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The Bhum Jai Thai party announced a movement against the million signature campaign of the Red Shirts. There was a buzz when it was announced that the Blue Shirts were to protest at Royal Plaza today (July 30). Was it the same guys as in Pattaya? Were there soldiers in Blue Shirts? PAD guards in disguise?
At about 8 am there were 30 to 40 taxis parked at Royal Plaza, the same number of red colored subarus – small passenger vehicles, all from Thonburi – one loudspeaker wagon, and at least a dozen intelligence officers. Slowly more taxis arrived, maybe 100 to 200 altogether. No Blue Shirts though. But a few people in Bhum Jai Thai shirts and jackets, and several ministry officials.
Stickers were handed out to put on the cars, “Don’t pull the sky down low – stop the petition!”, and similar slogans.
At about 9 am the show began. First the taxi drivers were called to get breakfast. They lined up, received a stamp on the arm, a coupon, and food. The Bhum Jai Thai party song was played on loudspeakers.
So far so good.
But then several taxi drivers approached me, and complained:
“They said they will give us 300 Baht petrol coupons, but we got nothing, just those food coupons!”
“I can’t even get my taxi out – they blocked our cars with these subarus.”
“They cheated us, they said we should come because of mother’s day, and said nothing of Bhum Jai Thai. Now they put stickers against the petition on our cars, and tomorrow I want to go to the Red Shirt rally – how can I get these stickers off?!”
Supamas Issarabhakdi, deputy spokesperson for Bhum Jai Thai appeared, handed out stickers, posed for the cameras while applying stickers to a taxi, and gave an interview.
A not very enthusiastic crowd of taxi drivers formed a line in front of the loudspeaker wagon, a speech was held, an oath to the monarchy was spoken, songs were sung, and after the Royal anthem everybody disappeared quickly.
A few officials still hung around. One man with a plastic bag handed a large wad of cash to a man from a taxi organization, who quickly slipped the money into his pocket when he saw me taking photos. The bagman soon got into the back of a Mercedes and disappeared.
At about 10.30 the show was over.
Effort: lackluster.
Execution: thank you very much for the amusement
Fantastic piece of work.
What a shame you don’t see journalism like this in the B.Post or Nation.
Excellent job.
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Great report — great photos. Now we need to see if anyone can identify the pay-off giver who stepped out of the Benz — hope the readers can help with that. Can we expect that it is some private secretary to one of the Bhumjaithai Party big-wigs? Keep it coming, Nick!
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Wow !!
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Great job my friend, xxxxxx Bhum jai thai party!!!
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May I copy this story keep to maha-arai.blogspot.com ?
Thak you.
р╣Зр╕│р╣Йр╕│hehe
😉
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Great job again!!!
Love your work, Nick. I don’t know why the Thai media do not say any thing about this. They should have learned how to be real journalist.
I hope this truth will be widely published or informed to the world so they would correctly understand the situation in Thailand that it is not really democratic and the people are brain-washed.
Thank you again
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Thank you
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The Nation or Bangkok Post prefers to report on things like what the Red Shirts did in April, of course through their biased glasses. These two newspapers serve the interests of the ammart and ignore the plights of the rural and urban poor.
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Thank you New Mandala for the enlightenment. Mr. Nevin and his Bhumjai Thai party should go to hell. You do not deserve to be a Thai.
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I always follow your reports, this one is the greatest one!!
Thanks so much on behalf of all Thais.
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Thank you for you kind picture which it didn’t report on local Thai and local English newspaper. We are known very well. The goverment do try everything cheating a people. Mr. Abhisit , come by illegal way. I do hope international media known well and we need you help to tell the world what is going on in Thailand. Only small goup of people and Authoritariant received a big benefits and spoils
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Wonderful report. I wonder if any reader can identify the bag man and his car?
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After Taxi Driver get money from Bhum Jai Thai Party then tomorrow they go to get money from the leader of red shirt group again. They can do everything for money.
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Other commentators have touched upon this point already, still it cannot be emphasized too much: Just compare Nick’s post with today’s front-page article in the Bangkok Post on the same subject. You really want to cry out loud of so much incompetence and, even worse, unwillingness… Is it really asking too much to have reporters sent to such events and report about such blatent government-organized political corruption?
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Superb work, again, Nick.
Any chance of a Thai translation?.
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For anyone who did not know the meaning of “Bhum jai thai party”
Bhum jai thai in Thai it’s mean “Proud to be Thai”.
But I’m really shame to have such peoples as our member of parliament.
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“Srithanonchai”
The problem is less with the reporters on the ground than with editors and owners of newspapers here. Political pressure starts at the top. But if a reporter finds himself a bit too often on the wrong side of the policy he might find himself out of a job, and with huge difficulties to find a new job. People like Pravit from the Nation, who are senior reporters, say what they want, and still work stories on the ground are very rare here.
There is too little money in journalism in Thailand for freelancers to be able to survive. As an example – most medias work with stringers in the provinces. They have no fixed salaries, earn from their work as journalists usually not much more than 10 000 Baht a month, but have to have their own equipment, a car, a computer, etc.
Anyhow, Thai Rath has brought in their report that the Taxi drivers were not there because they wanted to be there.
“Ma ha ngern”
I think you have missed the point of the story here. The Taxi drivers who approached me did not know that this was a Bhum Jai Thai event, and would not have taken part of they would have known. They were lied to to, and could not leave anymore when they finally found out.
I have never had a similar experience in Red Shirt rallies (or in PAD rallies), that participants of these rallies complained to me – a journalist – about being tricked into attending such an event.
On both sides i have only met people that believed in the political goals of the respective groups whose events they participated in.
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Thank you, Nick. I’m not good in english but it great job.
That thai journalist not ever have. how you do that?
Tell them Please.
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Great report Nick, another fantastic piece of yours. You should start a news room and I’m sure many of us will volunteer to learn from you how to be a real reporter. This link has been passed on….
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Please help Thai people free from the Dictator. Thailand should more progress than this event we are at good location.
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Thank Nick, your news makes many Thai people look brighter.
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this news that never shows on thai newspapers -*-
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Excellent work, well done you put the Thai media to shame and rightly so. It’s only with truth and exposure like this that Thailand has any hope of developing it’s democracy and society. Thailand needs more people like you desperatly. Reporting like this needs to be encouraged and supported for the benefit of the whole country.
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CNXJeffrey raises an important point. With posts as important as this one it would be very useful to include a link to a Thai translation. We need to get the message out to as many as possible.
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Srithanonchai might want to look at the Bangkok Post 65th anniversary spread today in the print edition. The family name Vejjajiva comes up as a chief operating officer…. Maybe I am being too cynical.
A taxi driver I rode with last night was adamant that there was owner pressure on drivers to show up, threatening registration problems.
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very good report, thank you .
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Prachathai has a Thai version!
http://www.prachatai.com/journal/2009/07/25275
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“Ralph Kramden”:
Rumors are that there was also quite a bit of pressure applied to the owners and dispatch centers…
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Ooh!!! Somebody just got caught!!!!
When will this disgusting drama end?
Poor you, Thailand
PS. Great piece of news. Keep up!
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Very poor reportage .
From Farang guy who’s want to make him self important in Thailand .
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jojo #30: do you have any specific complaints, or is this just another of those ‘you wouldn’t know because you’re not Thai’ things, where the critic doesn’t have to play by the rules by giving reasons?
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Hey jojo, give an example of so-called poor reportage. Bet you can’t find one.
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Nick, thanks for the report. I am following your work from afar.
There was a story on the net, that you are preparing to publish a book on the yellow/red shirts uprisings. Did you find a publisher yet?
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re: michael and Ralph Kramden
What jojo means to say is that it’s not journalism unless there are gruesome photos of murder/rape victims or photos of attractive spokesmodels wearing moon-boots.
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Thanks LSS. It is interesting that each time the political temperature increases in Thailand there is a spate of posts to NM that appear to be posted by oddly named nationalists-fascists. They seldom come back. I always wonder if they are some of the army people assigned to put out comments that are supportive of the govt. But why would the army choose illiterate bozos? They are similarly hopeless in Thai on the Thai-language blogs….
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@ST,
Thanks for link to Thai translation.
@Nick,
Thanks for a thought provoking piece of photo-journalism.
The fact that you have had comments from 29 seperate responders in only 4 days, speaks for itself.
Keep up the wholesome reporting.
Ahhh!!, maybe that is the problem…provoking thought!, independent of the ‘State’ propaganda.
@jo jo,
Just what is it precisely, that is the “very poor reportage”?.
Please explain.
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“Phumjai Ngoen” would be a more appropriate name for the party.
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“Ferdinand”
Thanks, and yes, the book is published.
Here a few links from new manadala, related to the book:
http://rspas.anu.edu.au/rmap/newmandala/2009/07/09/red-versus-yellow/
http://rspas.anu.edu.au/rmap/newmandala/2009/07/16/nick-nostitz-at-the-fcct/
and if you still want to buy the book of this obnoxious “Farang guy who’s want to make him self important in Thailand” 😉 , here is a link where you can order it:
http://www.dcothai.com/product_info.php?products_id=1004
It’s also in the book stores here, i have seen in both in Asia Books and in Kinokuniya.
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The “poor reportage” ‘Jojo’ describes is the simple act of showing the dark side of Thai politics. “Good reportage” on the other hand is a 12 page color supplement about the “good works” of this or that member of the royal family.
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Hi Nick,
Great reporting. I’m a Thai national who has been craving for some real investigative reporting here from our own media for a long time. If I were holding my breath, I’d be dead and cremated long ago.
Keep up the good work.
SARDINES
ps. Hope you don’t mind that I’ve posted your above piece in another forum / web-blog and passing on the link to others.
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I can see a guy with a plastic bag,but I do not see money inside. Is it Nick’s imagination? Another guy pushing a bundle of what seems to be money into his pocket.Where did it come from?
Nick,if you want me believe what you write get some real photos and evidence.We got too many Bild-reports already.
Taxidrivers change their master for money should be the headline.
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@Nick,
thanks for the info’s on the avaiablity of your book.
PS: I will be for one day in BKK this Saturday and surely will pick it then. I’ll hope to meet you again in the future…
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Raimund is waiting for the movie version. By the way Raimund, you might want to read the article and try to understand it before you suggest a new headline. Otherwise your comment just sounds dopey.
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“Raimund”
The reason why you do not see the handing over of the money is that it happened too quickly, and i had my camera not ready. At the time i sat about ten meters away with a few intelligence agents i know who have witnessed with astonishment the scene as well.
I was lucky that i could still snap the image of the recipient putting the wad of money into the pocket. The image of the bagman i took after, but you can see him in the picture of the man putting the money into the pocket as well, his head is just behind the man with the blue shirt on the left.
You will have to believe me that it happened as i described it. Journalism is always a matter of trust, and reputation as well. My professional record speaks for itself – i have worked almost ten years for Focus Agency, which is one of the top three German photo agencies. If you google my name – you can see that i have worked for many of the most reputable magazines and newspapers, such as Der Spiegel, Colors Magazine, Die Zeit, etc.
Bild so far has not been one of my clients (other than one image they have stolen from me, and had to pay a fine for), i have actually refused two assignments for Bild, as they were ethically doubtful.
If i would try to mislead readers here, i would hardly stake my personal and professional reputation by posting with my real name on a blog for which i don’t receive one bit of money.
I hope that clarifies your doubts.
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Nick:
Better not waste your time writing more than two sentences on comments like that by “Raimund.”
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Thanks. Great article.
So (surprisingly) there would be corruption on both sides…
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