Political crisis in Thailand

Thailand, a popular tourist destination for Nepalis, is once again in the midst of a political crisis since March 13 when supporters of Thaksin Sinawatra, the nation’s former prime minister, launched protests demanding that the incumbent coalition led by Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva be dismantled and fresh elections held. This series of upheavals that started in 2006 when a military coup dismissed the elected government of Sinawatra, a former telecommunications tycoon, in the politically volatile South East Asian nation can have grave consequences as it is widening the gap between the poor citizens – who support Sinawatra for introducing a host of pro-poor policies during his five-and-a-half-year tenure – and the country’s elite. Furthermore, it is contributing to cementing the culture of removing governments from the streets, which can have dire consequences in the long run for the nation of 68 million people.



Sinawatra’s supporters are furious over the fact that their party, which received popular mandate in the 2007 general election – the first following the September 2006 coup, which was preceded by demonstrations by staunchly royalist and anti-Sinawatra yellow-shirted protestors – was for the second time removed through non-electoral means in 2008. Looking at the intensity of the protests, it does not look like the protestors are going to easily back away from their demands. Defying an emergency declared on Wednesday, the anti-government protestors on Friday forced the government to reverse its earlier decision to ban the airing of People’s Channel, which it said was inciting violence by relaying misleading information. Soldiers once again retook the satellite transmission complex late on Friday and blocked its transmission. In March, the red-shirted protestors caught the attention of the worldwide media when they spilled blood donated by supporters at the prime minister’s office a few days after they launched their protests.



Thailand will continue to be roiled in such upheavals unless its military, which at present supports the Vejjajiva-led coalition, is brought under the control of a civilian government. For too long, the army has remained the most important player in the country’s polity. The political parties on their part must respect the mandate of the people and be ready to settle all contentious issues through the electoral process and democratic institutions. When a political party seeks the blessing of the military to stay in power, it is not only providing the institution with a space to remain active in politics but indirectly digging its own grave because when its utility is spent, it might end up at the receiving end of the army’s brute force. We in Nepal hope and pray that Thailand would return to normalcy very soon.

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