| WIKI | FAQ | Tech FAQ | |
 http://csua.com/feed/ | |
| ||||||
| 5/25 |
| 2006/9/20-22 [Politics/Foreign/Asia/China, Politics/Foreign/Asia/Japan] UID:44474 Activity:moderate |
9/20 Who's the real boss in Thailand:
http://www.csua.org/u/gy8 (Yahoo! News)
"If the king didn't give a nod, this never would have been possible."
"The King ... rarely enters the political arena, but when he does,
everyone listens and obeys"
King Bhumibol is no QE II.
\_ I think it's more like "everyone obeys, and he ensures everyone
continues to obey by not throging his weight around too much."
\_ this is something Americans don't like to admit. Americans love
to talk about democracies, yet in Asia, having a symbolic King
and/or Emperor tend to stabalize the politics. Thailand is a prime
example.
\_ The four most successful economies other than Japan in the past
50 years in Asia have been Hong Kong, South Korea, Taiwan, and
Singapore. None of them have kings or emperors. China hasn't
had an emperor in a while, and its economic and political rise
has come in the past 20 years with the last emperor long dead.
In fact, the only 2 countries in Asia with kings are Thailand
and Japan, and Thailand isn't exactly a stable country now.
\_ Hong Kong was under the UK for most of the past 50 years, and
UK has a Queen.
\_ Sorry, but I'm pretty sure that the vast majority of the
locals in Hong Kong did not recognize the Queen of England
as their spiritual head of state. They might technically
have been under England, but if you're telling me that
those Hong Kong street vendors and workers who can't speak
a word of English cared about the Queen of England's
political position enough to allow her to "stabilize"
Hong Kong, that's ridiculous.
\_ "the only 2 countries in Asia with kings are Thailand and
Japan". Hmm, let's see: King Hamad of Bahrain, King Wangchuck
of Bhutan, Sultan Bokliah of Brunei, King Sihamoni of
Cambodia, King Gyanendra of Nepal, Sultan Qaboos of Oman,
Emir Hamad of Qatar. If you also count non-sovereign
heriditary monarchs, there are seven Sultans in Malaysia and
six Emirs in the UAE.
\_ Americans? Asia? High on crack? What about the U.K., Canada,
Sweeden, Denmark, Jamaica, and the Netherlands, just picking
countries at random? Are they all part of the vast "America is
big hipocrite who not understand Asia" conspiracy also?
\_ lol
\_ This isn't tested though. I haven't read the article. But it's a
military coup. What would be interesting is if kingy went against
the one in power. "Oh king approves, that's all right then."
\_ Japanese history is full of events like this. For example
the Meiji Restoration. Factions support or resist the
EMPEROR not the KING btw. Japan doesn't have a "king".
\_ The King of Thailand has a much more active role in politics
than the symbolic monarchs of Japan, England, Denmark, and
Sweden, but a much less active role than that of the kings of, say,
Brunei or Tongo.
\_ Just this morning I read this in the Sept 16 issue of The Economist:
"There have been disquieting rumors of plots to overthrow or even
assassinate the the prime minister. ... ... Mr Thaksin is
apparently unfazed by the conspiracy theories. He has left the
country on a long foreign trip."
\_ A Thai friend of mine says people are happy for the coup because
the Prime Minister was a corrupt power hungry asshole.
\_ Add "and nepotistic" for the win. |
| 5/25 |
|
| www.csua.org/u/gy8 -> news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060920/ap_on_re_as/king_vs_thaksin;_ylt=Asll.L7NPoM_DNzKacbrfgv9xg8F;_ylu=X3oDMTA4NTMzazIyBHNlYwMxNjk2 AP Thailand's Thaksin had clashed with king By JOCELYN GECKER, Associated Press Writer Wed Sep 20, 2:53 PM ET BANGKOK, Thailand - For many in Thailand, it was a clash between two images: an arrogant prime minister who hates to lose, and a humble king who always wins. Simply by endorsing the general who has seized power, revered King Bhumibol Adulyadej has essentially given his blessing to the bloodless Tuesday night coup that ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. The 78-year-old monarch has shown that despite age, frailty and constitutional powerlessness, he remains the most powerful man in Thailand. The coup is also a response to the Islamic insurgency raging in southern Thailand, and public displeasure with Thaksin's strong-arm tactics. Sondhi Boonyaratkalin, the army commander who led the coup, had advocated a peaceful solution. As a Muslim, he was long seen as a force for healing whose hands were tied by Thaksin's policies. It remains unclear what role, if any, the king played in removing Thaksin. What is clear, however, is the chain of events that led to Thaksin's ouster -- a series of missteps that prompted accusations he was challenging the king's authority, an unpardonable act by Thai standards. Thaksin had taken a defiant stance under mounting pressure from street protests and demands for him to resign amid allegations of corruption, election violations and mishandling the southern insurgency. In April, the king made a rare TV appearance, prodding the courts to intervene to resolve a political deadlock that had left the kingdom with a caretaker government and no working legislature. The judges duly ruled, paving the way for new elections. "The anti-Thaksin forces in the top levels of government -- and perhaps in the palace -- realized that Thaksin could still be prime minister after the new election and there was no way out, and they were fed up," said Paul Handley, author of "The King Never Smiles," a biography that portrays Bhumibol as a major player in Thai political developments over the decades. Many say the palace was infuriated by Thaksin's apparent attempt to steal the spotlight during the lavish June celebrations of Bhumibol's 60 years on the throne. By greeting visiting royals before they got to meet the Thai royal family, 57-year-old Thaksin was seen as having committed a crowning and highly public act of insolence. Then there was the insurgency, which has killed more than 1,700 people in the past two years. Thaksin flooded the south, the only Muslim-dominated area of the Buddhist country, with 20,000 troops and imposed a state of emergency that empowered authorities to detain suspects without charge, tap telephones, ban public gatherings and suppress publications deemed inflammatory. Thaksin was also accused of stifling Thai media, once regarded as among the freest in Asia, and of allowing his cronies to reap enormous gains from corrupt policies. Chief among Thaksin's flaws, in the eyes of the palace and many Thais, was his personality. The tycoon-turned-politician proved to be ambitious, conservative and strong-willed, refusing to correct himself when his policies backfired -- particularly regarding the insurgency. Sondhi, who is thought to be close to the king, said the coup he led was needed to end the political crisis and restore "harmony among the people." He put Thailand under martial law and installed a provisional authority loyal to the king. He pledged elections would be held by October next year. European Union as a setback for the thriving democracy that has taken root in a country once prone to violent coups. But the royal statement read on television said the king had appointed Sondhi as head of the provisional council "in order to create peace in the country." While the palace insists it was not involved in the coup, many political and monarchy experts see another example of the monarch's behind-the-scenes power, which he has exercised sparingly but effectively over six decades. "If the king didn't give a nod, this never would have been possible," said Sulak Siwalak, an author of books on the Thai monarchy. The king is venerated for his Buddhist principles and his common touch, manifested in decades of tireless face-to-face work among the rural poor. He rarely enters the political arena, but when he does, everyone listens and obeys -- something Thaksin was seen as reluctant to do. "Thaksin failed to realize that the king has been on the throne for 60 years and he's no fool," said Sulak. "The man is old and Thaksin thought he could play around with him -- and it was a dangerous game." Ousted Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra waves as he arrives at Gatwick Airport, near London, after having flown into the United Kingdom from New York, Wednesday, Sept. Thaksin was deposed in a bloodless, army-led coup Tuesday while he was attending a session of the UN General Assembly in New York. Thai Military Says Government Takeover Temporary Thailand's army commander staged a coup and ousted the country's prime minister while the leader was away in New York. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press. |