Army denies YouTube video on life of soldiers on borders was not PR campaign
The Royal Thai Army has dismissed allegations that a popular YouTube channel was used in a so-called information operation (IO).
The YouTube channel, Pigkaploy, posted its latest video on Tuesday (January 16) about the everyday life of Thai soldiers stationed in Chiang Mai province, at the northern border with a troubled area in Myanmar.
Titled “For What We Have Soldiers: Episode 1”, the video is about the channel’s main host, young actress and YouTuber Ploypailin “Ploy” Thangprabhaporn, spending three days and two nights at a remote military post along the Thai-Myanmar border in Chiang Mai’s Wiang Haeng district.
Allegations were made on social media that the video was made in line with instructions from the Army. However, Ploypailin explained that the video was produced simply because she wanted to know about the missions of Thai soldiers stationed in border areas.
The YouTube channel said two more videos in the series were coming soon – one about the life of soldiers on the eastern border and the other on the southern border.
However, the controversial video has been removed from the Pigkaploy channel, which has 1.23 million subscribers, although copies of the video are available on other YouTube channels, including TV5HD Online and Thai Press.
It remained unclear on Friday whether the two remaining episodes would be posted on the YouTube channel as earlier planned.
Most of the channel’s previous videos involve Ploypailin’s travels in Thailand and overseas.
An Army source said on Friday that after being contacted by the YouTube channel, the Army instructed its relevant border units to accommodate Ploypailin and her team during their stays there.
“The Army has no special preferences for anyone in particular. Previously, many news agencies contacted the Army for content on military missions in border areas. This YouTuber was not the first one to do so,” the source said.
A source from the Pha Muang Force, which has jurisdiction over Chiang Mai’s border area covered in the YouTube video, said on Friday that the unit had received an order from the higher command to accommodate the production team.
The source dismissed allegations that the YouTube video was part of a publicity campaign by the Army.
“Soldiers at the border have their duty to do every day. This YouTube production team was not the first group to observe the work of soldiers at a border area,” said the source.
He added that journalists from other media outlets had reported on military missions at Thailand’s border areas, adding that Pigkaploy’s YouTube video certainly was not part of the Army’s “IO operation” as alleged.
In recent years, critics and opposition politicians have questioned the country’s military spending. This came amidst growing calls for cancellation of compulsory military conscription.
Many critics came up with the question: “For what do we have soldiers?”, while others claimed the military was no longer necessary for Thailand as countries around the world now focused on “trade wars” rather than physical combat.
