Trust Prayut: he cut the head off Thailand’s zombie democracy
Re: “What has improved since the coup?” Letters, April 17.
General Prayut Chan-o-cha, now prime minister, ended the Fugitive’s remote-controlled rule of Thailand. Lethal violence was stopped and assassins were brought to justice – something the previous regime failed to do, since it benefited from the mess the assassins created. Didn’t these actions by Prayut improve Thailand and its chances of laying genuine democratic foundations?
Corrupt politicians are doing all they can to derail that process, forcing Prayut to take a firm and unpopular grip to avoid a return to bogus democracy.
All functioning democracies start with the actions of people like Prayut. The only path to democracy out of an undemocratic past is when honest, democratic-minded people overrun corrupt, self-serving politicians and take power. That process has been witnessed in other countries over the past two centuries and is now occurring here.
Those critics making unrealistic demands that the economy flourish amid domestic political turmoil and a global economic slowdown are distorting facts in a bid to depict Prayut as a failure. When observers like Eric Bahrt condemn the junta for “taking away all freedoms”, they are contradicting themselves.
Isn’t it right to clamp down on those trying to destroy the ongoing project of democratisation in a country that recently came close to collapse and is still very fragile?
Many people still prefer to place their faith in Prayut and his controlled way to democracy rather than in the Shinawatras, Pheu Thai, the red shirts or the Democrats – none of whom has a credible record of upholding democracy. Perhaps Mr Bahrt could enlighten us as to the democratic potential he sees that others are so blind to?
A Johnsen
