Thaksin, thats it.

[BEARHUG]

Former Thai PM Thaksin: "I'm Calling It Quits"



Since he was toppled from power last September, Thaksin Shinawatra has been crisscrossing the globe. TIME's Southeast Asia Bureau Chief Hannah Beech caught up with Thailand's former Prime Minister on Jan. 25 in Tokyo, where they spoke about the military coup against him, the new regime in Bangkok, and what he intends to do with his life.

THAILAND SEEMS TO BE ON THE SLIPPERY SLOPE SINCE HE LEFT.

[buksida]

Is this a news article?

Is there a source?

Is it at all relevant?

[Wanderlust]

The link to this story is http://www.time.com/time/magazine/artic ... 01,00.html but every time I try to open it, it crashes my browser, so if someone would be so kind as to copy/paste it on here so I can read it, I would be obliged!

[PeteC]

Here we go. Pete
_____________________

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Former Thai PM Thaksin: "I'm Calling It Quits"
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Since he was toppled from power last September, Thaksin Shinawatra has been crisscrossing the globe. TIME's Southeast Asia Bureau Chief Hannah Beech caught up with Thailand's former Prime Minister on Jan. 25 in Tokyo, where they spoke about the military coup against him, the new regime in Bangkok, and what he intends to do with his life. Excerpts:

Related
Thailand: Thaksin's Giant Shadow
Thailand's former leader, Thaksin Shinawatra, says that he is done with politics. But the coupmakers who ousted him fear a comeback
TIME: You've asserted that you and your old political party, Thai Rak Thai, were highly popular. Yet there was hardly any public outcry against the coup.
THAKSIN: It was the same with Thailand's 17 other coups. First, the people are shocked. Then they start to voice their concerns. And then they start to accept it, especially after it's endorsed by His Majesty the King. They're very disciplined. They obey. But they are watching what [the new rulers] are doing, and when they will return democracy to the people. People's tolerance is limited.

The new government has been responsible for controversial policies—the capital controls in December, and the proposed changes to the Foreign Business Act that could limit overseas ownership of companies in Thailand. What do you think of such moves?
No one can adopt protectionism anymore. Thailand has to be ready for globalization—you cannot turn your back on it. Anything that reverses what is already very open will cause confusion and uncertainty. This is when investors pull out.

You've met with business leaders in Japan, which is traditionally the biggest foreign investor in Thailand. What did you tell them?
I said this is a hiccup for Thailand, to not lose confidence in the country, that democracy will prevail and that their investments will bear fruit.

The junta has claimed that forces loyal to you were responsible for the New Year's Eve bombings in Bangkok. How do you respond?
I absolutely deny any connection. [Those responsible] must be brought to justice. Pointing a finger at somebody else, without evidence and investigation, is not right.

The junta also accuses you and your government of corruption.
The allegations are baseless. I asked very detailed questions about projects that went to the Cabinet for approval, and I shot down many of them. In all the previous 17 coups, corruption was one of the excuses. But some juntas ended up being more corrupt. At any rate, corruption will not go away in Thailand—it's in the system.

You have criticized the junta for muzzling the media, but you were accused of doing the same during your time in office.
The press printed groundless information about me. The press should not print unless it has all the facts because this can hurt the reputations of others. So I criticized them; sometimes I used strong words.

You did more than just express strong words. You slapped lawsuits on newspapers that printed things you didn't like.
That was the only way I could seek justice. But I never intervened in their activities or closed them down.

How mature is Thailand's democracy?
Without democracy it's not possible for Thailand to prosper, because without democracy, we will not get the trust and confidence [of investors] to develop the country. If you look at the development of civilizations, the first curve of civilization is military, or the prestige game. The second curve is industrialization, or the wealth game. The current curve is the wisdom game—information technology. We have to compete in the wisdom game; we should not be competing in the prestige game. But [the junta] wants to bring the country backward. That is not good. You should take the country forward.

Will you return to politics?
Right after I was ousted by the coup, I had mixed feelings. The negative feeling was that this was unfortunate for Thailand and its democracy, that the confidence I tried very hard to restore after the 1997 financial crisis would be lost. The positive part was, oh, I can retire now, I can have time for myself, for my family, I can meet friends and relax. Life is not that long, so if you can bring some happiness to yourself and your family, that's good ... I'm quite confident that if I ran [for election] today, I would win, [but] I have no political ambitions. I am calling it quits.

[Wanderlust]

Thanks, Pete. Does anyone believe him? (Thaksin that is, not Pete!)

[buksida]

You did more than just express strong words. You slapped lawsuits on newspapers that printed things you didn't like.
That was the only way I could seek justice. But I never intervened in their activities or closed them down.

This one is complete bollocks, I have access to a TRT government document ordering the closure of the Manager Media website, Thailand's largest news publication, in fact they published it themselves on the site just before CAT and the government owned ISP's shut them down temporarily.

Mr T trying to be a martyr

[PeteC]

Like I said a few days ago on another thread, my political thinking here is evolving. Yes, we can pick the bones of what/if/when/why, but I'm starting to believe that for 'us', meaning farangs, we may have been better off before than now?

It may be a matter of our devotion to the traditional Thai way and our sensitivities to the thinking of our Thai families and Thai's close to us. That could be a mistake. We may be simply condoning a continuation of the mindset this country has been in for generations in terms of education, lack of outspokeness, lack of initiative, lack of intestinal fortitude when it comes to confrontation when it is warranted. The world is changing, right or wrong. Does Thailand say "NO" and simply stagnate and become a slave of surrounding countries?

Things here sway back and forth, one group then another group....wave the banners, wave the flag. Everyone thinks they are in the right. However, one guy gets up and growls and everyone goes home, with the exception of a few public figures who continue to push the agenda they think is best for the country.

Farangs here have been living this scenario for four decades. It becomes numbing and somewhat comical, but dead serious perhaps to many Thai's. But....I honestly don't think many of them give a damn either.

I don't think 80% of the population thinks about anything except where the money will come from for next weeks food and bills, and perhaps a once in five year trip to a famous Wat. Of course, this is why daughters are valuable, but that is another thread.

You can honey baste things to your heart's content but it does nothing but make you feel good. The fact is that this place is a mess and has been for a long, long time with no signs of meaningfull change. Believe me. Pete

[sargeant]

WL one word answer NOPE

[BEARHUG]

ANYTHING WE CAN DO, LOTS OF TALK BUT NO ACTION, DO WE HAVE SOME KIND OF CONDUIT WHERE WE ARE HEARD?

Embassy?

[buksida]

ANYTHING WE CAN DO, LOTS OF TALK BUT NO ACTION, DO WE HAVE SOME KIND OF CONDUIT WHERE WE ARE HEARD?

Embassy?

Hate to piss on your bonfire but nobody gives a rats arse about what farangs think in Thailand.

Its their problem, they should be dealing with it.

[sargeant]

Sorry bearhug got to agree 1000% with buksi shall commence pissing now

Bonfire suitably doused i think

[PeteC]

Call me crazy but I believe we actually have a responsibility to project some 'different' thinking when dealing with or talking to our Thai hosts.

Their exposure to us is valuable, they just may not be aware of it. We at a minimum give them a glimpse of how the world works outside of Thailand that they may otherwise never see or understand. Sooner or later they will be dragged kicking and screaming into the 'global village', or go backwards into isolation.

Something worked well in American for the first 200 years, giving them an almost unimaginable ability and speed to advance in every field. How that happened is because they are a country of every race, creed and color on earth. Mix cultures, mix ideas, mix everything and you seem to come up with astounding results. It may be a good lesson for many other countries, this one included. Pete

[The understudy]

[quote="prcscct"]Call me crazy but I believe we actually have a responsibility to project some 'different' thinking when dealing with or talking to our Thai hosts.

Their exposure to us is valuable, they just may not be aware of it. We at a minimum give them a glimpse of how the world works outside of Thailand that they may otherwise never see or understand. Sooner or later they will be dragged kicking and screaming into the 'global village', or go backwards into isolation.

Something worked well in American for the first 200 years, giving them an almost unimaginable ability and speed to advance in every field. How that happened is because they are a country of every race, creed and color on earth. Mix cultures, mix ideas, mix everything and you seem to come up with astounding results. It may be a good lesson for many other countries, this one included. Pete [/quote]
Very well said 2nd Paragraoh Pete!!!
I think the "be dragged kicking and screaming into the 'global village'" is more likely to happen. Thailand cannot afford to rest on economic Growth of mediocre 4 percent. Other Indo China countries are catching up fast i. e. Vietnam. If we don't be cautious They would overtake us some day!

Your's the understudy!

[buksida]

Some splendid points there Pete and I wholeheartedly agree. Lets just hope it doesn't take 200 years for Thailand though ... providing they even want to embrace Globalization.