Thailand Politics

Thailand’s Culture of Impunity for the Rich and Powerful Causes Backlash

Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, right, leaves Government House with Prawit Wongsuwan, his embattled deputy with expensive tastes in watches and jewelry. – Photo Reuters

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BANGKOK – With its political future in the balance, Thailand’s military government is digging in to protect one of its key figures, Prawit Wongsuwan, the deputy prime minister and defense minister who is among three prominent figures who have openly flouted laws.

Public opinion is against them, but it remains to be seen if they will be held accountable for their actions.

The Thai junta’s portly second in command landed himself in hot water after evidently failing to declare among his assets a collection of 25 premium wrist watches worth some $1 million. Prawit’s expensive tastes were exposed in December by an observant Thai Facebook user.

Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha has not wavered in his support for the senior retired general — both men are former army chiefs. The scandal places Prayuth in a difficult position as he courts public support to remain in power. An overdue general election has still not been scheduled.

Prawit has claimed the extravagant timepieces were loans from a deceased friend, but the brazen display of watches and rings has sparked outrage on social media. The furore suggests patience with the regime that seized power through a coup in 2014 is waning.

By Feb. 16, the start of Chinese New Year, an online petition calling for Prawit’s removal had garnered 80,000 signatures. Cartoonists have openly lampooned him, and one columnist dubbed him the “Rolex General.” The waves of ridicule have washed away the junta’s claims to moral authority, a justification often cited by the military for staging coups and clinging to power.

The private habits of two other rich and famous men have also come under scrutiny. One is Somyot Poompanmpoung, a former national police chief, who admitted borrowing 300 million baht ($9.5 million) from a Bangkok brothel owner while he was still a serving officer. “We are friends and of course friends do help each other,” he explained. Surveys have revealed the public is not impressed.

The other is business tycoon Premchai Karnasuta, president of Italian-Thai Development, a listed company and the country’s largest construction conglomerate. Premchai was arrested this month leading a hunting party inside a national park. The kills in the protected forest included an endangered black leopard. Premchai is ranked by Forbes magazine among Thailand’s richest. He has dropped from sight since the incident to the consternation of environmentalists. Police have threatened to issue an arrest warrant if he misses an appearance in court on Mar. 26.

The three cases support a common perception that the country’s rich and famous are untouchable, and enjoy special treatment in the justice system. Sons and daughters of tycoons, the well-heeled, and influential public officials have frequently been held above the law, even when deaths have occurred.

According to Kingsley Abbott, a senior international legal adviser at the International Commission of Jurists, a global watchdog, this culture of impunity goes back many years in Thailand, and extends beyond police simply failing to arrest high-profile perpetrators. “Certain investigations have seemingly perpetual status — of being ‘ongoing,’ sometimes for years, without anyone ever being held accountable,” he told the Nikkei Asian Review.

Until recently, Bangkok’s politically influential middle class, which largely backed the 2014 coup, acquiesced to this traditional throwback in the police and judiciary. There were, for example, only grumbles after a senior military figure was linked to corruption in the development of a park commissioned by the junta to honour former Thai monarchs.

According to Transparency International, corruption also continues to prosper in Thailand. In 2017, the anti-graft watchdog, ranked Thailand at 101 among 175 countries it had surveyed, a significant drop from 76 in 2015.

A new survey pours cold water on the idea that the junta can tackle corruption more effectively than elected governments. Conducted in December by the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce, it concludes that graft and under-the-table payments for state projects have gobbled 25-30% of the state investment budget — over 676 billion baht. Some foreign investors have meanwhile admitted to NAR that they paid up to 30% of a project’s estimated value to win official approval.

Press commentaries have increasingly reflected the recent change in the political current, and openly question the junta’s claims of moral authority to mask its lack of electoral legitimacy. The Prayuth government is “morally bankrupt,” wrote Thitinan Pongsudhirak, a political scientist at Chulalongkorn University, in an op-ed last week in the Bangkok Post, an English language daily. The scandals have eroded whatever remains of the military government’s credibility and legitimacy, he said. The Prawit scandal is “the last straw in a long line of other graft scandals since the coup.”

Military insiders expect Prayuth to stand by Prawit. The traditional military contention is that “soldiers love and protect the country more than civilians.” There is also an esprit de corps among senior officers. “The military mentality is to stay together and not cut your buddy loose,” a military insider told NAR. “But if one goes, they will fall like dominoes.”

Marwaan Macan-Markar
Asia regional correspondent – Nikkei Asian Review

Thailand Politics

Thai Prime Minister’s Popularity Declines as Move Forward Party dominates

(CTN News) – Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin continues to make local and international visits to try to solve problems and promote Thailand, but he has failed to impress most voters, according to a Nida poll. The poll also revealed the declining popularity of Pheu Thai Party leader Paetongtarn Shinawatra and the rise of the Move Forward Party.

According to a poll released on Sunday, only 12.85% of people supported the prime minister, down from 17.75% in the previous survey. The daughter of convicted former Prime Minister Thaksin, currently on parole, saw her popularity drop from 6% to 4.85%.

The National Institute of Development Administration conducts a quarterly survey of the public’s preferred political leaders. The last survey was released at the end of March.

According to the survey, supporters of the prime minister described Mr Srettha as a resolute decision-maker determined to address their problems. Ms Paetongtarn was complimented for her vision, leadership, knowledge, and grasp of the country’s difficulties.

This weekend, the prime minister will be in the northeast region listening to citizens’ concerns. The journey occurred only a few days after he had visited northern provinces earlier in the week.

Despite criticism, he has reduced his abroad trips, citing the need to showcase Thailand to investors and traders.

Pita Limjaroenrat, the chief advisor of the Move Forward Party, remained the top candidate for prime minister with 45.50% of the vote, up slightly from 42.75% in the previous quarter’s poll.

Pirapan Salirathavibhaga was the huge winner. The leader of the United Thai National Party saw his popularity nearly quadruple from 3.55% to 6.85%.

The sampled voters stated they appreciated Mr Pita’s political beliefs and thought he had broad knowledge. They praised Mr Pirapan’s credibility, claiming he was clean and honest.

Two other probable prime minister candidates were Khunying Sudarat Keyuraphan of the Thai Sang Thai Party and Anutin Chanvirakul, leader of Bhumjaithai. However, they were less popular than others.

About 20% of voters still did not believe any candidate was qualified to lead the country, which is the same percentage as in the last survey.

Move Forward Party was the most popular party with 49.20%, up slightly from three months ago, while Pheu Thai fell around five percentage points to 16.85% from 22.10%.

The poll, issued on Sunday, surveyed 2,000 ineligible voters between June 14 and June 18.

Thailand Politics

Move Forward Party MP Jirat Thongsuwan Appeals Suspended Jail Sentence for Defamation

(CTN News) – Jirat Thongsuwan, a Move Forward Party MP, says he would appeal his one-year suspended jail sentence for defaming a former senior defense ministry official concerning the state’s procurement of bogus bomb detectors.

The Criminal Court also fined Mr Jirat 100,000 baht for falsely accusing ACM Tharet Punsri, a former Air Force chief-of-staff who later became the ministry’s deputy permanent secretary, of being the chairman and shareholder of a company that supplied the military with the infamous GT200 bomb detectors.

The Chachoengsao MP claimed a July 20, 2022, no-confidence vote against cabinet ministers in Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha’s government. ACM Tharet was not a cabinet member.

Jirat Thongsuwan also identified ACM Tharet as a key figure in the 2006 coup headed by then-army chief Gen Sonthi Boonyaratkalin, which overthrew Thaksin Shinawatra.

ACM Tharet told the court that Jirat Thongsuwan’s charges were false and harmed his reputation. He denied involvement with the bomb detection company and said he was not the company’s senior chairman or shareholder.

In addition to the suspended jail term and fine, the court ordered Jirat Thongsuwan to pay $ 500,000 baht in damages to ACM Tharet and publish an apology in three newspapers for five days.

Jirat Thongsuwan later announced on his X account that he had challenged the verdict with the hashtag “An injustice is infuriating”.

The MP has also been accused of dodging required military conscription. He admitted to the accusation on May 8.

A British business promoted the GT200 as a “remote substance detector” and sold it in several countries. Between 2004 and 2009, fourteen Thai government organizations, most of which were military, were projected to spend 1.4 billion baht on the units.

Concerns about the GT200 and related gadgets arose after the National Science and Technology Development Agency discovered they lacked electronic components.

The devices were later revealed to be “divining rods”.

Thailand Politics

Thaksin Shinawatra Files 100 Million Baht Defamation Lawsuit Against Warong Dechgitvigrom

(CTN News) – Thaksin Shinawatra, the former prime minister, has launched a defamation action against Warong Dechgitvigrom, the head of the Thai Pakdee Party, accusing him of paying a bribe to be released on bail in a lese majeste case.

Thaksin’s attorney, Winyat Chartmontree, filed a lawsuit against Warong, seeking 100 million baht in damages.

Warong, a long-time Thaksin Shinawatra critic, gave a public statement and posted on social media, saying that 2 billion baht was paid to judicial officials in exchange for release on bail in the lese majeste case.

Thaksin Shinawatra Granted Release on 500,000 Baht Bond

Thaksin was granted release on a 500,000 baht bond last week and told not to leave the country without court authorization after pleading innocent to charges of defaming King Rama IX in a 2015 interview with South Korean media.

Winyat stated that, while Warong did not identify Thaksin Shinawatra by name in his speech or post, he did include a hashtag with Thaksin’s name as well as the date Thaksin must appear in court, allowing readers to connect Thaksin to the allegations.

Winyat further stated that he was investigating the fact that Warong mentioned the specific aircraft and automobiles utilized by Thaksin Shinawatra to violate the Personal Data Protection Act.

“I have requested Mr Warong to provide proof as to where he received the data. “If it turns out that it came from state officials, there will be legal consequences,” he warned.

The Criminal Court has scheduled the case’s preliminary hearing for September 30.