The ruling generals have toughened their stance against politicians who speak out against reform efforts, threatening them with “training courses” of three to seven days.
The threat comes after several politicians refused to toe the junta’s line despite having already endured repeated sessions of what are called with equal euphemism “attitude adjustments” at military camps.
The government and the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) should be aware by now that they are wasting their time trying to change opponents’ beliefs. What these politicians have done – criticise the post-coup government, the draft constitution and junta rule – they will certainly do again.
The criticism can be judged “legitimate” or otherwise, depending on democratic convictions or self-interest. However, these motives are not necessarily mutually exclusive.
Almost two years after the coup of May 2014, the military-backed government remains distracted by its compulsion to suppress dissenting voices. Domestic suppression has been matched by efforts to appease international partners critical of Thailand’s poor record in tackling people-trafficking and illegal fishing. The government has been successful in none of these endeavours.
A great deal of the post-coup period has been spent drafting the new constitution and tackling problems lingering from previous administrations. And national reform – which many members of the public demanded during the political conflict that led to the coup in the first place – is no longer this government’s top priority.
After seizing power, the coup-makers stated in their interim charter – still in use today, although amended in part – that the Cabinet has “the duty to carry out the administration of state affairs, to conduct reformation in all aspects and to strengthen unification and harmonisation of Thai people”. They also set up the National Reform Council (NRC) to “drive political and other reformations systematically”.
The interim charter gave the now-defunct NRC responsibility for studying and providing recommendations for reform in 11 fields, among them politics, administration of state affairs, laws and judicial procedure, local administration, education, the economy, energy, public health and the environment and mass communication.
The government should not let irrelevant issues divert its attention. It should spend the balance of its time in power focused on reform efforts. The coup-makers should not forget that it was public demand for “reform before elections” that brought them to power.
Until now, little has been done to bring about reform. The NRC has been replaced by the National Reform Steering Assembly to carry on the effort, but the government has allowed those efforts to lose steam. It needs to start implementing reform at least in those areas where change is possible now, as has been suggested by its various committees. Time is running out, given repeated promises to hold a general election within the coming year, in keeping with its “roadmap to democracy”.
The government is wrong to be offering reform suggestions for its successor. Elected politicians cannot be expected to implement changes that affect their mandate or the status quo. Now should this government be resting its hopes on the next Senate, members of which will be hand-picked, to ensure that reforms will be pursued.
Certainly the generals don’t want to incite more disdain and dissatisfaction among the people who will be affected by the envisioned changes. There is no doubt a fear of vengeance being sought once they are out of power. Nor do they want the reforms to displease their allies in different sectors.
It is granted that achieving the sweeping reforms needed will take a long time. For now, though, the government should at least be underlining the importance of getting the job done, for the sake of the country’s future. The aim should be to inspire people and influence public opinion, with an eye to keeping the pressure on the next administration to follow through.