xtcian

Lyle,

Here's the latest from CNN.com:

http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/asiapcf/09/20/thailand.coup/index.html

And it looks like your alma mater's #1 soccer team just beat West Virginia:

http://virginiasports.cstv.com/sports/m-soccer/recaps/091906aab.html

And Willie Nelson got busted for possession of pot. Talk about being on the road again:

http://www.cnn.com/2006/SHOWBIZ/Music/09/18/willie.busted.ap/index.html

Ian, thank you for spotlighting the Thai coup and for doing such exhaustive research. As these things go, it's so mild contrasted against what's happening in, say, Budapest right now or East Timor a couple months ago. It's certainly been bloodless so far and my contacts believe that as long as Thaksin lays low elsewhere, it'll stay bloodless. But if Thaksin returns, his loyal constituency up in Chiang Mai (Thaksin's Tikkrit, as it were) and the salt-of-the-earth folks throughout all the countryside might rise up to support him and then clash with the military. The villagers love Thaksin because he's done things like give 500baht ($12.50) to every person who registered to vote, and drive the 30-baht hospital visit scheme (which has bankrupted the public healthcare system -- but it sure sounded grand at the time).

Normal TV coverage has resumed, although Typepad sites and countless others are still verboten via the government-owned ISP. Soldiers are posted everywhere. I was startled to see two sets of soldiers at a small intersection near our new apartment, which is like posting National Guardsmen to Nyack if the Guard have taken over the City. Like, this is residential and couldn't be farther from Government House -- what do they think we might get up to out here?

We had a surprisingly ordinary day. Schools were closed, but as an email titled "Swimming during coup" announced, Alec's swim class took place anyway; what's a little coup to stop a swim class for? My Thai friends, pro- and anti-Thaksin, are fairly nonchalant about it, they are so used to this scene. And the King keeps the country together. Everyone would feel afraid, I think, if it weren't for him and the reports that he may have given his blessing to Gen. Sonthi's plan.

If you want to understand how the Thai monarch earned such passionate devotion from his subjects, please check out "The Revolutionary King" on Amazon or similar. We're talking, every Thai person I know would die for this man, that's how strong his unwitting cult of personality has come to be. The Thai government banned the book when it came out and we had the impression that it must be critical of the King. But Pedro bought it in Singapore, and guess what? It's banned because it describes in great detail the endemic corruption of the Thai military, political, and business worlds.

I'll stop babbling about the coup, as it's turning out to be -- phew! -- a "velvet" sort of one.

Beth and LFMD, thanks so much and don't worry about us. If Ian's friend Jiffer could make it through Afghanistan, then this'll be a piece of cake.

GFWD, 1. Thank you 2. Wahoowa! 3. As Bob Marley sang, "Legaliiiize it!" Oh, and...free Willie!

Ian, thanks again for devoting a post to this situation. I'm nonplussed by your effort and generosity. May I suggest everyone go out and find some pad thai or green curry or similar to devour in honor of recent events? If you order some Singha beer ("bia Sing" in Thai) to go with it, you can toast by saying, "Chai-yoh!" ("Victory!")

Hi Lyle,

If you haven't heard, the King has now endorsed the coup.

From CNN:

"BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) -- The army commander who seized Thailand's government Wednesday in a quick, bloodless coup pledged to hold elections by October 2007, and received a ringing endorsement from the country's revered king.

"In order to create peace in the country, the king appoints Gen. Sonthi Boonyaratglin as head of the council of administrative reform," according to the announcement on state-run television.

"All people should remain peaceful and civil servants should listen to orders from Gen. Sonthi Boonyaratglin from now on."

Sonthi led a precision takeover overnight without firing a shot, sending soldiers and tanks to guard major intersections and surround government buildings while the popularly elected Thaksin Shinawatra, accused of corruption and undermining democratic institutions, was abroad.

Asked if there would be moves to confiscate Thaksin's vast assets, Sonthi said at a news conference that "those who have committed wrongdoings have to be prosecuted according to the law."

Sonthi did not elaborate. But an announcement later on state-run television said the newly formed Council of Administrative Reform had sacked the state audit commissioners and given additional powers to Auditor General Jaruvan Maintaka to investigative government corruption, which could lead to the confiscation of Thaksin's assets.

A British government spokesman said Thaksin was en route to Britain, where he has a residence in London, but had no meetings scheduled with Prime Minister Tony Blair or other officials.

Sonthi said he would act as prime minister for two weeks until a new leader is found, that an interim constitution would be drafted within that time, and that Thailand's foreign policy and international agreements will not change.

Thailand will hold a general election in October 2007, he said.

Sonthi said the coup, Thailand's first in 15 years, was necessary to heal mounting rifts in Thai society, and to end government corruption, insults to the revered King Bhumibol Adulyadej, and what the general called Thaksin's attempts to destroy democratic institutions.

Bangkok mostly quiet; coup gets support
Most residents and tourists in Bangkok, a city of more than 10 million, were calm and unfazed Wednesday.

About 500 people gathered outside army headquarters Wednesday afternoon lending moral support to the military and chanting "Thaksin Get Out!"

But in the first sign of anti-coup sentiment, Thaksin supporters faced off with rival groups celebrating the coup at two separate gatherings in Bangkok. Soldiers intervened, narrowly averting clashes.

The newly created Council of Administrative Reform put Thailand under martial law and declared a provisional authority loyal to the king, seizing television and radio stations and ordering government offices, banks, schools and the stock market to close for the day.

Nearly 20 tanks -- their gun barrels festooned with ribbons in the monarch's color, yellow -- had blocked off the Royal Palace, Royal Plaza, army headquarters and Thaksin's office at Government House.

Tanks began shifting from their downtown Bangkok positions Wednesday evening, but it was unclear if they were withdrawing.

The overthrow was needed "to resolve the conflict and bring back normalcy and harmony among people," Sonthi said on nationwide TV.

"We would like to reaffirm that we don't have any intention to rule the country and will return power to the Thai people as soon as possible," he said, flanked by the three armed forces chiefs and the national police chief.

A statement from coup leaders urged workers and farmers -- Thaksin's key constituents -- to remain calm, and said unauthorized gatherings of more than five people were punishable by six months in prison under martial law.

Report: Government officials arrested
The Nation newspaper in Bangkok said several senior government officials and others close to Thaksin had been arrested, their fates unknown.

It said they included Deputy Prime Minister Chitchai Wannasathit and Supreme Military Commander Gen. Ruengroj Maharsaranond.

Agriculture Minister Sudarat Keyuraphan, one of Thaksin's closest political associates, fled to Paris with her family, it said.

Reacting to rumors that he would be appointed interim prime minister, central bank head Pridiyathorn Devakula said, "I haven't been approached, and I don't know whether I am a candidate."

He said that the public has accepted the coup, so it was unlikely to have much impact on foreign confidence in the country, and that the Thai baht currency had recovered from its overnight low with no intervention.

In New York, a Thai business executive who said he was speaking on behalf of Thaksin said the toppled leader was not resigned to his fate.

"The prime minister has not given up his power," said Tom Kruesopon, chief executive officer of Boon Rawd Trading International Co., who said he was traveling with Thaksin.

But Thaksin's official government spokesman, Surapong Suebwonglee, also traveling with him, was gloomier. "We have to accept what happened," he said. "We are not coming back soon."

Some Thais welcomed the coup as a necessary climax to months of demands for Thaksin's resignation amid allegations of corruption and electoral skullduggery, and a worsening Muslim insurgency in south Thailand.

Nations call for restoration of democracy
The U.S. State Department said it was uneasy about the takeover and hopes "the Thai people will resolve their political differences in accord with democratic principles and the rule of law."

Australia said it was concerned to see democracy "destroyed," and New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark said her country "condemns" the coup.

Japan called for efforts to quickly restore democracy in Thailand, where many leading Japanese businesses have factories and affiliates.

Sonthi, 59, known to be close to Thailand's constitutional monarch, is a Muslim in a Buddhist-dominated nation.

He was selected last year to head the army, partly because it was felt he could better deal with the Muslim insurgency in the south, where 1,700 people have been killed since 2004. He has urged negotiations with the separatists, in contrast to Thaksin's hard-line approach.

Thaksin, a telecommunications tycoon before entering politics, handily won three general elections after coming to power in 2001 and garnered great support among the rural poor for his populist policies.

But he alienated the urban middle class, intellectuals and pro-democracy activists. They began mass street demonstrations late last year, charging him with abuse of power, corruption and emasculation of the country's democratic institutions, including media that were once among Asia's freest."

Oh, dear. Recipe for XTCIan Comments Section Buzzkill: Devote an entire post to a Southeast Asian military coup that, in the end, spilled not a drop of blood nor damaged the economy. Even the news blackout was brief in the end. Government-owned T.O.T. still blocks Typepad, but the Ministry of Communications & Technology apparently has lifted all other blocks -- although incredibly high traffic makes for excrutiatingly slow reading at CNN.com, the Nation's website, etc.

The coolest thing thing about this coup, after zero bloodshed, is all the good will balancing out the images of armed soldiers patrolling downtown streets. Most Bangkokians couldn't stand Thaksin and his administration packed with selfish cronies; this city was rocked by 50,000-people-strong protests against them earlier this year. So most people here are relieved that he's out and that the King endorses Gen Sonthi, who seems -- so far -- level-headed and not power-hungry.

Many friends and relatives elsewhere have asked me if Gen. Sonthi being Muslim has anything to do with the coup, or if it's any cause to be alarmed about, something to link with the international terror newtwork, etc. Despite FoxNews' continuing insinuations otherwise (one anchor even said, "So far it's not exactly an Islamic revolution, but the man in charge DOES happen to be a Muslim"), Gen. Sonthi's faith is as relevant as his shoe size.

FoxNews seems to be playing up the "Muslim insurgency in southern Thailand" angle, to keep people scared. About 300 years ago, that ethnic Malay, Muslim area was annexed by Buddhist Siam. They were allowed near autonomy aside from paying taxes and sending slaves up north, and then around 100 years ago a separatist movement formed. Unfortunately they've turned to violence to make their point. So the situation is a mess but it's an old mess, not something cooked up by Osama bin Laden & Co. However, if they did get involved, it would be very, very bad.

I just thank my lucky stars to witness a Thai coup as opposed to live in Iraq, Darfur, North Korea, Sri Lanka...Why can't we human beings all just get along?

Ian, some Lucy pix and anecdotes -- or a juicy meme code word -- might serve as the perfect antidote to today's quiet comments section...

Lyle - no worries about the lack of comments. If people can't get riled up about an actual coup in sovereign nation, then I certainly can't wake them up!

Keep posting things as they happen - for my part, I'm very interested and did a lot of research on the Thai govt over the last 20 years. Crazy things, eh?

I did get riled up!

It seemed to me from what I read to be a really good Revolution. But not being very familiar with Thailand’s political history, and with the situation in flux, I hesitated to comment.

My first reaction was that a constitutional monarchy/parliamentary democracy is a hell of lot better than a country run by a billionaire.

Also, what the fuck about all this morally cleaning up the manufactured “dirty” image of Thailand in the last few years. Sounded like the government was becoming more fascist to me.

My next reaction was that Lyle is lucky to live in a country where she can have an effective bloodless revolution.

But my biggest revelation was that it all was synchronistic to Bush being taking down for his position on torture. All last week his military people and McCain and former Secretary of State butchered him on his pathologically proposed policy to change Article 3 of the Geneva Convention, which would effectively make torture US policy and protect the Bushites from future war crime trials.

Bush is an idiot who should be impeached, if not worse, and if this country can’t get back at least one of the branches of Congress – a bloodless semi-coup, so to speak – in November, this place is screwed. The People Need Subpoena Power! Make that a bumper sticker.

I wrote out a much more eloquent statement last night, and didn’t post it, because I didn’t want to bring Bush into a parallel with the billionaire what’s his name when I thought Lyle might me in danger, and I didn’t want to get “off topic.”

But to hell with it. I’m pissed.

Why can other countries clean up their political messes in relative style, and we’re stuck with a bunch of asshole dumb shit lying motherfuckers who are needlessly killing people all over the world in the name of the United States without a qualm and with ruthless abandon?

Way to go, KTS!

I'm pissed off, too, and the 'stuck with Bush for democracy's sake' irony hasn't been lost on me. It's especially ironic that he didn't first take power in a truly democratic way -- he lost the popular vote, then the Supreme Court determined him the winner of the Florida re-count joke. But for the long-term sanctity of democracy, we have to put up with him until his second term ends. It's big of us, no? Dissenting U.S. generals have more reason to pull a coup against Bush than the Thai ones did to oust Thaksin. But we're keeping our eyes on the prize, and sometimes the idea is bigger than the man. In this case, bigger than the man in question's ability to comprehend, despite his constant platitudes about liberty, freedom, democracy, security, war on terror, blah, blah, blah...Americans are stuck with Bush for the sake of democracy, but his mission to spread it at all costs means millions of non-Americans are paying the price.

Whoa, talk about getting off-topic -- and I've got armed soldiers patrolling my neighbourhood!

School re-opens tomorrow. Traffic returned to normal (i.e. beyond stultifying) today. The King officially revealed his approval of the coup. Gen Sonthi seems sincere in his promises to return to a civilian government within two weeks. A really good sign is that the interim authority has given Khunying Jaruvan, the auditor general, a blank check to investigate corruption charges against Thaksin's regime. (To contrast, under Thaksin, Khunying Jaruvan had to endure frequent attempts to undermine her investigations and even a period of physically barring her from her office.)

KTS was correct about Thailand becoming...erm, even more interesting in recent years. Examples include, but are not limited to: Thousands of families lost loved ones to extrajudicial executions during Thaksin's anti-drug-dealer crusade. Nightlife venues lost millions of dollars in revenue thanks to bizarre, often contradictory, unpredictably shifting rules about entertainment zones and closing times. They banned all stores from selling alcohol to everyone between 2 and 5pm, regardless of i.d. card, in a strange attempt to protect students from buying hooch before parents came home from work -- ?! TV is so censored that they digitally block out not only cigarettes in people's hands, but also babies nursing (even when the mum's shirt and the baby's head cover everything) and even the placenta held up by a doctor during a National Geographic documentary. We had our new airport 'open' last year with a single, staged flight so that Thaksin could 'save face' because that's when he'd promised to open it; then we mere mortals continued using the old airport. (It's slated to open for real next week, one full year later; reminds me of the 'Mission accomplished!' banner in 2003, a more egregious example of premature chest-thumping.)

There's a lot more. But the big kahuna was Thaksin's sale of his telecommunications empire to a Singapore-owned firm, for which he paid zero tax. Thanks to a loophole he'd made sure that his Parliament cronies would pass last year, Thaksin managed to keep the US$1.2billion in taxes that should have gone to the Thai equivalent of the IRS. This scandal was the straw that broke the camel's back: When many people in the Kingdom live on a daily ration of a handful of rice and some anemic vegetables, withholding that much coin seemed a tad greedy.

I'm not saying that all this justifies a coup. It's just some background to KTS' observation about social changes under Thaksin. He did a lot of good, as well. And -- key point -- corruption and greed run rampant in Thai politics. Starting fresh after Thaksin doesn't guarantee Thai citizens a more virtuous government.

T.O.T. customers still can't access Typepad so I can't speak for those. But you'll find some interesting observations about the coup at:
bangkokmom.blogspot.com (a Thai mum)
saneroad.blogspot.com (Canadian in Phuket)
isobella.blogspot.com (young Canadian teacher in Bangkok)newley.com (American guy in Bangkok)
stickmanbangkok.com (Kiwi [?] teacher in Bangkok)

Many thanks again, Ian!

Irrelevant but interesting (to me, in Kentucky) sidebar to this story that was covered locally here today: Thaksin attended graduate school at Eastern Kentucky University. Got his masters in the tiny town of Richmond, KY. Weird. Who knew?

That's VERY interesting, Jon! Thanks for sharing that tidbit of info. I don't count the Square-Faced Man out yet (as he's affectionatley known to his fans, and derisively among his critics; there's even a pop song about his nickname!).

I just attended a small but intense coup protest down by Siam Discovery Centre. About 20 very brave Thais held up signs with messages like "It's not reform; it's a COUP!" and "NO to Thakson, but NO to coup!" They are brave because now that you-know-who (the most beloved person in the Kingdom, I've got to be cryptic or else risk being charged with lese-majeste) has officially given approval to the coup, anyone who protests the coup is seen not as standing up for the democratic process, but rather as opposing you-know-who.

I sound like Ron Weasley alluding to Voldemort! He Who Cannot Be Named and all that. But you've gotta be careful here, especially now. I still haven't any Typepad access but am visiting a lovely local watering hole that has a non-government ISP for their free wi-fi. So I've got a pint o' Kilkenny at my side while I type, what a pleasant experience!