Intimidation
of BBC reporters - BBC, December
22, 2004
...The next thing I heard was them mentioning my name
as a journalist who had done damage to national unity
with my 'unpatriotic reports' on the [Tak Bai] incident.
'She has interviewed people whom she shouldn't have interviewed,'
said one of the presenters, a freelancer who had hired
airtime on a national radio channel which belongs to the
Thai parliament.
I assume they were referring to my attempts to talk, not
just to government officials and Buddhists, but to Muslims
in the south, whom the authorities regard as being at
the heart of the violence.
...But they did give their audience some information about
my background, saying that after I had worked as a reporter
in the country for some time, I 'fled the country', apparently
for no particular reason.
They even mentioned, casually: 'Well, we do quite understand
it really. Since she took the money from the outsiders
she has to do it.'...
Then the presenters and the listeners who called into
the programme discussed how to arrange a protest against
any representative of the UN who would want to visit Thailand
to investigate the incident.
The tone of the programme sounded very extreme. It reminded
me of the atmosphere leading up to the massacre of student
activists at Thammasat University in October 1976, when
soldiers killed students whom they thought were a communist
threat.
And, to my horror, the presenters also stated clearly
to their listeners that I was in fact staying in the country
"at this moment"'.
To me, that was a clear case of intimidation...
Fear - December
9, 2004
It is election season and academic forums are keeping
up the drumbeat against the government. The Bangkok
Post even adds the controversial claim that the government
executed 19 footballers. The Nation has a further
article perhaps illustrating this trend--the police are
prohibiting people from possessing video of the Tak Bai
incident.
THAMMASAT
FORUM: Government’s ‘reign of fear’ spreading:
academics - The Nation, December 08 , 2004
...“Fear is no longer confined to vulnerable groups,”
she said. “I asked a nurse about the symptoms of
a patient who lost his leg in the Tak Bai crackdown. The
nurse looked at me and asked in a cold voice, ‘Who
are you?’”...
PM
reviving culture of fear, warn critics - Kraisak: 19 youths
`executed' in South - Bangkok Post, December
9, 2004
...Mr Kraisak said he was most disturbed to learn of
the mass slaying of 19 young football players in Sabayoi
district of Songkhla. The youths were allegedly blindfolded
by ``state authorities'' who shot them in the heads execution
style.
" This should not be happening,'' he told the seminar
organised by the Peace News Centre, Thammasat University's
Foundation for Study of Democracy and Development, and
nine civic groups...
Police
crackdown on ‘illegal’ Tak Bai VCD - The
Nation, December 9, 2004
...Piya Partha-silpine, district chief of Tak Bai,
said individuals who possess or distribute VCDs of the
crackdown on October 26, which ended in the death of at
least 85 unarmed demonstrators, would be considered to
have broken the law...
Piya did not elaborate on why it is declaring the Tak
Bai VCDs illegal six weeks after the event or on what
legal grounds the authorities could prosecute those who
possess copies...
Village
Scouts gathering at Sanam Luang
- November 28, 2004
It will be the biggest political gathering of the group since they were deployed in 1976 to help suppress pro-democracy students...
'Blood
Siam' - November 1,
2004
Last week we mentioned right wing
politics in Thai and today Wisarut describes
a nationalistic site: Blood
Siam is a site where some Thais released
their frustration over the Tak Bai tragedy. They
are have fed up with the media that shows sympathy
toward Muslims while never showing any sympathy
toward officers, students and judges who have been
murdered by PULO and BRN. They contend senators,
NGOs, and media like Matichon, the Nation Group,
Naew Na and Thai Post have betrayed their motherland
to such extend that sooner or later they will follow
those dead Muslims to the crematoriums and graveyards.
(It is a GeoCities site that is already making the
rounds by email so it is often down when the bandwidth
is exceeded.)
Hidden in Thai: Nationalistic
comments - October 28, 2004
Judging only from what is printed in English, the view about the
Tak Bai deaths is one of outrage and solemn condemnation mixed
with feelings that 'Thaksin is in trouble now.'
However, there is a long-standing nationalistic, rightist strain
that goes through Thai political thought that is usually self-censored
in English. The prevalence of this strain of thought would probably
surprise foreigners who think all Thais are at heart, gentle leftists,
and that hard right-wing leanings are confined to military men.
The troubles in the South have brought out hard-line feelings
and it would be a mistake to think (as some English-language publications
contend) that P.M. Thaksin stands alone in pushing a tough attitude
toward Muslim 'troublemakers.'
Wisarut adds: Some people's response to the headlines printed
in local newspapers (here,
here,
and here)
are much harsher than responses to foreign corespondents since
such opinions would offend human right activists. You can see
such responses at Manager Online as well as pantip.com and mthai.com.
Nobody would dare to translate local Thai's reactions which will
would offend the human right activists as well as those NGOs
[making Thailand look bad]. Some even say, "we should
never pay taxes to feed those ingrate Senators who become a bunch
of traitors by acting like human right activists!"
While the government is known to have people
mass post on opinion boards to sway public opinion, this tough
talk in defense of national pride and the desire to harshly stamp
out that which threatens the nation is likely a genuine sentiment.
Also: Interesting thread touching on this subject: "Jai
Dee is for us only."
'Down With Pax Americana, Long Live Thailand!'
- October 29, 2004
Some anti-American rhetoric on the Manager
site.
On the forum: In support of the government
action
If you do not read Thai, you probably are not aware of the strong
nationalistic mutterings in support of tough action against
Muslim separatists.
(Source: Channel 9, MCOT)