Sorry, i did not pay too much attention to that. Of the ones i knew was one of the bands who regularly play at more progressive Red Shirt events, and the long haired singer you can see in picture 06.
It was quite informal, especially later in the coffee shop, people just mingling no barrier or anything like it, with the leaders also freely moving around among the ordinary Red Shirts.
They do that sort of gathering in the coffee shop every Sunday, as a regular community thing.
The issues raised by this sort of globalized regulation are perplexing. Sure wish this sort of wonderful analysis would make it to the Thai mainstream media to inform the public and get them thinking.
So, western investigative journalism exposed migrant labor abuse on Thai fishing vessels and traced the fish to EU seafood exports via an intermediate supply chain step of feed for farmed shrimp. Informed EU citizens let their voice be heard and EU retail outlets make commitments to consumers to rid their supply chain of foreign labor abuse (why is this EU voice not working in the Andy Hall pineapple company case?). The EU issues red cards and demands regulation of the Thai fishing sector. The Thai junta reacts swiftly with Section 44 and a new regulatory regime puts an end to labor abuse with regular pay, access to healthcare for migrant workers and an end to police harassment and bribery.
But is this just another “crackdown” with limp to non-existent enforcement in the long-term? And what happens when Thai fishing fishing boats venture outside of Thai waters again? Who has jurisdiction there? Are they fishing in non-Thai waters because Thai waters are already depleted?
Is long-term institutionalization of fisheries regulatory regime possible when the Navy hands authority over to a government agency with limited budget and enforcement resources, exposed to political influence by powerful fishing interests or maybe even lawsuits to delay regulatory enforcement effectively forever?
Could Braithewaite’s pyramid of enforcement save the day, with regulatory action escalating from warnings to progressively harsher sanctions for non-compliance? If first tier Thai regulatory mechanisms go limp, then second tier EU yellow and red cards kick in, but even with EU sanctions would the government agency remain limp? What if third tier Navy-driven enforcement kicked in if all other measures failed? Perhaps too coup-like.
How can the Thai fishing sector be regulated to support migrant labor rights as well as long-term ecological sustainability? That seems to be the big question.
If Thai citizens were provided with information, representation, voice and choice about ecological sustainability and the regulation of the Thai fisheries sector, to use the model of Martin Lodge, would they even care? Can’t Thai vessels just turn around and fish out international waters after they have fished out Thai waters?
From the perspective of someone like myself who deals with newspaper articles all day long, issues of national image seem to be dominant among the so-called “educated†class, so would there be any action at all if national image is not threatened in some way? Long-term fisheries sustainability also may be a complete non-issue for the great rural farming masses that determine the outcome of elections. Perhaps then, fiduciary trusteeship rather than citizen empowerment is the best regulatory design for fisheries (in terms of Martin Lodge’s model of regulatory transparency and accountability in Jordana J & Levi-Faur, D. (2004) The Politics of Regulation. Institutions and Regulatory Reforms for the Age of Governance in the ANU RegNet reading list).
Civil aviation is the other big arena for globalized regulation in Thailand, but every issue seems relevant to EU stakeholders there since if a plane crashes all nationalities suffer.
Any chance of a podcast ? Unfortunately some will not attend, due to necessities of anonymity in these increasingly dark Thai times. Prayut it will definitely have his representatives there. Congratulations to NM for continuing to enlighten with skill, knowledge, insight, sanook humour – and above all : bravery.
Congratulations on a great effort over the decade (has it been that long!?). Wish I could be at the symposium to join the celebrations. All the best for future changes and developments.
[…] : Jade Dussart Source : Muhammad Zulfikar Rakhmat et Muhammad Beni Saputra / New Mandala A parasite in democracy Photo : Wikimedia (Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono et Aburizal Bakrie, 2013) […]
This article is unduly negative and contains significant factual errors. The author’s mistakes may be unintended but I’m surprised that ANU would publish without some basic fact checking.
Big congratulations, and big thanks, especially to Andrew and Nich, but also to everyone who contributes, who helps administer the site, and who sends comments. Hail the free voice, hail opinion, hail passion, hail conviction. Long live NM!
I don’t know where maun Mateus got his GDP figures from (and how his source knows what they will be in 2017), but just-published government data says non-oil GDP growth was 5.9% in 2014, a little more than 2.8% in 2013. Five years ago the government projected that “double-digit” growth would continue, but reality has caught up with them. Total GDP (including oil) shrank 27.8% in 2014 due to declining production and prices.
This is very well written and the comparison across country cases is apt and insightful. Thank you for sharing here on New Mandala. Have you published elsewhere? I would like to read it for my own research. Thanks! -thomas
I hope Nick is training up a UDD photographer to step into his shoes once Nick’s priceless services are no longer available.
I am pleased the UDD are calling their enterprise a “Referendum Monitoring Centre”. Intentionally or not, the likes of the Bangkok Post only poured petrol on the flames by calling it “The UDD Fraud Watchdog”.
I hope the praiseworthy UDD statement at the end of Nick’s piece is more honoured in the observance than the breach.
I hope it does not go the same way as the UDD “Statement against all forms of violence and coup d’etat” which was equally praiseworthy but collapsed as soon as the junta applied pressure.
To refresh my memory of the details of this statement I tried to revisit thairedshirts.org only to find that the site has been infected by malware. I wonder by whom?
Good article. Has there been any push or mobilisation locally to protest the coffee duopoly? I recall that USAID provided grants/funding for NCBA to invest in that sector. Has USAID been approached to explain how and why they supported this to happen? It’s appalling.
Although the UDD’s monitoring of the referendum is NOT against the law, the illegal military junta does not want any monitors as this interferes with their plans for victory.
I doubt if anyone will be allowed to monitor the fraud likely to take place with this referendum. There is still doubt if the referendum actually takes place with the court ruling shortly to be announced.
Great photos.
Dramatic changes are to be expected, all the major players in the public and private sectors are on board. The incentive to change has forced their hand. But one point is that the government has been trying to deal with 3 million migrant workers for over 2 decades and the results are not good. I think the EU know this and they know how unstable the political system is, so they are concerned about how sustainable the reforms will be, and so they should be.
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Playing cat and mouse with Thailand’s junta
Sorry, i did not pay too much attention to that. Of the ones i knew was one of the bands who regularly play at more progressive Red Shirt events, and the long haired singer you can see in picture 06.
It was quite informal, especially later in the coffee shop, people just mingling no barrier or anything like it, with the leaders also freely moving around among the ordinary Red Shirts.
They do that sort of gathering in the coffee shop every Sunday, as a regular community thing.
Playing cat and mouse with Thailand’s junta
Hi Nick, can you tell me the names of the singers who were there and also any of the songs sung?
Ending labour abuse at sea
The issues raised by this sort of globalized regulation are perplexing. Sure wish this sort of wonderful analysis would make it to the Thai mainstream media to inform the public and get them thinking.
So, western investigative journalism exposed migrant labor abuse on Thai fishing vessels and traced the fish to EU seafood exports via an intermediate supply chain step of feed for farmed shrimp. Informed EU citizens let their voice be heard and EU retail outlets make commitments to consumers to rid their supply chain of foreign labor abuse (why is this EU voice not working in the Andy Hall pineapple company case?). The EU issues red cards and demands regulation of the Thai fishing sector. The Thai junta reacts swiftly with Section 44 and a new regulatory regime puts an end to labor abuse with regular pay, access to healthcare for migrant workers and an end to police harassment and bribery.
But is this just another “crackdown” with limp to non-existent enforcement in the long-term? And what happens when Thai fishing fishing boats venture outside of Thai waters again? Who has jurisdiction there? Are they fishing in non-Thai waters because Thai waters are already depleted?
Is long-term institutionalization of fisheries regulatory regime possible when the Navy hands authority over to a government agency with limited budget and enforcement resources, exposed to political influence by powerful fishing interests or maybe even lawsuits to delay regulatory enforcement effectively forever?
Could Braithewaite’s pyramid of enforcement save the day, with regulatory action escalating from warnings to progressively harsher sanctions for non-compliance? If first tier Thai regulatory mechanisms go limp, then second tier EU yellow and red cards kick in, but even with EU sanctions would the government agency remain limp? What if third tier Navy-driven enforcement kicked in if all other measures failed? Perhaps too coup-like.
How can the Thai fishing sector be regulated to support migrant labor rights as well as long-term ecological sustainability? That seems to be the big question.
If Thai citizens were provided with information, representation, voice and choice about ecological sustainability and the regulation of the Thai fisheries sector, to use the model of Martin Lodge, would they even care? Can’t Thai vessels just turn around and fish out international waters after they have fished out Thai waters?
From the perspective of someone like myself who deals with newspaper articles all day long, issues of national image seem to be dominant among the so-called “educated†class, so would there be any action at all if national image is not threatened in some way? Long-term fisheries sustainability also may be a complete non-issue for the great rural farming masses that determine the outcome of elections. Perhaps then, fiduciary trusteeship rather than citizen empowerment is the best regulatory design for fisheries (in terms of Martin Lodge’s model of regulatory transparency and accountability in Jordana J & Levi-Faur, D. (2004) The Politics of Regulation. Institutions and Regulatory Reforms for the Age of Governance in the ANU RegNet reading list).
Civil aviation is the other big arena for globalized regulation in Thailand, but every issue seems relevant to EU stakeholders there since if a plane crashes all nationalities suffer.
Playing cat and mouse with Thailand’s junta
Red Shirts are the best hope for a democratic Thailand
New Mandala turns 10
Any chance of a podcast ? Unfortunately some will not attend, due to necessities of anonymity in these increasingly dark Thai times. Prayut it will definitely have his representatives there. Congratulations to NM for continuing to enlighten with skill, knowledge, insight, sanook humour – and above all : bravery.
Some days in November
Word is watch out for 9 September 2016, all nines. Talk about Burmese superstition and numerology.
New Mandala turns 10
Congratulations on a great effort over the decade (has it been that long!?). Wish I could be at the symposium to join the celebrations. All the best for future changes and developments.
The cost of castration in Indonesia
You can safely ignore Cohen. He’ll find any opportunity to spread his anti-Islamic bile.
A parasite in democracy
[…] : Jade Dussart Source : Muhammad Zulfikar Rakhmat et Muhammad Beni Saputra / New Mandala A parasite in democracy Photo : Wikimedia (Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono et Aburizal Bakrie, 2013) […]
East Timor: independent under despair
This article is unduly negative and contains significant factual errors. The author’s mistakes may be unintended but I’m surprised that ANU would publish without some basic fact checking.
New Mandala turns 10
Big congratulations, and big thanks, especially to Andrew and Nich, but also to everyone who contributes, who helps administer the site, and who sends comments. Hail the free voice, hail opinion, hail passion, hail conviction. Long live NM!
East Timor: independent under despair
I don’t know where maun Mateus got his GDP figures from (and how his source knows what they will be in 2017), but just-published government data says non-oil GDP growth was 5.9% in 2014, a little more than 2.8% in 2013. Five years ago the government projected that “double-digit” growth would continue, but reality has caught up with them. Total GDP (including oil) shrank 27.8% in 2014 due to declining production and prices.
East Timor: independent under despair
The saving is 17 billions not millions
New Mandala turns 10
HPD New Mandala. Saying hi from the cornfields of DeKalb….we love this site! 😀
Slavery and seafood
This is very well written and the comparison across country cases is apt and insightful. Thank you for sharing here on New Mandala. Have you published elsewhere? I would like to read it for my own research. Thanks! -thomas
Playing cat and mouse with Thailand’s junta
I hope Nick is training up a UDD photographer to step into his shoes once Nick’s priceless services are no longer available.
I am pleased the UDD are calling their enterprise a “Referendum Monitoring Centre”. Intentionally or not, the likes of the Bangkok Post only poured petrol on the flames by calling it “The UDD Fraud Watchdog”.
I hope the praiseworthy UDD statement at the end of Nick’s piece is more honoured in the observance than the breach.
I hope it does not go the same way as the UDD “Statement against all forms of violence and coup d’etat” which was equally praiseworthy but collapsed as soon as the junta applied pressure.
To refresh my memory of the details of this statement I tried to revisit thairedshirts.org only to find that the site has been infected by malware. I wonder by whom?
East Timor: independent under despair
Good article. Has there been any push or mobilisation locally to protest the coffee duopoly? I recall that USAID provided grants/funding for NCBA to invest in that sector. Has USAID been approached to explain how and why they supported this to happen? It’s appalling.
Playing cat and mouse with Thailand’s junta
Although the UDD’s monitoring of the referendum is NOT against the law, the illegal military junta does not want any monitors as this interferes with their plans for victory.
I doubt if anyone will be allowed to monitor the fraud likely to take place with this referendum. There is still doubt if the referendum actually takes place with the court ruling shortly to be announced.
Great photos.
New Mandala turns 10
New Mandala is great. May it forever resist the Vox-ification that has so transformed other excellent sites across the academic blogosphere!
Ending labour abuse at sea
Dramatic changes are to be expected, all the major players in the public and private sectors are on board. The incentive to change has forced their hand. But one point is that the government has been trying to deal with 3 million migrant workers for over 2 decades and the results are not good. I think the EU know this and they know how unstable the political system is, so they are concerned about how sustainable the reforms will be, and so they should be.