It's been a classic Thaksin Shinawatra week, complete with drama, plot twists, tears and the Thai prime minister's ongoing love affair with his people, all broadcast live on television.
In the aftermath of Thailand's snap election on Sunday -- a bit of a farcical affair since essentially only one party contested it -- the careworn caretaker prime minister appeared on national TV on Monday night to explain to the public why he felt entitled to remain in his job.
Admittedly, only about 28 million out of 45 million eligible voters had exercised their right to vote, the worst turnout since the 1997 Constitution was adopted, penalizing citizens for not voting.
And admittedly about 10 million people had ticked their ballots "no vote," essentially a protest vote against the premier and his Thai Rak Thai Party, in addition to about 3 million more invalidated votes, setting another electoral record. Many of the latter group were invalidated by outraged citizens who scribbled "Thaksin Get Out" on their ballots.
Nonetheless Thaksin stressed that his party had received 16 million votes, and he owed it to these voters to stay on as prime minister.
Then, on Tuesday, the belligerent caretaker prime minister was granted an audience with Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej at his palace in the seaside province of Hua Hin.
After that audience, Thaksin rushed back to Bangkok for another public message on public television on Tuesday night, to announce his decision not to accept a third term as prime minister, but to stay on as a caretaker while a new parliament and government is set up.
And, oh yes, he will stay on as head of the Thai Rak Thai Party, which -- when and if it ever manages to form a new parliament -- would likely hold at least 499 of the 500 seats, a percentage any communist state would be proud of.
Then on Wednesday, Thaksin made a dramatic show of leaving his office at Government House, removing the pictures of his beloved family and other personal items, shaking hands with his loyal aides and hugging and being hugged by his adoring supporters as he rode off home.
"He is a world-class spin doctor," said Sunai Pasuk, Thailand representative for Human Rights Watch, commenting on this week's performance. "It's just a tactical retreat from public pressure."
While Thaksin's "departure" from his executive powers, or at least his promise not to resume them in the future, has been generally welcomed by the people opposed to his rule, the substance of his grand exit has left more questions than answers.
Obviously, the three former opposition parties that boycotted Sunday's snap election to draw attention to the dictatorial powers Thaksin had amassed over his past five years as premier, were not impressed.
"We should not be alarmed or happy with his decision to step aside, because we have to see whether his regime is still around or not," said Chuan Leekpai, a former Thai premier himself and senior member of the main opposition Democrat Party.
The Democrats have always maintained that what is needed is a new round of political reforms, not another election. They are calling for constitutional amendments, designed to strengthen checks and balances on a populist regime like Thaksin's.
Thaksin, a former telecommunications tycoon who romped to power on a host of populist policies designed to win votes from the rural and urban poor, was Thailand's first billionaire premier.
While Thaksin has promised to set up an independent committee to mull such constitutional changes, it is doubtful that anything that might rein in his party's near-absolute rule will be approved by a parliament dominated by the party, with Thaksin at its head.
"He may be able to move Government House to the House of Representatives, where he will be sitting," joked Suchit Bunbongkarn, a well-respected political scientist at Chulalongkorn University who helped to draft the 1997 constitution.
Suchit said that amendments to the Constitution are needed to strengthen Thailand's independent bodies, such as the Constitutional Court and National Counter Corruption Committee, by removing politicians from the committees that nominate members to such bodies.
But such amendments are not likely to be approved by a parliament dominated by the Thai Rak Thai party.
The People's Alliance for Democracy, which led the mass demonstrations over the past two months demanding Thaksin's resignation, has also vowed to continue its struggle despite Thaksin's "departure."
Alliance leader Suriyasai Katasila told reporters that the group was to resume its anti-Thaksin protests yesterday.
"The anti-Thaksin movement has set two strategies: one is pressuring Mr Thaksin to step down, and the other is removing the Thaksin Rule. Mr Thaksin's stepping aside from office won't defuse a time-bomb, but merely delay the explosion," Suriyasai said.
The gutting of Voice of America (VOA) and Radio Free Asia (RFA) by US President Donald Trump’s administration poses a serious threat to the global voice of freedom, particularly for those living under authoritarian regimes such as China. The US — hailed as the model of liberal democracy — has the moral responsibility to uphold the values it champions. In undermining these institutions, the US risks diminishing its “soft power,” a pivotal pillar of its global influence. VOA Tibetan and RFA Tibetan played an enormous role in promoting the strong image of the US in and outside Tibet. On VOA Tibetan,
Sung Chien-liang (宋建樑), the leader of the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) efforts to recall Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lee Kun-cheng (李坤城), caused a national outrage and drew diplomatic condemnation on Tuesday after he arrived at the New Taipei City District Prosecutors’ Office dressed in a Nazi uniform. Sung performed a Nazi salute and carried a copy of Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf as he arrived to be questioned over allegations of signature forgery in the recall petition. The KMT’s response to the incident has shown a striking lack of contrition and decency. Rather than apologizing and distancing itself from Sung’s actions,
US President Trump weighed into the state of America’s semiconductor manufacturing when he declared, “They [Taiwan] stole it from us. They took it from us, and I don’t blame them. I give them credit.” At a prior White House event President Trump hosted TSMC chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家), head of the world’s largest and most advanced chip manufacturer, to announce a commitment to invest US$100 billion in America. The president then shifted his previously critical rhetoric on Taiwan and put off tariffs on its chips. Now we learn that the Trump Administration is conducting a “trade investigation” on semiconductors which
By now, most of Taiwan has heard Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an’s (蔣萬安) threats to initiate a vote of no confidence against the Cabinet. His rationale is that the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)-led government’s investigation into alleged signature forgery in the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) recall campaign constitutes “political persecution.” I sincerely hope he goes through with it. The opposition currently holds a majority in the Legislative Yuan, so the initiation of a no-confidence motion and its passage should be entirely within reach. If Chiang truly believes that the government is overreaching, abusing its power and targeting political opponents — then
RSS