “any means necessary” had to be used to take down the man.
But when you read the content of their work and spirit of their rhetoric (”parasitically venal”, “unprincipled wants and needs”), it seems as if these people really are elitist, that they really do advocate “putting the poor in their place,” at least until the poor can “responsibly” take part in the political process. The same type of thinking that, during the 1930’s, forbid direct parliamentary elections until half the population had completed primary education. Well, Thailand hit that milestone 60 years ago, and the people of the provinces have more at stake politically now than they ever had in the past. Without a fundamental dismantling of the 1997 constitution, it’s going to be very difficult to put the genie back in the bottle and hope that no more populists gain power in Thailand.
3 Thanakarn // Nov 18, 2006 at 12:15 pm
I think the single most urgent reason for General Sonthi’s was ‘class conflict’. Thaksin was intentionally formenting ‘class conflict’ and division in Thai society as he struggled to cling on to power. Muslims against the non-Muslims, the Isans against the Bangkok city protesters – - Thaksin’s divide and rule.
The hypocrites Patiwat were the ones who kept urging Thaksin to stay on his dangerous course, ignoring his divisiveness, his extrajudicial murders, his subvertion of the constitution, his conflict of interest, his corruption, and yes of course even Thaksin’s ridiculous Khmer voodoo devotion.
Did you Patiwat and Bangkok Pundit also willingly ignored above many Thaksin flaws and urged Thaksin on?
4 Bystander // Nov 18, 2006 at 12:25 pm
Thai urban upper/middleclass, especially, the Bangkok-centric group are well known to look down upon the peasant with disdain, distrust, or at best, pity. There was a movie ‘Jaew+’ which play on this stereotypes. My sister asked our maid (who we are very close to and like a part of family) what she thinks, and she is not amused at all. I find it quite appalling that people is insensitive enough to make this kind of movies (the other one about the Laotian soccer team comes to mind), and furthermore that many supposedly well-educated people find it quite entertaining.
Class is nothing new in Thai society. What’s new is that the hitherto silent majority of the peasantry (Prai) is starting to stir for change.
The upper/middleclass feel that they are entitled to set the agenda for Thailand and reap the primary benefit of development, letting just the leftover to trickle down to the countryside. There’s never a shortage of opinion leaders who readily supply neatly packaged talking points. The rural peasants are at a handicap when it comes to articulating what they want. They are far from the access point of governance. They have the mass but not enough leverage.
This is an inequilibrium that exist in Thai society. Thaksin or the coup notwithstanding, the system will tend to correct itself if the social force is stronger that the restraint. Economic integration, increased mobility, and technology has a tendency to level the playing field. I suspect there will be plenty more to see in this battle between Empowerment and Entitlement.
5 Nicholas Wood // Nov 21, 2006 at 5:28 pm
Economic conflict between the rich and poor in Thailand will (if it hasn’t already) the most important issue in Thailand.
To read the business pages complaining about Thailand’s inablity to compete with China, resentment and resistance to increasing the minimum wage, opposition to FTA’s on very flimsy grounds, and the desire to legally import foreign labour for industry proves one thing.
The gravy train for the ruling class in Bangkok is over. They can no longer rely on a flood of cheap labour to bankroll their inefficient business.
Of course Thailand should invest in better schools and encourage the economy to develop, however, this has one very large problem. Who will sit in the sweat shops to make to clothes or the tin pots that Thailand’s wealth holders rely on.
There has never been a more dangerous time for Thailand both economically and socially and it will take a lot more planning than to increase minimum wages. Thailand has to accept that it needs the next generation of rice farmers to be working in factories and to have university education, but will the ruling classes let it happen? I believe they would rather hide between trade restrictions and business restricitions to save themselves.
The next 20 years are vital for Thailand or I fear it will be battered economically by China.
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