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Background: In 2007, I moved from my native United States to start a new life in a liberalizing and developing nation as a teacher. Nearly a decade later, the country's outlook has changed considerably. Simmering divisions among different sectors of civil society have flung open the door to a return to the country's authoritarian past. The latest military coup was carried out in 2014 after a full year of street protests against the standing government. Today, military-sponsored propaganda floods the airwaves, both radio and television, which all stations are required to air. Political critics are summoned incommunicado to military camps seemingly arbitrarily and increasingly frequently. Just today, our dictator gave full police powers to all standing members of the military under "Section 44" of the interim constitution, the so-called "dictator law", which is essentially carte-blanche for him to order anything into law at any time. Despite the draconian measures being undertaken and the increasing restrictions on civil liberties and freedoms, many channels remain for people to discuss, criticize, and express dissent, especially with the widespread use of social media. This is not a problem that dictators of the past had to deal with. If you have any questions about what life is like here, I'd be happy to try to answer (without risking getting myself jailed or deported, of course...). Also, try to guess the country. It shouldn't be that difficult.
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Mar 30, 2016 15:58
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Section 44 points to Thailand. What's the King's take in any of this? And you'd guess that after 8 coups in the last 40 years Thai society would finally have stabilised, but I guess not (I don't know the first thing about Thai history)
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Mar 30, 2016 16:04
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You've got it! He's quite frail now, in and out of the hospital, and possibly not fully aware of current events. He gave his symbolic blessing for our current dictator, Prayuth Chan-o-cha, to administer the country in a televised ceremony just days after the coup. I would like to point out that if this thread devolves into any sort of lese majeste melee (which it almost certainly will, knowing goons), I'll be forced to abandon it.
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Mar 30, 2016 16:13
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itstime4lunch posted:Political critics are summoned incommunicado to military camps seemingly arbitrarily and increasingly frequently. How much longer do you see these channels remaining open for people to express dissent? Are they not being actively monitored already, given that they are summoning political critics to military camps?
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Mar 30, 2016 16:15
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System Metternich posted:And you'd guess that after 8 coups in the last 40 years Thai society would finally have stabilised, but I guess not (I don't know the first thing about Thai history) Thailand seemed closest to democratic consolidation when Thaksin Shinawatra became the first re-elected prime minister of the country in 2005 (and the first to serve out a full term), but his increasingly authoritarian tendencies and suspected corruption gave his conservative (and anti-democracy) opponents an opening to lead a charge against him, culminating in the current cycle of political conflict known as "Thailand's lost decade," marked by constant instability, polarization and recurring street protests. Earwicker posted:How much longer do you see these channels remaining open for people to express dissent? Are they not being actively monitored already, given that they are summoning political critics to military camps? Last year, the minutes of a meeting leaked that showed the military government is actively pursuing a plan to develop a "single gateway" internet connection for the country which would be similar to the great firewall of China. Problem being that Chinese internet has some of the most technology-savvy people alive as its gatekeepers, and Thailand has, let's just put it, a little bit less ability in this area. "Anonymous" hackers are often finding the passwords for major government databases to be 12345 or 123456, for example. Word is that the plan is still in the works, but it will most likely have to be subcontracted to one or more international security firms that actually know what they are doing. At the moment, it is impossible for them to even begin to monitor the entire internet, but posts or shares that receive a lot of attention are usually what end up getting people in trouble. itstime4lunch fucked around with this message at 16:31 on Mar 30, 2016 |
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Mar 30, 2016 16:27
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itstime4lunch posted:Last year, the minutes of a meeting leaked that showed the military government is actively pursuing a plan to develop a "single gateway" internet connection for the country which would be similar to the great firewall of China. Problem being that Chinese internet has some of the most technology-savvy people alive as its gatekeepers, and Thailand has, let's just put it, a little bit less ability in this area. "Anonymous" hackers are often finding the passwords for major government databases to be 12345 or 123456, for example. Word is that the plan is still in the works, but it will most likely have to be subcontracted to one or more international security firms that actually know what they are doing. At the moment, it is impossible for them to even being to monitor the entire internet, but posts or shares that receive a lot of attention are usually what end up getting people in trouble. Yeah obviously they don't have the same tech as the NSA etc but any idiot can monitor twitter, facebook, etc... and forums like this one.
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Mar 30, 2016 16:31
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True. They're mostly on the lookout for Thai language dissent, and few people here are fluent enough in English, especially in the current government, to even be able to read a forum like this one. Twitter is chock full of all manner of English language criticism, even from people residing in the country. Anyway, to be safe, I'll just present information that has appeared in the news media or is based on my own perceptions of the situation without being critical.
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Mar 30, 2016 16:35
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Are you going to leave?
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Mar 30, 2016 17:29
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That's the million-dollar question, isn't it? I'm quite settled in here, with a family and a life. I love the country, but military dictatorships are not particularly famous for their tolerance of foreigners. Another of the great contradictions of the situation is that Thailand relies heavily on tourism for the economy, and while tourism from western countries has taken a hit, they've made up the difference and then some with large increases in both Chinese and Russian tourists. An exit plan is certainly something that a lot of expats have had to start considering, though...
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Mar 30, 2016 17:36
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Welp, it's bed time over here. Be back tomorrow...
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Mar 30, 2016 17:41
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itstime4lunch posted:True. They're mostly on the lookout for Thai language dissent, and few people here are fluent enough in English, especially in the current government, to even be able to read a forum like this one. Twitter is chock full of all manner of English language criticism, even from people residing in the country. I'd still be very careful, since that probably marks those who dissent in English stick out all the more. Have you seen anyone disappeared? Or is it just something that's on the table with rule 44, and trotted out for critics of note like opposition party leaders?
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Mar 30, 2016 22:50
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Coolness Averted posted:Have you seen anyone disappeared? Or is it just something that's on the table with rule 44, and trotted out for critics of note like opposition party leaders? Several hundred activists, academics, and politicians were summoned immediately following the coup, and since then, it has been a steady stream of perhaps only a couple of the loudest critics per week. The regime's term for the forced disappearances is "attitude adjustment sessions." In fact, there have been only a few cases of accusations of physical abuse. Generally, critics are taken to camps by large teams of soldiers and interrogated about their beliefs and political activities. They are not permitted to have contact with family members or the outside world and are only released (after about a week) when they agree to sign a document stating that they understand the rationale for staging the coup and will cease all future political activism and criticism until the situation returns to "normal." High-profile activists and politicians are typically treated with kid gloves, but repeat offenders and less well-known critics are more likely to get rougher treatment. That being said, there have actually been a small handful of deaths in mysterious circumstances under military custody, but the cases seemed to involve internal regime politics rather than popular dissent. I do not personally know anyone who has been summoned, and, according to the best media information we have, to this point the number has probably only reached into the hundreds (in a country of 67 million). Teams of soldiers have repeatedly appeared at local universities to either summon or question people or to attend or forbid academic events. The regime has just promulgated a draft of the next constitution and is planning to have the public vote on it in a referendum on August 7 in order to give it legitimacy. The proposed constitution allows the dictator to appoint a selection committee for senate candidates and then choose senators himself from the list, with six seats being reserved for heads of the armed forces. The appointed senate is meant to serve for at least 5 years (through two 4-year election cycles) as part of the "transition back to democracy." The lower house, however, is supposed to come from a general election in 2017. Since the regime came to power, their road-map for a return to democracy and elections has repeatedly delayed and pushed these dates back. With the release of the proposed charter, the dictator has threatened to detain critics for longer sessions (up to a month) and has said he will develop a "re-education program" for people whose attitudes and activities continue to show their opposition to the government. Coolness Averted posted:I'd still be very careful, since that probably marks those who dissent in English stick out all the more. I'm still relatively safe to speak freely like this, especially without strong criticism. This is an example of what even English-language reporters with a long history of reporting on military affairs are saying: http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/politics/916089/new-ncpo-order-abuse-of-power It's such a strange situation in that it's still so easy to find out what is happening, whereas in long-standing authoritarian regimes such as China or Russia, such details are hidden from public view. itstime4lunch fucked around with this message at 02:07 on Mar 31, 2016 |
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Mar 31, 2016 02:02
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What's with the business about the politics of clothing colors?
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Mar 31, 2016 02:32
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Wow, the article I just linked in the previous post has already caused trouble for one of the authors. This recent move to give military full police powers looks like a pretty threatening signal as well. The situation seems to be deteriorating rapidly, and I probably shouldn't even continue with this thread. Sorry! Going to keep my head down for a while. If the situation improves again, I'll come back to it...
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Mar 31, 2016 06:46
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