‘I have never heard of any effort to request IP addresses from the ANU…’
Hmmm. If that were an American ‘spokesperson’ speaking it would translate as : “I was very careful to leave the room while those discussions went on.” Probably Australian spokespersons are not like that though.
I didn’t mean restrict the open debate on NM and I am sure that all posters and most readers are grateful for this open resource. I meant kept out the type of tracking codes referred to by Donatella and other such bugs that might trawl for IP data and hand it over to parties who don’t respect freedom of expression. I have no doubt that such people have already devoted many hours to figuring out how to crack into the sight and will continue to do so.
Well, yeah it might be that the judge has ‘got religion’… but going on the history of judges in this case and other judges on LM they seem to have been driven by predisposition to convict, a complete lack of evidence has never seemed to have presented any difficulty before, so my assumption here is that this new judge is driven by an equal but opposite predisposition to acquit. In accordance with the new ‘consensus above’. And as always the lack of evidence is ‘immaterial’ due to the new consensus.
You may be right. The Thai judicial system may have reformed itself since the spring. As it plays out there may be more of a ‘tell’ as to which seems more likely to be the case. Is this judge operating independently of the consensus above? or has the consensus above changed and now converged on acquittal?
The Thai ‘justice system’ seems to have snapped to attention to the consensus above back in 2006, as I remember, and I’ve seen no sign of it’s having ‘returned’ to its prior approximation of the straight and narrow.
In the expected event of Chiranuch’s acquittal… Hurray for Chiranuch! Hurray for all of us and for all Thailand! But one crocus does not make a new spring. There are still Surachai, Somyos, Ampol, Joe Gordon, Anthony Chai, not to mention Darunee… miles to go before we sleep. So we who believe in freedom cannot rest.
andothers #5 “This judge seems sympathetic…” : Could it be that this judge is not “sympathetic,” but actually resolved to be what every judge should be – impartial & dedicated to the idea that a suspect can only be convicted on the basis of irrefutable evidence that shows beyond a shadow of doubt that the accused is guilty? So far the prosecution have supplied no evidence of this kind, & it’s fairly clear that they have none. Their case is obviously insubstantial & extremely flimsy, & it’s clear that any judge who is using legal norms would be getting rather irritated by the waste of time.
Of course, you should struggle to help people who are suffering under the current law and there is no need to remain silent on the LM issue. My point, though, is that I don’t think attempts to reform or abolish Section 112 will be successful in isolation and that advocates should take a holistic view of the law or a two pronged approach. I believe it will be a very long haul and that the numbers languishing in jail without bail will increase significantly before things improve.
Thaksin is not yet all powerful but will have a lot of influence in this government and probably even more in the next one, which may not be far off. He will always be dead against any of this type of legal reform and will probably use his power to block it for as long as PT or other Shinite parties are in power.
The latest wikileaks cabledump seems to point to the US Embassy strategy of dealing with a case like Joe’s.
See: http://www.cablegatesearch.net/cable.php?id=07BANGKOK3154&q=%3Dcasc%20%3Druehbk%20%3Dth%20%3Dthailand%20assistance-to-citizens%20embassy-bangkok
In it are a few comments based on the Swiss experience with the Jufer case.
“Swiss officials in Thailand believe their restrained response to the arrest, in spite of their public’s demand for strong action, contributed to the sooner-than-expected release of their citizen. The Swiss experience with Thailand’s lese majeste laws informs a possible USG response should an AmCit be charged with lese majeste in the future.”
“The palace appears quite sensitive to the possibility that lese majeste could be abused by non-palace actors to achieve their own ends. If an AmCit were to be charged with lese majeste, it is likely that a low key approach outside the public eye would stand the best chance of success in getting him or her out of custody and out of Thailand. “–Ambassador BOYCE
I do however disagree. Based on the longstanding US relationship with Thailand, I feel the US response should be in a leading role. Not based on Swiss models. I congradulate Joe in writing President Obama about his case.
I hope we can see Secretary Clinton address the issue of fundamental rights and comdemn the Thai Prosecution of American Citizen Joe Gorden who continues to be held in the Thai prison as a political prisoner.
With the current “we will kill to protect the King” paranoia from the Thais and the high level of fanaticism, proposal to abolish LM in this current climate is a very dangerous move. While it is true that this law is vile, too many people (who are ready to resort to violence..due to the propaganda) still cannot see it. I believe that the moment Yingluck’s government proposes that they want to abolish LM, chaos will erupt. And no, telling those brainwashed fanatics that “we have the right to propose the abolition because we are democratically elected” will be useless.
As long as this current K is still alive, there is no one but he himself who can abolish this law. If the K really wants a smooth succession and transition into true democracy, perhaps the best thing he should do is he should call to abolish this law himself….
….but I doubt whether this would happen. The consequence of abolishing this law will be severe to he himself and his family, considering what his family has done to Thailand in the past sixty something years. Nonetheless, I think letting the Thai public know about these events while the K is still alive may still save the Monarchy. If the public knows about these “hidden secrets” after he passes away and that there is no one else in his family that the Thais really care about, the outcome will be much more severe.
Unfortunately I dont think this government will change anything. Although Yingluck has the full support from the people that elected her but the Shinawatra is and foremost “business people”. They will not do anything drastic and bargaining is their forte so I have very little hope that this law will get remove.
There is no reason why Yingluk should remove laws that she is now in a position to use for her own benefit. There is a mistaken view among many NM readers that her party was formed on the back of some kind of populist people’s revolt. Let’s be clear about this: Politics in Thailand in recent years has been characterised by an internecine struggle for power among the existing elite. The “people” have been used as mere pawns in the game, their votes a convenient additional weapon for those astute enough to use them effectively. That Yingluk’s party has adeptly used the “people’s” vote for their own ends is merely a function of her brother’s political astuteness. I expect Yingluk’s party to quickly revert to type and use these very same oppressive laws to further their own ambitions – which I doubt bare any resemblance to the aspirations of the people of Isaan and the north.
1. This is a blog posting (capturing anecdotes, interesting statistics, funny statement, etc), not an op-ed or essay. An op-ed would be something like this, and an essay would be something like this.
2. Overall graduate unemployment is higher among non – bumiputeras than among bumiputeras. This was conveyed to me by Dr. Lee Hwok Aun. He explains this finding further in his paper, “Affirmative action in Malaysia: Education and employment outcomes since the 1990s”. His PhD thesis exploring affirmative action in Malaysia and South Africa provides the context for this shocking statistic. Really, this was news to me. It may partially explain the anger among young non-Malays towards BN. Hence one hypothesis for the higher number of Bumiputera’s registered on the Malaysian Electronic Labour Exchange than non – Bumi’s, maybe due to the believe by Bumiputera graduates that the government has an obligation to resolve their unemployment which does not exist among non – Bumiputeras.
3. Local universities unemployment rate – yes I wish the details were readily available (how useful if EPU and DOS makes all data available). This is one picked up from Berita Harian. But the point remains that Bumiputera graduate unemployment is a serious problem. The Malays are in general afraid of competition having been molly-coddled for the past 40 years. No doubt there are confident young Malays who excel. But they are not adequately represented. Who in UMNO has supported liberalisation or meritocracy. Analyse discourse at UMNO AGMs or Utusan Malaysia and Berita Harian. That is why PERKASA gains traction. That is also why the UMNO led government has an undue obligation to address Bumiputera unemployment – especially graduates but does not have the same commitment to non – Bumiputeras (read any of the Malaysia plans and even the New Economic Model part 2 and ETP). As I have noted in my essay, Malaysia – a simple institutional analysis, we need tough reforms. These include right -sizing the public sector (its too large with low productivity and shortage in critical areas and a drag on fiscal resources, reform the GLCs through divestation – GLCs have also been a drag through crowding out of the private sector and incurring heavy losses contributing to fiscal deficits; regulate migrant workers better, etc). Through this creative destruction, new growth opportunities will arise to employ competent Malaysians. Can and will UMNO do this?
4. UMNO makes scapegoats of Malaysian Chinese when things go bad for UMNO and the Malays. The rise in religious and racial tensions correlates with problems in UMNO. Unfortunately, some Malays continue to believe this propaganda. After 40 years of affirmative action, that Malays have failed to achieve targets (that is if they perceive that they have failed) should be seen as a policy failure, and hence the government that implemented that policy should be responsible. The Malays should realise that they have failed not because of the Chinese but because they have placed their faith in poor government policies. If policies from any government fails the people, either the government changes its policies or the people should replace the government.
Please note that the quality of graduates from Malaysia from among all race are on the decline. Read any of the World Bank Reports on Malaysia or the New Economic Model for these findings (its called skilled shortages).
An interesting paper, “Governing by Bumiputera Ideology” discussing the influence of Malay supremacy on corporate governance and accounting standards. I reproduce the conclusion:
We turn to the central issues raised at the commencement – how political ideology shapes corporate governance apparatuses. This was unpacked into several questions.
The first question concerned a construction of a ‘historical bloc’ that induced a political ideology of the Malay’s messianic propagation towards the problematisation of colonial legacy of socio-economic and political ramifications in the 1960s and 1970s. The programme came to be inspired by the ideology that ‘sons of soil’, i.e. Bumiputera, must take the lead in the management of economic and political apparatuses in Malaysia. Being socially and politically disruptive, the programme was subject to severe conflicts and confrontations but with some assenting results for gaining pedantic power in Malaysian corporate boards through the devices of post independent political movements, value-laden economic policies and ethnic-based civil riots between the Malays and non-Malays. While we concur with Ezzamel et al. (2007) who argued that there is a link between accounting and ideology, our concerns establishes a more refined view that this relationship can be indirect and convoluted for the above events and incidents act as mediating mechanisms between ideology and accounting – corporate governance in our case. It is an institutional environment of multiple events – be they legal, political, economic and insurgent – which gave form to the political ideology Bumiputera, and it is this political ideology which shaped the contours of corporate governance reforms in post-independent Malaysia.
The second question concerned an interpellation of this political ideology through the confirmation of the previous discourses. In a discursive formation agenda, the interpellation came to effect on the 1970s NEP initiative, the 1980s policy reversal programme of privatisation, and the 1990s National Development Policy. Being enmeshed with the magnitudes of these dispersed programmes, the ideology Bumiputera came to tie up their massy, loose ends of socio-political debates; coordinated diverse ideas, semiotics and semantic views into a single political ideology; and operated to favour the Bumiputera and disadvantaged the non-Bumiputera. The discourses of economic ideals and their underlying development rationales came to be linguistic tools which manufactured texts and speeches towards creating consensual spaces for the ideology Bumiputera to be transformed into ‘ideological effects’. The ‘effects’ were effective enough to intersperse the power of the political ideology in corporate governance apparatuses which became a manufactured space for ethnic-based board representation and equity ownership.
The revitalisation of this effect as ‘ideological effect’ was also linked to the state apparatuses in which Bumiputera’s representations and their politico-ethnic hegemony came to be significant. While mainstream corporate governance literature has been busy discovering the economics of governance, such socio-political concerns point to a viable leverage for gearing up the literature into a political economy ilk. Being coloured by the Malaysian post-independent political and economic history and contemporaneous global pressures and local acts, our analysis paves a way forward in this direction.
The last question concerned the articulation of such contemporaneous programmes and their inherent strains and pressures. The articulation took place to combine different elements including radical reforms of the use of corporate governance codes and to disperse the opposing forces that disrupt the harmonisation of economic and governance apparatuses. Being a severe political programme, the articulation became constitutive of multiple social relations in that “all knowledge, all talk, all argument” took place in a particular discursive context, as Laclau and Mouffe (1985) expected. The type of Malaysian discursive context towards the end of the century was decorated by a series of global ideas of corporate governance mechanisms and financial and economic management tools which became indispensible in the aftermath of Asian economic crisis. Apparently, the ideology Bumiputera was reassessed and understated; state governance mechanisms for corporate governance received a new life. Nevertheless, the ideology Bumiputera is still inevitable and irreversible in that the Malays’ representation in Chinese boards continues to be hegemonic, despite the preventive mechanisms operated through clan-based controls by Chinese owners.
This sustenance of embedded political ideology coincides with what the former Malaysian Prime Minister, Tun Mahathir’s remark on the globalisation issue: “the Malay should ensure that their political power stays strong and stable so that the rights and privileges will not vanish easily” (Bernama, 2009b). Accounting studies in emerging economies must not deviate from such ideological embeddedness.
“Good point Donatella. NM would do well to get on to this pretty quick and generally bolster up security before it finds its own webmasters and contributors suddenly switching to a diet of broken red rice gruel.”
I disagree, Portcullis. Of course there should be security but New Mandala should remain open and accessible and speak freely and loudly.
Of course, that’s up to Andrew and Nich, and although I don’t think they’re in danger of a prison diet right now, I do believe running New Mandala has restricted their freedoms somewhat. I say thanks to them for opening this place for debate and discussion for many other people.
Your first paragraph is quite correct. There is definitely a need for an overhaul of Thai defamation and lese majeste laws in order to produce a state of affairs which will make the law more commensurate with freedom of speech.
However, there is a more urgent need to change the lese majeste laws now because actual people are suffering in prison because of these laws and because actual people are suffering in silence because of the intimidation these laws engender.
Your second paragraph assumes that Thaksin now has absolute and untrammelled power. I’m certain that this is not true. It never has been for anyone in the history of the world unless you believe in an all-powerful God.
I don’t think Thaksin is in this category yet.
However, I’m sure that he does have a large amount of power and influence and that he might be disposed to use laws such as lese majeste to extend that power and influence.
So, your argument gives us all the more reason to struggle against these pernicious laws to prevent them being used in the ways you think Thaksin might use them.
“- Unlike some countries (Indonesia, Thailand, etc) the Malaysian model is not based on assimilation of races. It is based on embracing multi-ethnicity. This means there are Chinese, Tamil Punjabi schools, national radios,TVs & newspapers in various languages. Cultural and ethnic identities are allowed. ”
“A true Malaysian who supports Bangsa Malaysia should be willing to forego all ethnic and religious identities.”
On one hand you said Malaysia embracing multi-ethnicity, but then you want all to forego all ethnic and religious identities. Would like you to elaborate this contradiction.
Also, do you mean there is no way to achieve Bangsa Malaysia as long as there are still poeple in Malaysia believing in other religions (other than Islam), speaking other languages (even if they can speak BM), and practicing customs other than the Malay custom?
New Mandala has either forgotten or perhaps considers it of no consequence but September the 2nd is Vietnam’s Independence Day when the Viert Minh told the French to take a running leap. It took Dien Bien Phu to convince the French their time was up and of course the Vietnamese had to wait until 1975 to deliver the US a lesson that it appears to have forgotten aka Iraq and Afghanistan but it would be great if New Mandala focused some of its attention on a country like Vietnam, which in the annals of history is at least as important as Thailand and probably more so than a country such as Malaysia despite the latter’s economic although not necessarily political successes!
Tiresome and obtuse arguements from killer, but I will respond just once more…
No 1 & 2 – arrest and detention of chinese journalist for her “protection” If this is not an abuse of police powers, I do not know what it is.. Please do not ask for an encyclopedic list of examples. I do believe the average readers at NM (mostly unpaid, interested readers,if killer must know) can tell the difference between “spin” assertation and reality
N0 3 – The politics and economics of MIC and MCA is so intertwined and dependent on BN, that it would take a “Gandhi” to change that allegiance. Furthermore UMNO is actually “NEW UMNO” How did the assets of “Old” UMNO get transfered to NEW UMNO? I would like to see the accounts and the legality of that.
NO 4 – “A true Malaysian should forego all race and religious identities” ??? What century are you from”Killer”. No you do not have to answer that. It is a rhetorical question.
The idea that the king’s reputation was shiny until the son tarnished it ignores criticism that was made of, for example, his paintings of a naked wife in the 1970s. There has been a yellow literature that criticised him and saw LM cases. There was criticism of connections to the groups involved in 1976 massacre. PPT posted some 1970s stuff and might be worth a look (http://thaipoliticalprisoners.wordpress.com/commentary/lese-majeste-issues/). Others can probably think of other pre-1970s criticisms.
This judge seems sympathetic… on the theory that the judges do what they’re told, it seems that Chiranuch has stared ’em down. Faced with the publicity around their ridiculous political persecution, they blinked.
But their ‘right to persecute’ will remain after they let Chiranuch off (they had better let her off after the judges note that it’s nothing!) and Chalerm has said he plans to step up prosecutions for LM… I suppose its a case of forget what they say, watch what they do.
Let’s see ’em bail those in prison for being charged with LM… you know, innocent ’til proven guilty? Darunee included. Samyot included. Joe Gordon included…
A logical legal perspective has to take Section 112 not in isolation but as part and parcel of a review of the overall legal framework involving defamation laws. There is no question that Thai defamation laws are anachronistic and in desperate need of reform. How can any country ever reduce corruption and develop as a civil society with a criminal defamation law still on the books and in active use as an effective deterrent against reporting on corruption. If defamation laws relating to commoners were reformed first, it would be a logical extension to then consider reform of Section 112 without necessarily eliminating it, particularly when one considers that the most common defence of Section 112 is that the monarchy has no recourse to other defamation laws to defend itself. Merely restricting the way cases can be filed alone would be a significant reform that would do a great deal to protect the image of the monarchy from frivolous cases that the legal system is currently obliged to process.
But we are dreaming here. Thaksin has historically been one of the most enthusiastic abusers of defamation laws in order to attack political opponents and cover up his own tracks. It is unlikely that he would ever countenance any reform of any of the defamation laws during his sister’s watch. In addition, re-doubling the existing crack down efforts on LM is an excellent way for the Shins to disprove the detractors who like to accuse Thaksin of disloyalty and is certainly not going to lose PT any votes.
Even one is in favour of Section 112 and its rigorous enforcement, this prosecution of some one who failed to post any insulting remarks herself, did in fact remove the posts (albeit slower than some might have wished) and cooperated fully in handing over the details of the posters for prosecution does seem somewhat beyond the scope of the law.
Facebook 
Twitter 
Soundcloud 
Youtube 
Rss
US legal action on lese majeste
‘I have never heard of any effort to request IP addresses from the ANU…’
Hmmm. If that were an American ‘spokesperson’ speaking it would translate as : “I was very careful to leave the room while those discussions went on.” Probably Australian spokespersons are not like that though.
Prachatai trial update
Tom Hoy,
I didn’t mean restrict the open debate on NM and I am sure that all posters and most readers are grateful for this open resource. I meant kept out the type of tracking codes referred to by Donatella and other such bugs that might trawl for IP data and hand it over to parties who don’t respect freedom of expression. I have no doubt that such people have already devoted many hours to figuring out how to crack into the sight and will continue to do so.
Prachatai trial update
Well, yeah it might be that the judge has ‘got religion’… but going on the history of judges in this case and other judges on LM they seem to have been driven by predisposition to convict, a complete lack of evidence has never seemed to have presented any difficulty before, so my assumption here is that this new judge is driven by an equal but opposite predisposition to acquit. In accordance with the new ‘consensus above’. And as always the lack of evidence is ‘immaterial’ due to the new consensus.
You may be right. The Thai judicial system may have reformed itself since the spring. As it plays out there may be more of a ‘tell’ as to which seems more likely to be the case. Is this judge operating independently of the consensus above? or has the consensus above changed and now converged on acquittal?
The Thai ‘justice system’ seems to have snapped to attention to the consensus above back in 2006, as I remember, and I’ve seen no sign of it’s having ‘returned’ to its prior approximation of the straight and narrow.
In the expected event of Chiranuch’s acquittal… Hurray for Chiranuch! Hurray for all of us and for all Thailand! But one crocus does not make a new spring. There are still Surachai, Somyos, Ampol, Joe Gordon, Anthony Chai, not to mention Darunee… miles to go before we sleep. So we who believe in freedom cannot rest.
Prachatai trial update
andothers #5 “This judge seems sympathetic…” : Could it be that this judge is not “sympathetic,” but actually resolved to be what every judge should be – impartial & dedicated to the idea that a suspect can only be convicted on the basis of irrefutable evidence that shows beyond a shadow of doubt that the accused is guilty? So far the prosecution have supplied no evidence of this kind, & it’s fairly clear that they have none. Their case is obviously insubstantial & extremely flimsy, & it’s clear that any judge who is using legal norms would be getting rather irritated by the waste of time.
Open letter to Yingluck on lese majeste
Tom Hoy,
Of course, you should struggle to help people who are suffering under the current law and there is no need to remain silent on the LM issue. My point, though, is that I don’t think attempts to reform or abolish Section 112 will be successful in isolation and that advocates should take a holistic view of the law or a two pronged approach. I believe it will be a very long haul and that the numbers languishing in jail without bail will increase significantly before things improve.
Thaksin is not yet all powerful but will have a lot of influence in this government and probably even more in the next one, which may not be far off. He will always be dead against any of this type of legal reform and will probably use his power to block it for as long as PT or other Shinite parties are in power.
FACT’s plea for Joe Gordon
The latest wikileaks cabledump seems to point to the US Embassy strategy of dealing with a case like Joe’s.
See:
http://www.cablegatesearch.net/cable.php?id=07BANGKOK3154&q=%3Dcasc%20%3Druehbk%20%3Dth%20%3Dthailand%20assistance-to-citizens%20embassy-bangkok
In it are a few comments based on the Swiss experience with the Jufer case.
“Swiss officials in Thailand believe their restrained response to the arrest, in spite of their public’s demand for strong action, contributed to the sooner-than-expected release of their citizen. The Swiss experience with Thailand’s lese majeste laws informs a possible USG response should an AmCit be charged with lese majeste in the future.”
“The palace appears quite sensitive to the possibility that lese majeste could be abused by non-palace actors to achieve their own ends. If an AmCit were to be charged with lese majeste, it is likely that a low key approach outside the public eye would stand the best chance of success in getting him or her out of custody and out of Thailand. “–Ambassador BOYCE
I do however disagree. Based on the longstanding US relationship with Thailand, I feel the US response should be in a leading role. Not based on Swiss models. I congradulate Joe in writing President Obama about his case.
I hope we can see Secretary Clinton address the issue of fundamental rights and comdemn the Thai Prosecution of American Citizen Joe Gorden who continues to be held in the Thai prison as a political prisoner.
Open letter to Yingluck on lese majeste
With the current “we will kill to protect the King” paranoia from the Thais and the high level of fanaticism, proposal to abolish LM in this current climate is a very dangerous move. While it is true that this law is vile, too many people (who are ready to resort to violence..due to the propaganda) still cannot see it. I believe that the moment Yingluck’s government proposes that they want to abolish LM, chaos will erupt. And no, telling those brainwashed fanatics that “we have the right to propose the abolition because we are democratically elected” will be useless.
As long as this current K is still alive, there is no one but he himself who can abolish this law. If the K really wants a smooth succession and transition into true democracy, perhaps the best thing he should do is he should call to abolish this law himself….
….but I doubt whether this would happen. The consequence of abolishing this law will be severe to he himself and his family, considering what his family has done to Thailand in the past sixty something years. Nonetheless, I think letting the Thai public know about these events while the K is still alive may still save the Monarchy. If the public knows about these “hidden secrets” after he passes away and that there is no one else in his family that the Thais really care about, the outcome will be much more severe.
Open letter to Yingluck on lese majeste
Unfortunately I dont think this government will change anything. Although Yingluck has the full support from the people that elected her but the Shinawatra is and foremost “business people”. They will not do anything drastic and bargaining is their forte so I have very little hope that this law will get remove.
Open letter to Yingluck on lese majeste
There is no reason why Yingluk should remove laws that she is now in a position to use for her own benefit. There is a mistaken view among many NM readers that her party was formed on the back of some kind of populist people’s revolt. Let’s be clear about this: Politics in Thailand in recent years has been characterised by an internecine struggle for power among the existing elite. The “people” have been used as mere pawns in the game, their votes a convenient additional weapon for those astute enough to use them effectively. That Yingluk’s party has adeptly used the “people’s” vote for their own ends is merely a function of her brother’s political astuteness. I expect Yingluk’s party to quickly revert to type and use these very same oppressive laws to further their own ambitions – which I doubt bare any resemblance to the aspirations of the people of Isaan and the north.
Bumiputera graduate unemployment and Malaysia’s world class education system – a recipe for disaster
Some clarification and reiteration:
1. This is a blog posting (capturing anecdotes, interesting statistics, funny statement, etc), not an op-ed or essay. An op-ed would be something like this, and an essay would be something like this.
2. Overall graduate unemployment is higher among non – bumiputeras than among bumiputeras. This was conveyed to me by Dr. Lee Hwok Aun. He explains this finding further in his paper, “Affirmative action in Malaysia: Education and employment outcomes since the 1990s”. His PhD thesis exploring affirmative action in Malaysia and South Africa provides the context for this shocking statistic. Really, this was news to me. It may partially explain the anger among young non-Malays towards BN. Hence one hypothesis for the higher number of Bumiputera’s registered on the Malaysian Electronic Labour Exchange than non – Bumi’s, maybe due to the believe by Bumiputera graduates that the government has an obligation to resolve their unemployment which does not exist among non – Bumiputeras.
3. Local universities unemployment rate – yes I wish the details were readily available (how useful if EPU and DOS makes all data available). This is one picked up from Berita Harian. But the point remains that Bumiputera graduate unemployment is a serious problem. The Malays are in general afraid of competition having been molly-coddled for the past 40 years. No doubt there are confident young Malays who excel. But they are not adequately represented. Who in UMNO has supported liberalisation or meritocracy. Analyse discourse at UMNO AGMs or Utusan Malaysia and Berita Harian. That is why PERKASA gains traction. That is also why the UMNO led government has an undue obligation to address Bumiputera unemployment – especially graduates but does not have the same commitment to non – Bumiputeras (read any of the Malaysia plans and even the New Economic Model part 2 and ETP). As I have noted in my essay, Malaysia – a simple institutional analysis, we need tough reforms. These include right -sizing the public sector (its too large with low productivity and shortage in critical areas and a drag on fiscal resources, reform the GLCs through divestation – GLCs have also been a drag through crowding out of the private sector and incurring heavy losses contributing to fiscal deficits; regulate migrant workers better, etc). Through this creative destruction, new growth opportunities will arise to employ competent Malaysians. Can and will UMNO do this?
4. UMNO makes scapegoats of Malaysian Chinese when things go bad for UMNO and the Malays. The rise in religious and racial tensions correlates with problems in UMNO. Unfortunately, some Malays continue to believe this propaganda. After 40 years of affirmative action, that Malays have failed to achieve targets (that is if they perceive that they have failed) should be seen as a policy failure, and hence the government that implemented that policy should be responsible. The Malays should realise that they have failed not because of the Chinese but because they have placed their faith in poor government policies. If policies from any government fails the people, either the government changes its policies or the people should replace the government.
Please note that the quality of graduates from Malaysia from among all race are on the decline. Read any of the World Bank Reports on Malaysia or the New Economic Model for these findings (its called skilled shortages).
Malaysia – a simple institutional analysis
An interesting paper, “Governing by Bumiputera Ideology” discussing the influence of Malay supremacy on corporate governance and accounting standards. I reproduce the conclusion:
Prachatai trial update
“Good point Donatella. NM would do well to get on to this pretty quick and generally bolster up security before it finds its own webmasters and contributors suddenly switching to a diet of broken red rice gruel.”
I disagree, Portcullis. Of course there should be security but New Mandala should remain open and accessible and speak freely and loudly.
Of course, that’s up to Andrew and Nich, and although I don’t think they’re in danger of a prison diet right now, I do believe running New Mandala has restricted their freedoms somewhat. I say thanks to them for opening this place for debate and discussion for many other people.
Open letter to Yingluck on lese majeste
Portcullis,
Your first paragraph is quite correct. There is definitely a need for an overhaul of Thai defamation and lese majeste laws in order to produce a state of affairs which will make the law more commensurate with freedom of speech.
However, there is a more urgent need to change the lese majeste laws now because actual people are suffering in prison because of these laws and because actual people are suffering in silence because of the intimidation these laws engender.
Your second paragraph assumes that Thaksin now has absolute and untrammelled power. I’m certain that this is not true. It never has been for anyone in the history of the world unless you believe in an all-powerful God.
I don’t think Thaksin is in this category yet.
However, I’m sure that he does have a large amount of power and influence and that he might be disposed to use laws such as lese majeste to extend that power and influence.
So, your argument gives us all the more reason to struggle against these pernicious laws to prevent them being used in the ways you think Thaksin might use them.
We are not dreaming. We are wide awake.
Malaysia – a simple institutional analysis
Killer,
“- Unlike some countries (Indonesia, Thailand, etc) the Malaysian model is not based on assimilation of races. It is based on embracing multi-ethnicity. This means there are Chinese, Tamil Punjabi schools, national radios,TVs & newspapers in various languages. Cultural and ethnic identities are allowed. ”
“A true Malaysian who supports Bangsa Malaysia should be willing to forego all ethnic and religious identities.”
On one hand you said Malaysia embracing multi-ethnicity, but then you want all to forego all ethnic and religious identities. Would like you to elaborate this contradiction.
Also, do you mean there is no way to achieve Bangsa Malaysia as long as there are still poeple in Malaysia believing in other religions (other than Islam), speaking other languages (even if they can speak BM), and practicing customs other than the Malay custom?
Happy Independence Day, Malaya
New Mandala has either forgotten or perhaps considers it of no consequence but September the 2nd is Vietnam’s Independence Day when the Viert Minh told the French to take a running leap. It took Dien Bien Phu to convince the French their time was up and of course the Vietnamese had to wait until 1975 to deliver the US a lesson that it appears to have forgotten aka Iraq and Afghanistan but it would be great if New Mandala focused some of its attention on a country like Vietnam, which in the annals of history is at least as important as Thailand and probably more so than a country such as Malaysia despite the latter’s economic although not necessarily political successes!
Malaysia – a simple institutional analysis
Tiresome and obtuse arguements from killer, but I will respond just once more…
No 1 & 2 – arrest and detention of chinese journalist for her “protection” If this is not an abuse of police powers, I do not know what it is.. Please do not ask for an encyclopedic list of examples. I do believe the average readers at NM (mostly unpaid, interested readers,if killer must know) can tell the difference between “spin” assertation and reality
N0 3 – The politics and economics of MIC and MCA is so intertwined and dependent on BN, that it would take a “Gandhi” to change that allegiance. Furthermore UMNO is actually “NEW UMNO” How did the assets of “Old” UMNO get transfered to NEW UMNO? I would like to see the accounts and the legality of that.
NO 4 – “A true Malaysian should forego all race and religious identities” ??? What century are you from”Killer”. No you do not have to answer that. It is a rhetorical question.
Thailand’s succession planning
The idea that the king’s reputation was shiny until the son tarnished it ignores criticism that was made of, for example, his paintings of a naked wife in the 1970s. There has been a yellow literature that criticised him and saw LM cases. There was criticism of connections to the groups involved in 1976 massacre. PPT posted some 1970s stuff and might be worth a look (http://thaipoliticalprisoners.wordpress.com/commentary/lese-majeste-issues/). Others can probably think of other pre-1970s criticisms.
Prachatai trial update
This judge seems sympathetic… on the theory that the judges do what they’re told, it seems that Chiranuch has stared ’em down. Faced with the publicity around their ridiculous political persecution, they blinked.
But their ‘right to persecute’ will remain after they let Chiranuch off (they had better let her off after the judges note that it’s nothing!) and Chalerm has said he plans to step up prosecutions for LM… I suppose its a case of forget what they say, watch what they do.
Let’s see ’em bail those in prison for being charged with LM… you know, innocent ’til proven guilty? Darunee included. Samyot included. Joe Gordon included…
Open letter to Yingluck on lese majeste
A logical legal perspective has to take Section 112 not in isolation but as part and parcel of a review of the overall legal framework involving defamation laws. There is no question that Thai defamation laws are anachronistic and in desperate need of reform. How can any country ever reduce corruption and develop as a civil society with a criminal defamation law still on the books and in active use as an effective deterrent against reporting on corruption. If defamation laws relating to commoners were reformed first, it would be a logical extension to then consider reform of Section 112 without necessarily eliminating it, particularly when one considers that the most common defence of Section 112 is that the monarchy has no recourse to other defamation laws to defend itself. Merely restricting the way cases can be filed alone would be a significant reform that would do a great deal to protect the image of the monarchy from frivolous cases that the legal system is currently obliged to process.
But we are dreaming here. Thaksin has historically been one of the most enthusiastic abusers of defamation laws in order to attack political opponents and cover up his own tracks. It is unlikely that he would ever countenance any reform of any of the defamation laws during his sister’s watch. In addition, re-doubling the existing crack down efforts on LM is an excellent way for the Shins to disprove the detractors who like to accuse Thaksin of disloyalty and is certainly not going to lose PT any votes.
Prachatai trial update
Even one is in favour of Section 112 and its rigorous enforcement, this prosecution of some one who failed to post any insulting remarks herself, did in fact remove the posts (albeit slower than some might have wished) and cooperated fully in handing over the details of the posters for prosecution does seem somewhat beyond the scope of the law.