Comments for New Mandala

Comment on Malaysian women parliamentarians: why the different numbers? by Mohani Niza

Mohani Niza — Mon, 20 May 2013 04:55:16 +0000

Anon,
I find your comment offensive. Only a guy – and I assume you are one – with megadoses of male privilege can rile that women MPs are not needed. Women MPs, and women politicians in general, are needed to represent the plethora of women’s concerns. This applies to ethnic minorities, too.

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Comment on Malaysian women parliamentarians: why the different numbers? by Anon

Anon — Mon, 20 May 2013 03:02:00 +0000

At a time where there’s greater issues with constitutional racial bias, corruption, insecurity, and national debt; is really woman politicians even an agenda?

what makes the race claim less important than the gender claim? in fact, why should either matter? one should take both gender and race out of equation of any sort entirely, or we’re back to an ethic / gender / religion based society / party / government / policy.

on one hand we claim ethnic based politics should be dead, but we pull up a gender based politics? the arguments for and against each are exactly the same.

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Comment on Ways of seeing Malaysia – deconstructing demographic violence by Greg Lopez

Greg Lopez — Mon, 20 May 2013 01:16:05 +0000

Hi Sam Rudin,

Just wondering if you could point out for New Mandala readers, what, in your opinion, are the inaccurate facts in this article.

In the interests of scholarly debates, this would be very helpful, and I think no one wants to perpetuate any myths about Malaysia.

Thank you
Greg Lopez.

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Comment on Desiring a pure people’s politics by Vichai N

Vichai N — Sun, 19 May 2013 11:44:31 +0000

I checked N.Nostitz’ “few poor left in Thailand” and the World Bank reported Thailand’s ‘rural poverty head count ratio’ as:

2008 – 27.5
2009 – 25.1
2010 – 23.1
2011 – 16.1

(Source: http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SI.POV.RUHC)

I believe the basis for World Bannk above is: “the $1.25 a day poverty line measured in 2005 prices.” And Thailand’s poverty statistics, on that basis, do indeed show very dramatic improvement.

If WB says $1.25/day separates the really have-nots, I won’t argue. But I’m sure those Yingluck very expensive hi-speed Thai bullet trains are to be built with the ‘$1.25-day-Thais’ in mind as paying passengers.

The outlays to built those bullet trains are going to be very prohibitive … thus the trillions so Yingluck estimates. I personally believe Thailand’s rail system should be modernized without the prohibitive bullet trains systems. Many Thais, and not only those $1.25-per-day-impoverished-Thai-have-nots, won’t be able to afford the fare for the Yingluck bullet trains.

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Comment on Desiring a pure people’s politics by pp

pp — Sun, 19 May 2013 10:23:55 +0000

Ryan Lane, I like your piece and the way you frame your argument. Did Andrew Walker put you up to writing this?

There seems to be a strong connection between your argument / storyline and Andrew Walkers’ book Thailand’s political peasants’ (the focus on Chatterjee’s political society as a starting point, the phrase ‘good men’ and you’re at the same university as AW)

@ nick nostitz – I think the high speed rail idea will not directly provide many mobility advantages for Thai people and disadvantaged regions in Thailand. Isn’t it mainly a political project to show commitment to the ASEAN ideal, much in the same way as European high speed rail been built to foster EU and agenda of european integration by technical experts? (and the example of Japan’s bullet trains, which is in no way sundly applicable to Thailand or SEA as an idea might play a partin fostering this untenable ideal) . There are few direct benefits of a high speed rail system; a decent double track rail line would be a much better idea for Thailand.

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Comment on How Malays voted at GE13 by Global Voices | “马来西亚海啸”抗议选举不公 - 中国数字时代

Global Voices | “马来西亚海啸”抗议选举不公 - 中国数字时代 — Sun, 19 May 2013 06:15:40 +0000

[...] 胜选后，自一九五零年代起便执政的国阵已是“世界上执政时间最长的民选政权”，然而这次选举结果是国阵1969年以来最惨重的失败。 [...]

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Comment on Desiring a pure people’s politics by Nick Nostitz

Nick Nostitz — Sun, 19 May 2013 04:58:37 +0000

First of all – there are very few “poor” left in Thailand (8.something percent below the average poverty line is very good). Thailand is quite solidly now a middle income country.

Increased spending on infrastructure and increased mobility will attract investment, open up structurally disadvantaged regions, and will lead to decentralization of industry, hence increased employment and rising incomes.
The coming together of the ASEAN community and the Chinese investments towards SEA will need an improvement in Thailand’s outdated railway network.
Transport of goods and better mobility of people are necessary for development.

Well, unless you dream of a primarily agrarian society in which people are to stay on their farms and plant rice…

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Comment on Ways of seeing Malaysia – deconstructing demographic violence by Sam Rudin

Sam Rudin — Sun, 19 May 2013 04:26:07 +0000

Congratulations, after a long wait finally we have a Chinese version of Bakri Musa. In the future, we would welcome very much the author’s opinion and comparison, say, between the state of Malaysia’s indigenous people and that of Australia, in which case the author may have to refer to John Pilger not John Berger. Looking forward to the author’s entertaining post-structuralist analysis. It doesn’t matter if the facts are inaccurate, as long as it hits the target. Well done.

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Comment on Royal power arrangement by Patinya Ambuel

Patinya Ambuel — Sat, 18 May 2013 23:44:37 +0000

The French would say: your choices are ‘à quoi bon le faire?
In modern Thai society with current dynamic politico-socio-economic environment, the demand on monarchic institutional reform is high and dire.
Bravo to Khun Pavin,in summing up with such an eloquent proverb: รวมกันเราอยู่ แยกหมู่เราตาย (United we stand, Divided we fall.) I am surprised! well rather glad to see them finally can somehow functioning like most other normal families. Sadly, if only they unify to play by the rules within Democratic value and progress!but alas!! I just hope to see one day in Thailand, Universal Justice is to be applied to all!!

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Comment on A first pass at the GE13 results by Post-election report 2013 Malaysian Election: Part II « Malaysia's Dilemma

Post-election report 2013 Malaysian Election: Part II « Malaysia's Dilemma — Sat, 18 May 2013 19:44:00 +0000

[...] post builds on analyses which were previously posted at the Australian National University’s New Mandala and the University of [...]

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