An ugly clampdown on Rajabhakti protests

The way the National Council for Peace and Order is dealing with the Rajabhakti scandal adds weight to growing complaints that it is failing in its stated mission of ridding the country of corruption. The junta, the government and the Army are investigating allegations of massive graft in the casting of statues for the military-owned Rajabhakti Park in Prachuap Kiri Khan – and blocking all independent efforts to scrutinise the matter.
Last week two leaders of the red-shirt United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship, Jatuporn Promphan and Nuttawut Saikuar, were detained for hours after speaking out on the perceived corruption in the awarding of foundry contracts for the park’s statues of revered kings.
The two were forced to promise, on threat of arrest, to avoid provoking any action concerning the scandal. The military has plainclothes officers shadowing Nuttawut, a Cabinet minister in Yingluck Shinawatra’s government, and his family.
This past weekend Patnaree Charnkit, the mother of Thammasat University student activist Sirawit “Ja New” Seritiwat, was summoned to a military camp because the Army decided she had failed to stop her son from speaking out on the scandal. Patnaree told reporters she’d received a string of phone calls from military officers asking her to stop her son’s political activities. Otherwise, she was told, the authorities could not guarantee his safety.
Sirawit, a political-science student, was not at home when military officers came looking for him. Instead they took his mother away and attempted to intimidate her by saying they can’t protect Sirawit unless they know where he is. “What happens to your son from now on is not the responsibility of the military,” Patnaree says she was told. This worried parent has pointed out to her harassers that her son is 23 years old, entitled to his own political beliefs, and well beyond her control in this regard.
Sirawit was indeed in hiding from the authorities, at least temporarily. He posted an invitation on Facebook for like-minded people to join him on a trek to Rajabhakti Park. Some followers accepted the invitation and yesterday made their way towards Hua Hin by train and private car, intending to call for action against those involved in the alleged corruption. The park, however, was “closed for repairs” and the protesters on the train were stopped at Bang Pong station in Ratchaburi, where Sirawit and others were arrested.
The government has established its own committee to investigate financial dealings at the park, which is costing more than Bt1 billion, much of it donated, the rest coming from taxpayers. Senior Army officers running the show have been accused of demanding kickbacks from contractors. Construction is under the purview of Deputy Defence Minister General Udomdej Sitabutr, who has rejected demands for independent scrutiny.
The case represents a prime opportunity for the government to demonstrate its determination in the fight against all-pervasive corruption. It could have swiftly pinpointed any wrongdoing and punished those guilty, but instead is earning further discredit by mauling citizens who express concern.
Government Spokesman Major General Sansern Kaewkamnerd has attempted to put the “happy” spin on the junta’s overreaction, saying the protesters can certainly visit the park and would only face legal action if they disturbed the peace or caused other trouble. He was perhaps unwittingly too frank when he added: “Thais can judge the intention of these political organisers, and they are fed up with people who instigate political upheaval. These people should not tamper with a place that Thais built out of faith and loyalty to the monarchy by doing anything with malicious intent.”
Instead of portraying concerned citizens as troublemakers when all they’ve done is challenge the handling of the case, the government needs to know whether any of its officials trampled on that faith and loyalty to the monarchy. Giving the public a role in the investigation would be a far more productive reaction to the protests.