New Mandala

The many New Mandala readers who are following the ongoing discussion of foreign fighters in eastern Burma will want to check out the new website of Dave Everett.  The site includes some interesting details on his life for those of us who have yet to see a copy of his book, Shadow Warrior.  It is in [...]

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In some quarters the king is regarded as a key defender of Thai democracy. Which makes me wonder …
Has there been a royal statement urging the protesters from the People’s Alliance for (Sufficiency) Democracy to respect the fact that there was an election held last December and that this government is the result? And any royal [...]

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New Mandala readers who are new (or, perhaps, not so new) to the various online discussions of Thailand’s political future will find this summary page over at Thai Crisis rewards a visit.  It has been updated during 2008 to reflect the changing situation.

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According to the Swedes, who know a good holiday when they see one, the best “tourist country” in the world is Thailand, for the sixth consecutive year.  Australia, notes the report in the Pattaya Daily News, places second in the list of Sweden’s favourite destinations.
But enough about Australia…the sun, the sea, the great wide yonder…
I am [...]

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A New Mandala reader has sent through the following interesting reflections on genetics, culture and nationality in mainland Southeast Asia:
I was just browsing the Democratic Voice of Burma’s archive, and found this interesting yet disturbing story. It’s about DNA testing in NW Thailand to identify ethnicity and nationality of migrant workers. It is disappointing to [...]

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It bodes ill for Thai democracy that a limited and narrow street-based movement has the upper hand in overthrowing an elected government.
- Thitinan Pongsudhirak quoted in “Standoff”, Bangkok Post, 21 June 2008.  I should add that if anyone finds an arguably better quote on the current stalemate in Bangkok please feel free to post it in the [...]

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Last year I highlighted an interesting conference at Thailand’s Mahidol University on the topic of Buddhism and Science.�
The same institution, the College of Religious Studies at Mahidol, has now issued an announcement for a conference on Buddhism and consumerism.  It will be held at the Salaya campus from 1-3 December 2008, and hopes to attract 200 monks [...]

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Today New Mandala is not immediately in a position to add much to the analysis of the current standoff in central Bangkok between the PA(S)D and the Royal Thai Police.�
What I can do, of course, is provide links to some of the best “live” coverage.  Bangkok Pundit leads the charge, as usual, with a characteristically well-chosen mix [...]

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Rambo 4 has, over the past couple of years, remained a standard reference point for New Mandala’s discussions of the war that simmers away on Burma’s eastern fringe.
Of course, in recent months the fictional John Rambo has been replaced, both here and in more general reporting, by the Thomas Blemings, Jake Slades, David Everetts and Derek Meltons of the [...]

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I have just seen what I presume is the first full review of Forest Guardians, Forest Destroyers: The politics of environmental knowledge in Northern Thailand.  This new book, regular readers will recall, was written by New Mandala co-founder, Andrew Walker, and his partner in critical environmental debate, Tim Forsyth, from the London School of Economics.  The reviewer, in [...]

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