Southeast Asia  / Thailand
Prayut is a symptom not the disease that plagues Thai democracy; both must go
October 21, 2020

It was supposed to be another good coup. Prayut Chan-o-cha and his band of Royal Thai Army loyalists promised to return “happiness to the people,” or at least that is how it was advertised. And sadly, some took the bait. A junta event that featured live music, free medical exams, and opportunities to have selfies taken with Thai soldiers drew a fairly large crowd. The National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) declared it was absolutely necessary to take power from the caretaker Yingluck government in order to resolve the political crisis that had befallen the country in the months prior to the May 2014 coup d’état. But it was all a lie.


Southeast Asia  / Thailand
The Rise, Dominance, and Decline of Thailand’s Monarchy
October 20, 2020

Recent political turmoil in Thailand has broken many of the taboos surrounding its once-revered monarchy. The youth-led social movement that has demanded the resignation of Thailand’s Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has also submitted a list of reforms calling for substantive changes to the monarchy, including the repeal of its draconian lèse majesté laws, which forbid the insult of the monarch and have been used as a weapon to silence dissent. Reforms also call for more transparency and accountability as well as banning the monarch from endorsing political coups, which is a frequent occurrence.


Southeast Asia  / Thailand
How Far Will Free Expression Fall Under Thailand’s New Emergency Decree?
October 16, 2020

After whirlwind protests that saw thousands of people take to the streets of Bangkok on Tuesday, Oct. 14, the next morning saw the Royal Thai government issue a “severe” emergency decree while at the same time arresting more than 20 people, including Anon Nampa, a human rights lawyer and one of the leaders of the student-led anti-government protesters on charges of sedition. Under the new emergency decree, gatherings of more than five people have been banned, and the publication of news and information that “could create fear” or “affect national security.”


Southeast Asia  / Thailand
The age of government (dis)information in Thailand
October 14, 2020

Social media giant Twitter last week blocked nearly one thousand accounts linked to the Royal Thai Army, which were in violation of its policies on manipulation of information. According to a statement released by Twitter, the accounts were “engaging in amplifying pro-RTA and pro-government content, as well as engaging in behavior targeting prominent political opposition figures." Some of those figures included now-banned opposition leader Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit of the defunct Future Forward Party.


Cambodia  / China  / East Asia  / Japan  / Southeast Asia
Cambodia a Focus of Sino-Nippon Rivalry
October 14, 2020

Last week, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, speaking at the opening of a US$85 million amusement park funded by a Chinese company in Kandal Province (and repeated in a barely-noticed tweet, posed a simple question, “I would like to ask that, if China doesn’t build roads and bridges, who will instead?”


Southeast Asia  / Thailand
On the Thai economy, Prayut Wants a Convenient Scapegoat
October 13, 2020

Thailand’s embattled Prime Minister Prayut Chan-ocha blamed anti-government protesters for some of the country’s economic malaise on Monday, noting that in order for the economic situation to be resolved, the country — namely the protesters — must “be peaceful.”


Southeast Asia  / Thailand
Thailand’s Generals, As Usual, Fail to Understand Democracy
October 8, 2020

When new Royal Thai Army chief General Narongpan Jittkaewtae took his post on Oct. 1, he and military commander-in-chief General Chalermpol Srisawat made a point to discourage the press and the public to assume that another coup d’etat was in the works and to reiterate that Thailand had transitioned back into democracy. When prompted by a reporter, Narongpan exclaimed, “How is it not a democracy?” The failure to acknowledge the role of the military in orchestrating past coups and the present complement of military officials that populate Thailand’s Parliament reveals something emblematic and problematic with Thailand’s generals — they lack a fundamental understanding of democracy and the many lessons of modern Thai history.


Cambodia  / Southeast Asia
Remember the Thammasat Massacre as an act of organised hate
October 6, 2020

Thailand’s military rulers have long had difficulties sharing uncomfortable stories. The painful anniversary of the massacre at Thammasat University on October 6, 1976 has never been reconciled, buried in a kind of “organised forgetting.” As history books have been censored, appearances cancelled, or activists detained by governments past and present, a new generation of Thais should recognise the massacre for what it truly was – organised hate.


Cambodia  / Southeast Asia
Land Rights in Cambodia and the Long Persecution of a Buddhist Monk
October 5, 2020

During a speech to the United Nations Human Rights Council on October 2, Luon Sovath, a Buddhist monk and human rights activist was repeatedly interrupted by Cambodia’s Permanent Representative in Geneva, An Sokkhoeurn, who questioned the legitimacy of both Sovath’s status as a monk and his claims about land rights in Cambodia. During a meeting of the 45th Regular Session of the Council, Sovath was a guest speaker of the World Organization Against Torture, a Geneva-based NGO.


Southeast Asia  / Thailand
The art of political jiu-jitsu and Thailand’s student revolution
October 2, 2020

After several major protests in Bangkok, authorities have practiced a degree of restraint, despite the dismantling of a long-held social taboo of voicing public criticism of Thailand’s once-revered monarchy.