I’ve never realized that the stupid word is from the educated people like you. I don’t know why you still separate Thai in each. It’s no reason to discrimiante people lie you did.
When you say “Because they have done bad things for the country, things which are not allowed to be discussed in Thailand”, it should be witnessed by firm evidence. It should not be just novel or just gossip. Please show evidence.
Surely, Princess was not one of your family and you can do everything you want. No one force you to dress up as annouced. When you feel bad, it’s just your feeling and no one can force you to feel the same. You can dress up with colorful everydays. No one blame you .I don’t understand why you choose “criticize “but not critique.
Just show evidence if you feel sure on your belief. Thailand goes bad now due to ourselves. Anyway, blame others is better than ours , right?
Should you wish to prove your theory, go to Grand Palace and shout out loud. See how many people are your side. Don’t be worry, I’ll bail you out and support your brave as you are expressing your idea and harmless anybody. However, don’t kill or hurt others who don’t think the same as I can’t bail out in this point.
Moreover, I want to point out “freedom” still belongs to everybody as long as it does not harm others. Just take it. No one steal from you.
Look ! we can discuss in this issue in many webboard with harmless. Why do you still think that it’s restricted!
“So I take it, then, that Thongchai is NOT going to commit lese majeste at the ICTS – and of course, I would sympathise with the reasons. So why then bother to organize a conference panel on the monarchy if you can’t talk about it freely?”
Ok. Agreed.
But lets get away from nitpicking here. I would think that it is a ‘step’ to openness, despite how little the baby step is, it is movement. And to me, more logical than your braveheart skirt wearing, face-painting revolution call in the streets; or hard-hitting alias-hiding discussions in internet web boards.
The fact that this discussion is picked up by the Bangkok Post, and covered for the general media is pretty significant.
And this is coming from someone with a pro-HMK bias.
Going back to Ajarn Somsak, I agree with you on your arguments, but not your conclusion. Based on your arguments, I agree that no ‘state’ money should go into the funeral… but your arguments do not point into the case that one should ‘not’ wear black to respect a former Professor who is also sister of His Majesty.
………well, I wish you the best at the conference, Andrew. If you feel full of moxie, you and a few other daring souls could turn it into something full of controversy and interest and perhaps establish a new energy and reach in the ongoing Thai discussion………..
…..and, by the way, even if you don’t manage to create any sparks at the conference, in a way, New Mandala is a pretty good conference on Thai Affairs and always very informative for those of us with an ongoing interest in the Thai peoples and their extremely unique, complex and interesting country and culture……..
The Bangkok Post report reference to “behind closed doors” is odd. This is an international academic conference and what is said or presented is in the public domain. As normal, participants are expected to register but that does not make it a closed door event. I am sure there will be plenty of interest in the various papers on the monarchy (including the one by Handley).
I remember reading this review and being surprised at the hostile reception Evans gave to what is the first critical biography of the king in 60 years.
After everything that has happened since September 2006 when the review came out – the very month of the coup – not to mention everything that has been published and discussed on blogs and elsewhere since then, I’m surprised again that Evans “stands by” what he wrote.
I agree with the last paragraph of Handley’s response. Basically Evans’ review is a perfect reproduction of classic Thai royalist discourse.
But one of the things that made me smile was this remark in relation to the Crown Prince’s current partner:
“…Even with his elegant, charming third wife…”
Many of the “Thai people” that the anthropologists are supposed to “understand” might disagree with him on this one.
What is it about anthropologists of Thailand (both Thai and non-Thai) which makes them so conservative and lacking in critical distance when talking about monarchy?
(I could make the same point for when the anthropologists talk about Buddhism, but will keep that for another post).
…………well, the Handley paper being presented is certainly an interesting new development as reported in the Bangkok Post today. But will it be presented in a closed session or open session and if it is presented in a so-called closed session, what does that mean in the middle of an academic forum/conference and what kind of example is that for such a conference to set……………to be so fearful of free and open discourse that such discourse needs to take place only behind closed doors……
………..if conference participants dare to openly present and discuss the real subjects that are being left undiscussed or tiptoed around at the moment, then that would certainly spark controversy and create an interesting conference that will be cited for years to come as a turning point in Thai academic and intellectual discourse…..
…..it might also might serve as a stimulus for Thai academics to get off their timid, pedantic and politically correct horses as well as bring a breath of fresh air to the idea that a free and open exchange of views is useful and necessary in order to identify and solve problems in complex, modern societies……
………I include Thailand on the list of complex, modern societies in contrast to some more pessimistic people who assume Thailand is headed backwards towards becoming a kind of large and friendly banana republic destined to be forever ruled by generals and large landowners…………
………but it seems to me that the fear of reprisal will never be far from the hearts and minds the Thai conference participants and also the foreign participants who will be naturally and instinctively worried about who is noting their words and thoughts and what the personal consequences to them might be should their words and thoughts stray into the various danger zones or end up on the wrong Thai websites……………
………..anyone who knows anything about Thailand knows that should such reprisals come, they will be delivered in an unspoken, opaque manner by an invisible hand and there will be no recourse………….
In you/your family funeral, will you wish all of us dress up red instead?
But she’s not my family.
I’ve read your various articles regarding Royal Family and wonder whether or not Royal Family did something wrong to you. Why do you always say a lot to blame King & Royal Family? You may say you didn’t but in fact your article still point out that way. I don’t feel that I have restriction to do / do not in this country.
Because they have done bad things for the country, things which are not allowed to be discussed in Thailand.
Don’t be “democrazy syndrome” until you’re blind and blame everything.
I wonder who’s actually the blind one?
Don’t be a “King-crazy syndrome” until you’re blind and blame things on the “stupid Isaan people”.
An awful lot of those reports you read in the bangkok English rags have the letters DPA underneath. Likewise with the shooting in Pai. The Nation had to use an Andrew Drummond special report to get some balance on the subject. I sort of guess many local reporters were shit-scared of digging too deeply.
“If you watch TV, you’ll see many people crying and of course, they’re real crying with sadness.” >> Well, obviously, TV would not show those who could not care less!
Having read through that “note” , I have no idea or feeling that it’s a command. I think it’s only to ask for kind cooperation from attendee who may or may not follow such guidance.
With regard to the announcement from Government, there is no such control/command over people in Thailand to wear black/white suite for mourning. It’s Thai people to follow with conciousness. In addition, in the “note” , they said Princess was one time faculty member of Thammasat. It’s no doubt to follow.
To top it off, most of us follow to dress up black suit because we respect King and Royal Family. If you watch TV, you’ll see many people crying and of course, they’re real crying with sadness.
In you/your family funeral, will you wish all of us dress up red instead?
I’ve read your various articles regarding Royal Family and wonder whether or not Royal Family did something wrong to you. Why do you always say a lot to blame King & Royal Family? You may say you didn’t but in fact your article still point out that way. I don’t feel that I have restriction to do / do not in this country.
Don’t be “democrazy syndrome” until you’re blind and blame everything.
Hold it, I seem to remember in the “Thongchai Affair” – the debate here on NM over Thongchai’s article in The Nation in which he presented royalist arguments – that Thongchai was very upset that he should be challenged to commit lese majeste (by directly criticizing the monarchy) because of the effect that it might have on his career or even his safety, including that of his family:
“…The fact is I am SCARED of the lese majeste law too. In fact for a foreigner like Republican [Thanks Thongchai, for trying to reveal my identity – Rep.], the worst that ever happens is to be deported. But for a Thai like me – a jail term, plus whatever to my parents and extended family inThailand…” [#117, http://rspas.anu.edu.au/rmap/newmandala/2006/07/28/the-king-never-smiles/#comment-271969%5D
So I take it, then, that Thongchai is NOT going to commit lese majeste at the ICTS – and of course, I would sympathise with the reasons. So why then bother to organize a conference panel on the monarchy if you can’t talk about it freely?
I just can’t see how academic debate about the monarchy at the ICTS can be freer or superior to the debate here on NM, or to some of the debates on Thai webboards like Fa Dio Kan or Prachatai.
Isn’t the whole reason for a conference (apart from the networking, catching up with friends, filling up the CV, “thiao”, celebrating autocratic king’s birthdays, contributing to royalist academic propaganda campaigns, etc.) that it provides the opportunity for scholars in a particular field from all over the world to present and debate their research in the interests of furthering knowledge? If you can’t do that then why attend such a conference in the wake of a royalist coup? How can you avoid being used for the purposes of royalist propaganda?
A debate on the hitherto taboo subject of the role of the monarchy in Thailand starts behind closed doors Tuesday at Bangkok’s Thammasat University, at a time of great political uncertainty and an outpouring of national devotion for the revered King Bhumibol Adulyadej.
The prestigious International Conference on Thai Studies, held every three years, has included several potentially explosive seminars that plainly deal with the role and future of the palace in Thai society – a discussion that normally only takes place privately in Thailand for fear of legal and social sanction.
The boldest – in Thai terms – discussion could take place when a panel of foreign and Thai professors debate the merits of a generally hostile and highly controversial recent biography of King Bhumibol, The King Never Smiles, that is banned in Thailand.
The book views the monarchy as an anachronism. The author, a former correspondent for the Far Eastern Economic Review, trashes the king’s life to the extent of criticising his painting and saxophone playing.
The American author of the book, Paul Handley, who may never again be allowed into Thailand, will nevertheless present a paper about the powerful Privy Council at the conference, read in absentia by the chair.
The role of the Privy Council in Thailand is delicate because its chief, retired general and former prime minister Prem Tinsulanonda, is thought by many Thai analysts to be the main instigator behind a September 2006 coup that ousted controversial prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.
Another presentation will consider abolishing the century-old lese majeste laws that are used to squash debate about the role of monarchy and have frequently been used as weapons in political squabbles.
These debates will take place over three days during the mourning period of the king’s respected elder sister Princess Galayani, who died last week, reminding the nation that the late princess’s brother is also an increasingly frail 80 years old.
The king is widely seen in Thailand as having played a vital restraining, correcting role for most of the time since his coronation in 1950. His son and heir, Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn, is said by analysts to have little of his father’s popularity, experience or dedication in the eyes of ordinary Thais.
This extraordinary examination of the role of the monarchy comes after some foreign academics proposed last year a boycott of the conference if its organisers rejected any papers that grappled with Thailand’s contemporary political problems, alluding to a military and older elite contending for power with a ruthless and allegedly corrupt former telecommunications tycoon Thaksin.
This year’s conference is officially themed around transnationalism and the erosion of borders in the modern world. Chris Baker, a Thai-based historian, wrote recently of the conference “One border that may be swept away is the thick black line between what can be said inside the country, and what already is being said outside it.”
The boycott call appears to have fizzled out and popular Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn is scheduled to open the conference. All participants have been requested to wear black in memory of Princess Galayani. dpa
I just took at look at the program for Thaifest 2008, or the International Conference of Thai Studies.
I don’t know if I should laugh or cry.
After reading the program, I know for certain that Thailand has definitely jumped the shark. Well, at least Thai Studies has.
I suggest my fellow NM regulars go take a looksy over at what is being presented in the program–that is, if you can understand what has been written.
Seriously, how can foreign scholars have their ideas butchered like that?
And, if they wrote the synopses themselves, they should be ashamed, because they can’t write worth a damn. Is the program really going to go out like that with countless spelling and grammatical errors? And many of the synopses are incomprehensible. I can’t tell if it is bad writing or incomprehensible post-modern rubbish.
Identity politics reigns supreme. The program is dominated by race, class and gender post-modern bullshit. I think the world of tertiary education would shrivel up and die if the word “discourse” was eliminated from the lexicon.
But hey, guess what, a major conference on Thailand and nothing on the military and the coup, as if the coup didn’t happen at all. Maybe these professors and graduate students have deconstructed the military right out of existence.
No discourse on the multi-million dollar assets of Thai generals.
No discourse on martial law being implemented(in pro-Thaksin areas) during a vote for a constitution and an election for parliament.
No discourse on military generals in charge of major state corporate assets.
No discourse on how the military handpicked the courts and committees to go after their political enemies.
No critical discourse about how General Sonthi, the head of the junta, became the civilian deputy prime minister in charge of the election.
No discourse on military procurement.
No discourse on massive corruption in the bureaucracy.
No discourse on how the Thai media rolled over for the coup.
No discourse on how the top brass, the capitalist billionaires, the bureaucratic elite and the remnants of the ancien regime are never accountable to rule of law for fleecing the state while the poor and powerless rot in jail for petty crimes.
No discourse on the mafia-like police force.
No discourse on how the Thai media and the academy ignore the corrupt power structures at the top so that they can protect their own power and feudal privileges.
No discourse on why the Thai public school system is a national disgrace.
No problem, just have 5 more seminars on queers and katoeys to make up for the lack of discourse on real issues that affect real people.
And the seminars on the monarchy are a joke.
This is my prediction: Handley’s book will be nitpicked for insignificant factual errors in order to discredit the entire thesis. And the monarchy’s role in politics will not be discussed the way it should be discussed.
Everybody will be dressed in black and bow down to the emperor who has no clothes.
And it is shocking that there will be no clear and comprehensible discussion about a post-Bhumibol Thailand. His passing will have enormous repercussions on Thailand, which will impact all Thais in the future. You would think that a Thai Studies conference would have that topic up for discussion. Nope. Ignore the pink elephant standing the middle of the room. That is the responsible thing to do.
I wish I was there, I really do. I would have done a Hunter S Thompson live blogging of the conference.
Lleij: I mentioned Wallace as an incentive, not because we share the same perspective or approach. From what you say, I expect that part of your writing concerns a Thai-case concretization of what has been called glocalization (not a nice word) or the global-local interface in other theoretical contexts (Meyer and Kinvall were other incentives).
From a comparative perspective, the situation of education is not principally different from other societal areas, such as politics, science, law, the economy, medicine, and perhaps even intimate relationships. In all of these areas, “Thai” models of behavior have a hard time dealing with “western” models (or what Luhmann calls symbolically generalized media of communication), not to speak of the second tier of western imports consisting of the different programs (theories) westerners have come up with in these areas and within these models over the past decades, leading to what you have referred to as “geological strata.” BTW, we haven’t talked about “analytical thinking” so far.
“do you know any child in Thailand who goes to a government primary or secondary school and is lower middle class or above? >> Probably, this is more common in the provinces and even more so at the district level than it is in Bangkok, simply because there might not be that many opportunities up-country.
Dear Participants
Thailand is currently in mourning for Her Royal Highness Princess Galayani
Vadhana (the King’s elder sister) who passed away on Wednesday 2nd January 2008.
The princess at one time was a Thammasat University permanent faculty member.
At the moment, the government has officially called for 15 days of mourning and has
asked the public to wear black during this period.
In this regard, we would like to ask for your understanding. We respectfully request
that all participants wear black or dark clothing for the duration of our conference.
Thank you for your kind co-operation.
Anucha Thirakanont
Director of the Thai Khadi Research Institute
Thammasat University
………the point I am trying to make, Andrew, is that at present there is a 10,000 pound elephant standing in the middle of the room in the Thai studies area, especially in regard to the present political situation and the history of political life in Thailand for the past 50 years.
………it would certainly liven the conference up if Handley (or someone else who has researched and written about the same subject) were to be invited to the conference to present a paper based on parts of his book and to distribute that paper and/or the book at the conference.
…….but would the organizers of the conference actually allow Handley or anyone else devoted to the same subject to be there presenting a paper on that subject and opening up a free and wide-ranging discussion in and around that subject which is so crucial to actually understanding and analyzing what is going on in Thailand at the moment?
…….remember, you will all be wearing the mandatory black clothing, listening to the mandatory ceremonial speeches and you will be in a country which, while permitting total freedom in certain areas, at the same time, shuts down internet sites, blogs and chat rooms that touch on the subject at hand as well as forbidding the sale and distribution of certain books about the subject at hand (as well as other rather harmless books such as Bangkok Inside Out based on the idiosyncratic whims of the Culture Minister!). Not to speak of all those scenes that need to be cut out of movies distributed in theaters and all those youtube.com and other videos that have to be blocked.
……given all that, it is hard to believe that those attending the conference will be formally presenting or discussing a whole lot of material concerning the 10,000 pound elephant.
……and if that subject is off limits, then isn’t there a big hole in the content of the entire conference and doesn’t the whole thing become a sort of intellectual charade?
Handley’s situation is not clear. Here is an extract from New Mandala’s interview with him:
NF: Since publishing The King Never Smiles can you return to Thailand? Would you want to? Have you ever been formally warned or reprimanded by Thai authorities? Or by anybody else?
Paul Handley: Of course I would want to. It’s a lovely place, I have friends there, it was a big part of my life, altogether 13 years or so. Can you really get good Thai food outside the country? But I understood in writing this book that I would not be welcomed back. I have received no warning or threat, I haven’t checked whether they have me on any blacklist. I know of no charges filed in absentia. Remember, the official view of my book is, it doesn’t exist. So filing charges against me would just recognize it. I have not been threatened by any one. I think all the attention has really been on Thaksin anyway. The bloody scene-stealer.
The more commentators who speak out, and publish, on these issues, the more improbable a ban becomes.
Handley’s response to my review has already been run on New Mandala (Nov. 7, 2006). I am quite happy for it to be run again, but I suggest it would be fair to run my review again too. Needless to say, I stand by the review.
Anthropologists from the very beginning of the discipline have spent a great deal of time trying to understand the nature of kingship. The latest contribution is The Character of Kingship edited by Declan Quiqley (2005). I recommend it to anyone who is interested.
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More on the 2008 Thai Studies conference
Dear Mr./Ms.Teth,
Mind your words especially the last phase.
I’ve never realized that the stupid word is from the educated people like you. I don’t know why you still separate Thai in each. It’s no reason to discrimiante people lie you did.
When you say “Because they have done bad things for the country, things which are not allowed to be discussed in Thailand”, it should be witnessed by firm evidence. It should not be just novel or just gossip. Please show evidence.
Surely, Princess was not one of your family and you can do everything you want. No one force you to dress up as annouced. When you feel bad, it’s just your feeling and no one can force you to feel the same. You can dress up with colorful everydays. No one blame you .I don’t understand why you choose “criticize “but not critique.
Just show evidence if you feel sure on your belief. Thailand goes bad now due to ourselves. Anyway, blame others is better than ours , right?
Should you wish to prove your theory, go to Grand Palace and shout out loud. See how many people are your side. Don’t be worry, I’ll bail you out and support your brave as you are expressing your idea and harmless anybody. However, don’t kill or hurt others who don’t think the same as I can’t bail out in this point.
Moreover, I want to point out “freedom” still belongs to everybody as long as it does not harm others. Just take it. No one steal from you.
Look ! we can discuss in this issue in many webboard with harmless. Why do you still think that it’s restricted!
More on the 2008 Thai Studies conference
Republican: you said
“So I take it, then, that Thongchai is NOT going to commit lese majeste at the ICTS – and of course, I would sympathise with the reasons. So why then bother to organize a conference panel on the monarchy if you can’t talk about it freely?”
Ok. Agreed.
But lets get away from nitpicking here. I would think that it is a ‘step’ to openness, despite how little the baby step is, it is movement. And to me, more logical than your braveheart skirt wearing, face-painting revolution call in the streets; or hard-hitting alias-hiding discussions in internet web boards.
The fact that this discussion is picked up by the Bangkok Post, and covered for the general media is pretty significant.
And this is coming from someone with a pro-HMK bias.
Going back to Ajarn Somsak, I agree with you on your arguments, but not your conclusion. Based on your arguments, I agree that no ‘state’ money should go into the funeral… but your arguments do not point into the case that one should ‘not’ wear black to respect a former Professor who is also sister of His Majesty.
just my 2 cents.
Handley responds to Evans
Republican: Re “…Even with his elegant, charming third wife…”
Maybe Evans had already seen the video . heh heh heh
Time for academic frankness
………well, I wish you the best at the conference, Andrew. If you feel full of moxie, you and a few other daring souls could turn it into something full of controversy and interest and perhaps establish a new energy and reach in the ongoing Thai discussion………..
…..and, by the way, even if you don’t manage to create any sparks at the conference, in a way, New Mandala is a pretty good conference on Thai Affairs and always very informative for those of us with an ongoing interest in the Thai peoples and their extremely unique, complex and interesting country and culture……..
Time for academic frankness
The Bangkok Post report reference to “behind closed doors” is odd. This is an international academic conference and what is said or presented is in the public domain. As normal, participants are expected to register but that does not make it a closed door event. I am sure there will be plenty of interest in the various papers on the monarchy (including the one by Handley).
Handley responds to Evans
I remember reading this review and being surprised at the hostile reception Evans gave to what is the first critical biography of the king in 60 years.
After everything that has happened since September 2006 when the review came out – the very month of the coup – not to mention everything that has been published and discussed on blogs and elsewhere since then, I’m surprised again that Evans “stands by” what he wrote.
I agree with the last paragraph of Handley’s response. Basically Evans’ review is a perfect reproduction of classic Thai royalist discourse.
But one of the things that made me smile was this remark in relation to the Crown Prince’s current partner:
“…Even with his elegant, charming third wife…”
Many of the “Thai people” that the anthropologists are supposed to “understand” might disagree with him on this one.
What is it about anthropologists of Thailand (both Thai and non-Thai) which makes them so conservative and lacking in critical distance when talking about monarchy?
(I could make the same point for when the anthropologists talk about Buddhism, but will keep that for another post).
Time for academic frankness
…………well, the Handley paper being presented is certainly an interesting new development as reported in the Bangkok Post today. But will it be presented in a closed session or open session and if it is presented in a so-called closed session, what does that mean in the middle of an academic forum/conference and what kind of example is that for such a conference to set……………to be so fearful of free and open discourse that such discourse needs to take place only behind closed doors……
………..if conference participants dare to openly present and discuss the real subjects that are being left undiscussed or tiptoed around at the moment, then that would certainly spark controversy and create an interesting conference that will be cited for years to come as a turning point in Thai academic and intellectual discourse…..
…..it might also might serve as a stimulus for Thai academics to get off their timid, pedantic and politically correct horses as well as bring a breath of fresh air to the idea that a free and open exchange of views is useful and necessary in order to identify and solve problems in complex, modern societies……
………I include Thailand on the list of complex, modern societies in contrast to some more pessimistic people who assume Thailand is headed backwards towards becoming a kind of large and friendly banana republic destined to be forever ruled by generals and large landowners…………
………but it seems to me that the fear of reprisal will never be far from the hearts and minds the Thai conference participants and also the foreign participants who will be naturally and instinctively worried about who is noting their words and thoughts and what the personal consequences to them might be should their words and thoughts stray into the various danger zones or end up on the wrong Thai websites……………
………..anyone who knows anything about Thailand knows that should such reprisals come, they will be delivered in an unspoken, opaque manner by an invisible hand and there will be no recourse………….
More on the 2008 Thai Studies conference
In you/your family funeral, will you wish all of us dress up red instead?
But she’s not my family.
I’ve read your various articles regarding Royal Family and wonder whether or not Royal Family did something wrong to you. Why do you always say a lot to blame King & Royal Family? You may say you didn’t but in fact your article still point out that way. I don’t feel that I have restriction to do / do not in this country.
Because they have done bad things for the country, things which are not allowed to be discussed in Thailand.
Don’t be “democrazy syndrome” until you’re blind and blame everything.
I wonder who’s actually the blind one?
Don’t be a “King-crazy syndrome” until you’re blind and blame things on the “stupid Isaan people”.
Time for academic frankness
An awful lot of those reports you read in the bangkok English rags have the letters DPA underneath. Likewise with the shooting in Pai. The Nation had to use an Andrew Drummond special report to get some balance on the subject. I sort of guess many local reporters were shit-scared of digging too deeply.
More on the 2008 Thai Studies conference
“If you watch TV, you’ll see many people crying and of course, they’re real crying with sadness.” >> Well, obviously, TV would not show those who could not care less!
More on the 2008 Thai Studies conference
Dear Mr.Somsak,
Having read through that “note” , I have no idea or feeling that it’s a command. I think it’s only to ask for kind cooperation from attendee who may or may not follow such guidance.
With regard to the announcement from Government, there is no such control/command over people in Thailand to wear black/white suite for mourning. It’s Thai people to follow with conciousness. In addition, in the “note” , they said Princess was one time faculty member of Thammasat. It’s no doubt to follow.
To top it off, most of us follow to dress up black suit because we respect King and Royal Family. If you watch TV, you’ll see many people crying and of course, they’re real crying with sadness.
In you/your family funeral, will you wish all of us dress up red instead?
I’ve read your various articles regarding Royal Family and wonder whether or not Royal Family did something wrong to you. Why do you always say a lot to blame King & Royal Family? You may say you didn’t but in fact your article still point out that way. I don’t feel that I have restriction to do / do not in this country.
Don’t be “democrazy syndrome” until you’re blind and blame everything.
More on the 2008 Thai Studies conference
Hold it, I seem to remember in the “Thongchai Affair” – the debate here on NM over Thongchai’s article in The Nation in which he presented royalist arguments – that Thongchai was very upset that he should be challenged to commit lese majeste (by directly criticizing the monarchy) because of the effect that it might have on his career or even his safety, including that of his family:
“…The fact is I am SCARED of the lese majeste law too. In fact for a foreigner like Republican [Thanks Thongchai, for trying to reveal my identity – Rep.], the worst that ever happens is to be deported. But for a Thai like me – a jail term, plus whatever to my parents and extended family inThailand…” [#117, http://rspas.anu.edu.au/rmap/newmandala/2006/07/28/the-king-never-smiles/#comment-271969%5D
So I take it, then, that Thongchai is NOT going to commit lese majeste at the ICTS – and of course, I would sympathise with the reasons. So why then bother to organize a conference panel on the monarchy if you can’t talk about it freely?
I just can’t see how academic debate about the monarchy at the ICTS can be freer or superior to the debate here on NM, or to some of the debates on Thai webboards like Fa Dio Kan or Prachatai.
Isn’t the whole reason for a conference (apart from the networking, catching up with friends, filling up the CV, “thiao”, celebrating autocratic king’s birthdays, contributing to royalist academic propaganda campaigns, etc.) that it provides the opportunity for scholars in a particular field from all over the world to present and debate their research in the interests of furthering knowledge? If you can’t do that then why attend such a conference in the wake of a royalist coup? How can you avoid being used for the purposes of royalist propaganda?
Time for academic frankness
Slightly surreal that a Thai newspaper needs to speak through the Deutsche Presse Agentur, but nevertheless…
Time for academic frankness
From the Bangkok Post online:
Monarchy debate defies traditional deference
A debate on the hitherto taboo subject of the role of the monarchy in Thailand starts behind closed doors Tuesday at Bangkok’s Thammasat University, at a time of great political uncertainty and an outpouring of national devotion for the revered King Bhumibol Adulyadej.
The prestigious International Conference on Thai Studies, held every three years, has included several potentially explosive seminars that plainly deal with the role and future of the palace in Thai society – a discussion that normally only takes place privately in Thailand for fear of legal and social sanction.
The boldest – in Thai terms – discussion could take place when a panel of foreign and Thai professors debate the merits of a generally hostile and highly controversial recent biography of King Bhumibol, The King Never Smiles, that is banned in Thailand.
The book views the monarchy as an anachronism. The author, a former correspondent for the Far Eastern Economic Review, trashes the king’s life to the extent of criticising his painting and saxophone playing.
The American author of the book, Paul Handley, who may never again be allowed into Thailand, will nevertheless present a paper about the powerful Privy Council at the conference, read in absentia by the chair.
The role of the Privy Council in Thailand is delicate because its chief, retired general and former prime minister Prem Tinsulanonda, is thought by many Thai analysts to be the main instigator behind a September 2006 coup that ousted controversial prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.
Another presentation will consider abolishing the century-old lese majeste laws that are used to squash debate about the role of monarchy and have frequently been used as weapons in political squabbles.
These debates will take place over three days during the mourning period of the king’s respected elder sister Princess Galayani, who died last week, reminding the nation that the late princess’s brother is also an increasingly frail 80 years old.
The king is widely seen in Thailand as having played a vital restraining, correcting role for most of the time since his coronation in 1950. His son and heir, Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn, is said by analysts to have little of his father’s popularity, experience or dedication in the eyes of ordinary Thais.
This extraordinary examination of the role of the monarchy comes after some foreign academics proposed last year a boycott of the conference if its organisers rejected any papers that grappled with Thailand’s contemporary political problems, alluding to a military and older elite contending for power with a ruthless and allegedly corrupt former telecommunications tycoon Thaksin.
This year’s conference is officially themed around transnationalism and the erosion of borders in the modern world. Chris Baker, a Thai-based historian, wrote recently of the conference “One border that may be swept away is the thick black line between what can be said inside the country, and what already is being said outside it.”
The boycott call appears to have fizzled out and popular Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn is scheduled to open the conference. All participants have been requested to wear black in memory of Princess Galayani. dpa
Time for academic frankness
I just took at look at the program for Thaifest 2008, or the International Conference of Thai Studies.
I don’t know if I should laugh or cry.
After reading the program, I know for certain that Thailand has definitely jumped the shark. Well, at least Thai Studies has.
I suggest my fellow NM regulars go take a looksy over at what is being presented in the program–that is, if you can understand what has been written.
Seriously, how can foreign scholars have their ideas butchered like that?
And, if they wrote the synopses themselves, they should be ashamed, because they can’t write worth a damn. Is the program really going to go out like that with countless spelling and grammatical errors? And many of the synopses are incomprehensible. I can’t tell if it is bad writing or incomprehensible post-modern rubbish.
Identity politics reigns supreme. The program is dominated by race, class and gender post-modern bullshit. I think the world of tertiary education would shrivel up and die if the word “discourse” was eliminated from the lexicon.
But hey, guess what, a major conference on Thailand and nothing on the military and the coup, as if the coup didn’t happen at all. Maybe these professors and graduate students have deconstructed the military right out of existence.
No discourse on the multi-million dollar assets of Thai generals.
No discourse on martial law being implemented(in pro-Thaksin areas) during a vote for a constitution and an election for parliament.
No discourse on military generals in charge of major state corporate assets.
No discourse on how the military handpicked the courts and committees to go after their political enemies.
No critical discourse about how General Sonthi, the head of the junta, became the civilian deputy prime minister in charge of the election.
No discourse on military procurement.
No discourse on massive corruption in the bureaucracy.
No discourse on how the Thai media rolled over for the coup.
No discourse on how the top brass, the capitalist billionaires, the bureaucratic elite and the remnants of the ancien regime are never accountable to rule of law for fleecing the state while the poor and powerless rot in jail for petty crimes.
No discourse on the mafia-like police force.
No discourse on how the Thai media and the academy ignore the corrupt power structures at the top so that they can protect their own power and feudal privileges.
No discourse on why the Thai public school system is a national disgrace.
No problem, just have 5 more seminars on queers and katoeys to make up for the lack of discourse on real issues that affect real people.
And the seminars on the monarchy are a joke.
This is my prediction: Handley’s book will be nitpicked for insignificant factual errors in order to discredit the entire thesis. And the monarchy’s role in politics will not be discussed the way it should be discussed.
Everybody will be dressed in black and bow down to the emperor who has no clothes.
And it is shocking that there will be no clear and comprehensible discussion about a post-Bhumibol Thailand. His passing will have enormous repercussions on Thailand, which will impact all Thais in the future. You would think that a Thai Studies conference would have that topic up for discussion. Nope. Ignore the pink elephant standing the middle of the room. That is the responsible thing to do.
I wish I was there, I really do. I would have done a Hunter S Thompson live blogging of the conference.
Using wisdom to see reality
Lleij: I mentioned Wallace as an incentive, not because we share the same perspective or approach. From what you say, I expect that part of your writing concerns a Thai-case concretization of what has been called glocalization (not a nice word) or the global-local interface in other theoretical contexts (Meyer and Kinvall were other incentives).
From a comparative perspective, the situation of education is not principally different from other societal areas, such as politics, science, law, the economy, medicine, and perhaps even intimate relationships. In all of these areas, “Thai” models of behavior have a hard time dealing with “western” models (or what Luhmann calls symbolically generalized media of communication), not to speak of the second tier of western imports consisting of the different programs (theories) westerners have come up with in these areas and within these models over the past decades, leading to what you have referred to as “geological strata.” BTW, we haven’t talked about “analytical thinking” so far.
“do you know any child in Thailand who goes to a government primary or secondary school and is lower middle class or above? >> Probably, this is more common in the provinces and even more so at the district level than it is in Bangkok, simply because there might not be that many opportunities up-country.
Time for academic frankness
From Thai Studies Conference Website, http://www.thaiconference.tu.ac.th/index.html
Title: Thailand in Mourning
Dear Participants
Thailand is currently in mourning for Her Royal Highness Princess Galayani
Vadhana (the King’s elder sister) who passed away on Wednesday 2nd January 2008.
The princess at one time was a Thammasat University permanent faculty member.
At the moment, the government has officially called for 15 days of mourning and has
asked the public to wear black during this period.
In this regard, we would like to ask for your understanding. We respectfully request
that all participants wear black or dark clothing for the duration of our conference.
Thank you for your kind co-operation.
Anucha Thirakanont
Director of the Thai Khadi Research Institute
Thammasat University
Time for academic frankness
………the point I am trying to make, Andrew, is that at present there is a 10,000 pound elephant standing in the middle of the room in the Thai studies area, especially in regard to the present political situation and the history of political life in Thailand for the past 50 years.
………it would certainly liven the conference up if Handley (or someone else who has researched and written about the same subject) were to be invited to the conference to present a paper based on parts of his book and to distribute that paper and/or the book at the conference.
…….but would the organizers of the conference actually allow Handley or anyone else devoted to the same subject to be there presenting a paper on that subject and opening up a free and wide-ranging discussion in and around that subject which is so crucial to actually understanding and analyzing what is going on in Thailand at the moment?
…….remember, you will all be wearing the mandatory black clothing, listening to the mandatory ceremonial speeches and you will be in a country which, while permitting total freedom in certain areas, at the same time, shuts down internet sites, blogs and chat rooms that touch on the subject at hand as well as forbidding the sale and distribution of certain books about the subject at hand (as well as other rather harmless books such as Bangkok Inside Out based on the idiosyncratic whims of the Culture Minister!). Not to speak of all those scenes that need to be cut out of movies distributed in theaters and all those youtube.com and other videos that have to be blocked.
……given all that, it is hard to believe that those attending the conference will be formally presenting or discussing a whole lot of material concerning the 10,000 pound elephant.
……and if that subject is off limits, then isn’t there a big hole in the content of the entire conference and doesn’t the whole thing become a sort of intellectual charade?
Time for academic frankness
Handley’s situation is not clear. Here is an extract from New Mandala’s interview with him:
The more commentators who speak out, and publish, on these issues, the more improbable a ban becomes.
Handley responds to Evans
Handley’s response to my review has already been run on New Mandala (Nov. 7, 2006). I am quite happy for it to be run again, but I suggest it would be fair to run my review again too. Needless to say, I stand by the review.
Anthropologists from the very beginning of the discipline have spent a great deal of time trying to understand the nature of kingship. The latest contribution is The Character of Kingship edited by Declan Quiqley (2005). I recommend it to anyone who is interested.