To what degree do you owe your political career to the fact that members of the Vejjajiva family are partners and directors of 46 partnerships and companies with a combined registered capital of 34 billion baht, and sit on boards of directors of 10 corporations with a total capitalization of 204 billion baht?
Malaya was governed by Muslim kingdoms who adopted Malay as lingua franca. All ethnicities unite into one nation under Islamic rule.
Western colonies came and bring nationalism ideology to split up people. Portuguese and Dutch failed because they’re too harsh. but British succeeded.
British are clever. divide and rule. Malaysians were destined to be split into three nations, Malay, Chinese, Indian. Malays were given cheap sweets in exchange of losing their total authority, the Sultanates. which was called that day ‘Hak Keistimewaan Orang Melayu’ (Malay Special Rights).
Its the tradition of Islamic kingdoms to encourage spreading of Islamic ideology among its people. the more people with a common ideology that there is no god but God and Muhammad is His Messenger is the more peaceful the community will become.
thus in every Muslim countries, Muslim populations will always get special treatment from the government.
the problem is, as years pass by, the so many benefits that a Malay can get fails to attract people to be a Malay. (Malay is defined as Malay speaking and Muslim in the constitution.) Chinese still wants to be Chinese. Indians still wants to be Indians.
meanwhile, UMNO became corrupt. they used Malay Supremacy slogans while betraying the Malay nation itself.
how many Malay villages and lands has UMNO sell to his MCA business partners with cheap prices. now, go to any cities in Malaysia, the Malays are selling in street stalls alongside foreigners such as Indonesians and Banglas. while Chinese owns the businesses in premium shopping complexes. but at the same time, these Malays also get bad names due to the Malay Supremacy slogans.
the sufferings of Malay people are ignored as much as possible nowadays. that is a question mark for everyone to answer. but for Malays who still retains our Islamic ideology, we just say to all our shortcomings ‘Inna lillah wa inna ilaihi raji’uun’. (We are for the sake of Allah, and verily to Him we will return).
Your false collective reference to “the people of Bangkok” has already been refuted. Thus, I don’t have to add to that. However, I would like to expand on the issue of “indifference.”
On Songkran 2010, I wandered from one end of the UDD’s camp to the other (actually, I covered all four ends). Finally, I ended up at the intersection marked by Chulalongkorn Hospital on the one side, and Robinsons Department Store on the other. Since I was hungry, I crossed over to the department store side. It was like leaving one world, and entering an entirely different world. On the department store side, the entire Silom Road was jam packed with teenagers madly celebrating Songkran.
May our dear Thaksin see the light and decide to stay abroad for the rest of his ife, as well as refrain from meddling in Thai politics, and may our dear Tul go back to medicine full time to amend the shortage of physicians outside Bangkok.
I thank Duncan for his comments. My ultimate basis for asserting President Thein Sein’s linking of the release of political prisoners with national reconciliation is the presidential decree for the major release of prisoners in January 2012. As reported in the New Light of Myanmar, this says: βThe President of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar granted amnesty to 651 male and female prisoners …with the aim of ensuring stability and eternal peace of the State, fostering national reconciliation, enabling them to participate in the political process, and on humanitarian grounds and turning them into the citizens to participate through whatever way they can in the nation-building tasks by realizing the magnanimity of the State.β I am tracking down the March 2012 quote I used.
My argument is not based on his use of one word on one occasion. NLM is not always accurate in its translations anyway. However, many reports from The Irrawaddy and Mizima News (who are not especially positive about Thein Sein) refer to Thein Sein seeking “national reconciliation” when he does not always seem to have used that phrase.
No, I don’t think that everyone wants to get rid of the monarchy. My little trip didn’t change my view that most Thais want the monarchy, it just made me realize that there is a bit more diversity of opinion up there.
You sound like a Thai person who was simply born in the US just like Bumiphol. We don’t bow to kings; we bow to the Constitution. Our Preamble begins “We the people” and we believe in government “of the people, by the people, for the people” and that “all men are created equal.”
Where does the this fellow American Bumiphol embody any of these values?
What’s interesting is that his father Prince Mahidol, spent a considerable amount of time in the US studying medicine and reportedly had “more radical ideas about democracy” like universal suffrage and the princes of the seventh reign opposed his candidacy to succeed Prajahidpok because of it.
You’re right Ralph… Keith Barney’s ongoing posting of various articles that argue against neoliberalism and contradict my position can be met with an equal number of articles calling for a perspective that includes neoliberalism. Such tit for tat is a pretty boring way to proceed, so it seems this discussion has run its course as all of our positions are very clear at this point. I’m clearly not going to convince Keith, and Keith has not presented me with anything that is going to convince me. As my good friend Carl Grundy-Warr always says, peaceful vibes. π
I don’t think anyone here thinks the Red Shirts are saints, so I really don’t know why you feel so tired to hear people here saying that they are saints. FYI, I don’t thinl they are.
As for damaging the property, I still have doubts as to who burned CTW Building. Official media in Thailand claims the Red Shirts did it. But the photo album, appearing on Facebook, showing the inside of CTW before the building was burned clearly showed that the building had been occupied by the Army, and that a few Red Shirts in there were either injured, shot in the leg, incapable of walking.
Neo 99, I believe you are one of those people who still listen to Thai official media and have not yet really looked at the evidence from the other side. The first place you should go to is youtube. There are lots of clips showing soldiers firing the Red Shirts from the Skytrain’s railway. This seems to contradict your claim that the soldiers were attacked and had no choice but to defend themselves. I fail to see how shooting people from such distance can be regarded as a self defence.
New Mandala readers following this discussion of questions for former Prime Minister Abhisit will want to see the responses it is drawing in the Thai language Internet.
From what I read from western media the people of Bangkok were highly indifferent to the red shirts. When the protests were going, they went to school, they went to work, they went to the movies. They went on with their lives, they pretended that these protests weren’t even happening.
There are Red shirts in Bangkok, but I don’t believe that the majority of the people in Bangkok are Red Shirts. There mostly middle class urban dwellers that have little in common with these rural people from Isan. That is where most of the Red Shirts came from and I’m tried of people looking at them as saints. They went on homophobic and xenophobic rants. They damaged a lot of property threaten people , turned away a perfectly good deal and tired to kill soldiers and policeman who weren’t doing anything to them. Some of the 91 people who died were definitely innocent, but I am sure that a good number of them needed to be put down before they killed people. Regardless I am just sick and tried of people thinking that the Red Shirts are saints that had no hand in what ended up happening to them.
You seem to think that there are easy “facts” about the king out there, and they would make him appear in a positive light. However, when it will be possible to go beyond Handley by producing a substantially documented critical analysis–that is, a scholarly–treatment of the person, his reign, and the monarchy, it might well be that nothing much will be left of his reputation (as much as it has been produced and protected by a relentless indoctrination and propaganda process).
“The Red shirts were firing grandees and other other bombs at them, before the soldiers even did anything.”
Leaving aside what “grandees” may be in this context, this is a woeful rewriting of history. I suggest you check out an accurate timeline of the events of April 10 2010.
“Also the people of Bangkok gave these Red shirts no support, they just ignored them and went on with their lives.”
A substantial proportion of “these Red shirts” were/are Bangkok residents and, BTW, they also rate as “people” whatever their sympathies. You seem to have missed any reporting of the early stages of the protest – which included a mass “motorised rally” moving around central Bangkok that brought many people out of their homes, shops and offices to cheer the demonstrators on. Given that much of the Thai media had billed the protest as being just some kind of hick invasion by the upcountry “red hordes”, this inconvenient truth came as a rude shock to many – though not to the UDD.
Needless (I’d have thought) to say, there were also highly vocal counter-demonstrations by some “people of Bangkok”. All in all, your characterisation of a complex and evolving situation just doesn’t fit key facts.
Facebook 
Twitter 
Soundcloud 
Youtube 
Rss
Questions for Abhisit Vejjajiva
To what degree do you owe your political career to the fact that members of the Vejjajiva family are partners and directors of 46 partnerships and companies with a combined registered capital of 34 billion baht, and sit on boards of directors of 10 corporations with a total capitalization of 204 billion baht?
The straw man critique of neoliberalism in Cambodia
Srithanonchai… yeah, because that’s obviously exactly how I meant it. You’re really grasping at straws now. *Yawn*
Race-based ideology and Islam: The Malaysian enigma
Malaya was governed by Muslim kingdoms who adopted Malay as lingua franca. All ethnicities unite into one nation under Islamic rule.
Western colonies came and bring nationalism ideology to split up people. Portuguese and Dutch failed because they’re too harsh. but British succeeded.
British are clever. divide and rule. Malaysians were destined to be split into three nations, Malay, Chinese, Indian. Malays were given cheap sweets in exchange of losing their total authority, the Sultanates. which was called that day ‘Hak Keistimewaan Orang Melayu’ (Malay Special Rights).
Its the tradition of Islamic kingdoms to encourage spreading of Islamic ideology among its people. the more people with a common ideology that there is no god but God and Muhammad is His Messenger is the more peaceful the community will become.
thus in every Muslim countries, Muslim populations will always get special treatment from the government.
the problem is, as years pass by, the so many benefits that a Malay can get fails to attract people to be a Malay. (Malay is defined as Malay speaking and Muslim in the constitution.) Chinese still wants to be Chinese. Indians still wants to be Indians.
meanwhile, UMNO became corrupt. they used Malay Supremacy slogans while betraying the Malay nation itself.
how many Malay villages and lands has UMNO sell to his MCA business partners with cheap prices. now, go to any cities in Malaysia, the Malays are selling in street stalls alongside foreigners such as Indonesians and Banglas. while Chinese owns the businesses in premium shopping complexes. but at the same time, these Malays also get bad names due to the Malay Supremacy slogans.
the sufferings of Malay people are ignored as much as possible nowadays. that is a question mark for everyone to answer. but for Malays who still retains our Islamic ideology, we just say to all our shortcomings ‘Inna lillah wa inna ilaihi raji’uun’. (We are for the sake of Allah, and verily to Him we will return).
The straw man critique of neoliberalism in Cambodia
“contradict my position”
Keith should be charged with academic lese majesty!
Critical review of King Bhumibol’s life
Neo 99 #74
Your false collective reference to “the people of Bangkok” has already been refuted. Thus, I don’t have to add to that. However, I would like to expand on the issue of “indifference.”
On Songkran 2010, I wandered from one end of the UDD’s camp to the other (actually, I covered all four ends). Finally, I ended up at the intersection marked by Chulalongkorn Hospital on the one side, and Robinsons Department Store on the other. Since I was hungry, I crossed over to the department store side. It was like leaving one world, and entering an entirely different world. On the department store side, the entire Silom Road was jam packed with teenagers madly celebrating Songkran.
This immense contrast was a stunning experience.
Questions for Abhisit Vejjajiva
My dear Abhisit: Is it true that Oxford means “cattle crossing”, and what does this imply for Oxford students?
When Thaksin comes home
May our dear Thaksin see the light and decide to stay abroad for the rest of his ife, as well as refrain from meddling in Thai politics, and may our dear Tul go back to medicine full time to amend the shortage of physicians outside Bangkok.
Seeking practical benefits from national reconciliation in Myanmar
I thank Duncan for his comments. My ultimate basis for asserting President Thein Sein’s linking of the release of political prisoners with national reconciliation is the presidential decree for the major release of prisoners in January 2012. As reported in the New Light of Myanmar, this says: βThe President of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar granted amnesty to 651 male and female prisoners …with the aim of ensuring stability and eternal peace of the State, fostering national reconciliation, enabling them to participate in the political process, and on humanitarian grounds and turning them into the citizens to participate through whatever way they can in the nation-building tasks by realizing the magnanimity of the State.β I am tracking down the March 2012 quote I used.
My argument is not based on his use of one word on one occasion. NLM is not always accurate in its translations anyway. However, many reports from The Irrawaddy and Mizima News (who are not especially positive about Thein Sein) refer to Thein Sein seeking “national reconciliation” when he does not always seem to have used that phrase.
Critical review of King Bhumibol’s life
Neo 99,
No, I don’t think that everyone wants to get rid of the monarchy. My little trip didn’t change my view that most Thais want the monarchy, it just made me realize that there is a bit more diversity of opinion up there.
You sound like a Thai person who was simply born in the US just like Bumiphol. We don’t bow to kings; we bow to the Constitution. Our Preamble begins “We the people” and we believe in government “of the people, by the people, for the people” and that “all men are created equal.”
Where does the this fellow American Bumiphol embody any of these values?
What’s interesting is that his father Prince Mahidol, spent a considerable amount of time in the US studying medicine and reportedly had “more radical ideas about democracy” like universal suffrage and the princes of the seventh reign opposed his candidacy to succeed Prajahidpok because of it.
The straw man critique of neoliberalism in Cambodia
You’re right Ralph… Keith Barney’s ongoing posting of various articles that argue against neoliberalism and contradict my position can be met with an equal number of articles calling for a perspective that includes neoliberalism. Such tit for tat is a pretty boring way to proceed, so it seems this discussion has run its course as all of our positions are very clear at this point. I’m clearly not going to convince Keith, and Keith has not presented me with anything that is going to convince me. As my good friend Carl Grundy-Warr always says, peaceful vibes. π
Critical review of King Bhumibol’s life
I don’t think anyone here thinks the Red Shirts are saints, so I really don’t know why you feel so tired to hear people here saying that they are saints. FYI, I don’t thinl they are.
As for damaging the property, I still have doubts as to who burned CTW Building. Official media in Thailand claims the Red Shirts did it. But the photo album, appearing on Facebook, showing the inside of CTW before the building was burned clearly showed that the building had been occupied by the Army, and that a few Red Shirts in there were either injured, shot in the leg, incapable of walking.
However, it is certain that the Yello Shirts aka “PAD”, under the blatant support of Queen Sirikit, occupied the BKK airport and caused substantial losses to the Thai economy. I was in Phuket in December 2008 after the airport closure where business was dead after tourists’ cancellations. I talked to a lot of Phuket shopowners because everywhere we went was very quiet. I can tell you that the majority of shopowners there were very angry at the Queen. They believed that the Queen ordered the airport closure, and she should be blamed for the impact these protests had to their businesses. A few of them told us clearly that “Phuket had become a ghost town because of the ‘fat b*tch’ (E-Ouan ΡβΠ½Ρββ‘ΡβΠ½Ρβ£ΠΡβΠ·ΡβΠ©).
Neo 99, I believe you are one of those people who still listen to Thai official media and have not yet really looked at the evidence from the other side. The first place you should go to is youtube. There are lots of clips showing soldiers firing the Red Shirts from the Skytrain’s railway. This seems to contradict your claim that the soldiers were attacked and had no choice but to defend themselves. I fail to see how shooting people from such distance can be regarded as a self defence.
Questions for Abhisit Vejjajiva
Roger: I’d like a link for the video as well.
The straw man critique of neoliberalism in Cambodia
I wanted an argument, not contradiction: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kQFKtI6gn9Y
Critical review of King Bhumibol’s life
Neo 99
You think the Bangkok-based Western media are a reliable source?
Why do you think the BBC had to send a team from London to make a proper documentary about the massacre?
Because they knew that the local Western media were pretty much a joke.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QufwX0JsdXA
And nice to hear you think the Red Shirts, those awful people from Isaan, should be “put down.”
Thailand really attracts some quality people.
Questions for Abhisit Vejjajiva
New Mandala readers following this discussion of questions for former Prime Minister Abhisit will want to see the responses it is drawing in the Thai language Internet.
You can start here and here.
Best wishes to all,
Nich
The straw man critique of neoliberalism in Cambodia
I like Mike Geddes term “neoliberalism deniers”, it has a nice ring to it…
http://dx.doi.org/10.1332/147084411X581826
Critical review of King Bhumibol’s life
From what I read from western media the people of Bangkok were highly indifferent to the red shirts. When the protests were going, they went to school, they went to work, they went to the movies. They went on with their lives, they pretended that these protests weren’t even happening.
There are Red shirts in Bangkok, but I don’t believe that the majority of the people in Bangkok are Red Shirts. There mostly middle class urban dwellers that have little in common with these rural people from Isan. That is where most of the Red Shirts came from and I’m tried of people looking at them as saints. They went on homophobic and xenophobic rants. They damaged a lot of property threaten people , turned away a perfectly good deal and tired to kill soldiers and policeman who weren’t doing anything to them. Some of the 91 people who died were definitely innocent, but I am sure that a good number of them needed to be put down before they killed people. Regardless I am just sick and tried of people thinking that the Red Shirts are saints that had no hand in what ended up happening to them.
Critical review of King Bhumibol’s life
Neo 99
You seem to think that there are easy “facts” about the king out there, and they would make him appear in a positive light. However, when it will be possible to go beyond Handley by producing a substantially documented critical analysis–that is, a scholarly–treatment of the person, his reign, and the monarchy, it might well be that nothing much will be left of his reputation (as much as it has been produced and protected by a relentless indoctrination and propaganda process).
Critical review of King Bhumibol’s life
Neo99 (c64)
“The Red shirts were firing grandees and other other bombs at them, before the soldiers even did anything.”
Leaving aside what “grandees” may be in this context, this is a woeful rewriting of history. I suggest you check out an accurate timeline of the events of April 10 2010.
“Also the people of Bangkok gave these Red shirts no support, they just ignored them and went on with their lives.”
A substantial proportion of “these Red shirts” were/are Bangkok residents and, BTW, they also rate as “people” whatever their sympathies. You seem to have missed any reporting of the early stages of the protest – which included a mass “motorised rally” moving around central Bangkok that brought many people out of their homes, shops and offices to cheer the demonstrators on. Given that much of the Thai media had billed the protest as being just some kind of hick invasion by the upcountry “red hordes”, this inconvenient truth came as a rude shock to many – though not to the UDD.
Needless (I’d have thought) to say, there were also highly vocal counter-demonstrations by some “people of Bangkok”. All in all, your characterisation of a complex and evolving situation just doesn’t fit key facts.
Kachin State: Don’t mention the war
If Thingyan and Putao coverage is all they’ve got, then they’d be better off following the earlier policy of not reporting anything.