Published on January 17, 2005
Some are describing the tsunami of December 26 as the worst disaster Thailand ever experienced.
But there was a far more costly tragedy in terms of human life and injury in Thailand that thousands are reminded of every day by numerous memorials.
Between 1942 and 1945 the Japanese invaders of South Asia killed or caused the deaths of at least 100,000 Asian and Indian slave labourers and some 12,000 Allied prisoners of war in the construction of the infamous Burma-Siam railroad, immortalised by the book and movie “Bridge on the River Kwai”. World War II ended 60 years ago, but few people around the world have forgotten it. In fact, millions of people go out of their way to remember it. And, for that matter, millions can still recall the lessons and horrors of World War I. The emergence of an organisation like SPECTRE might have been provoked in recent years but, despite fools like Prince Harry and President George W Bush, there will be no re-emergence of the Axis powers. Any talk of giving the former Axis powers – Germany and Japan – permanent status on the United Nations Security Council or giving a representative of the former Axis countries or a collaborator of the Axis the post of UN secretary-general is to be abhorred and discouraged. Jameson Rosemont Bangkok -------------------- Gen Nopadol should have been on the scene sooner I have been reading with some surprise the articles regarding the identification of the bodies at Yan Yao. It appears to me that Police General Nopadol Somboonsub is demanding that the police should be handling the identification of those who perished in the tsunami on December 26. He also stated that Khunying Dr Pornthip Rojanasunand, should not have been dealing with this. If you accept what the general says, and it appears he does have a case, then arriving some 20 days after the disaster, is he accepting that he and the police have been negligent in their duties by arriving so late? If this is indeed the case, then he and the relevant police officers should be dismissed for negligence. I do not think the government should allow them to resign as this is negligence in the face of a major disaster, not something they did not know about until now. D Hill England -------------------- Pornthip’s detractors seem to be jealous As a foreigner who loves this country I am writing to express my concern and outrage over the ordeal that forensic expert Pornthip Rojanasunand is currently being forced to endure at the hands of individuals within the Royal Thai Police Force. To allow a woman who has shown nothing but the greatest professionalism, dedication and selfless compassion under the most horrific and arduous of personal and professional circumstances to be subjected to such an unwarranted assault upon her credibility is nothing short of a national disgrace. In the conduct of her vocation, Khunying Pornthip has brought nothing but credit to the image of Thailand in the eyes of the world. Contrast this if you will with the bunch of self-serving, self-promoting, vindictive “public servants” with whom she now has to contend along with everything else. These people seem to want to exact revenge for having been shown to be morally, ethically and professionally corrupt in the face of Khunying Pornthip’s honesty and moral courage. Her dedication to duty and her country has been deservedly recognised at the highest levels in this great country. Why would Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and the government possibly consider handing over jurisdiction of the largest international forensic effort that the world has ever seen to such a bunch? To seek to take advantage of this national tragedy to further their own agendas is a disgrace, embarrassment and an insult to Thailand. I can only hope that those in authority and ordinary people alike will stand up and support Khunying Pornthip after all that she has done and continues to do for the merit of this country and its people. A concerned farang Bangkok -------------------- Don’t obscure Patong views with dunes and towers It was with interest that I perused the story by Kamol Sukin regarding the master plan for the esplanade area of Patong Beach [“Rebuilding Phuket: Patong’s new face unveiled”, News, January 13]. I must say that it is a brave architect/architectural company that can hastily put together a master plan and rezoning of the very unique Patong Beach in such a short time. All credit to both Steven Townsend and SPA Architecture for attempting it, knowing full well it may well be ridiculed for lack of detail and solutions. I have not seen the plan and can only make comment on your story and comments from the Phuket governor and mayor. In the first instance let me say that Phuket, and Patong in particular is unique, as it was! That it was (and still is) one of the favourite international holiday destinations for many nationalities is testament to that. To this end one would think it advisable not to “tinker” too much with the concept that has made it a success. Too often we try to emulate famous boulevards and esplanade precincts that work for their own geographic position. However, Patong as it is – that is part of the attraction of the area. It is rather a matter of “massaging” what worked in the first place. The street and beach vendors and bars, along with the inadequate sidewalks, outstanding beach views, amazing aromas and the general culture should not be lost. So, in the interest of addressing some of the issues that have been raised: l We have to agree that putting all the services underground would be an aesthetically pleasing step in the right direction. l Sand dunes! While providing protection from the “once-in-a-100-years tsunami” and erosion, dunes would need a good deal of native vegetation to bind them together to avoid being washed away in a monsoon, which in turn would require fencing while it grew. This is in my view a poor option. Part of the charm of the place is the unobstructed beach views. A massive re-vegetation and sand-hill restoration was carried out on the Gold Coast in Australia, and while this proved affective at protecting the beaches from erosion in cyclone conditions, it is hardly visually attractive and detracts from a visit to the beach. l The one-way traffic system is another suggestion I take issue with. This has proved ineffective and detrimental to many foreshores in the past. One would have to say though that the opportunity is there for taxi “pull off” bays to be installed to assist in traffic flow and lessen the double-parking nightmare. l What is this nonsense about towers where people can view big waves before deciding to run if it’s too big? I am not a seismologist, but are we seriously suggesting that there will be a tsunami of this magnitude and that it will be so close that the only warning will come from visual sightings? If all goes to plan there will be an early-warning system that will be far more dependable, far more realistic and far more aesthetically pleasing. If one insists on having a tower as some sort of warning system, then how about one with appropriately trained staff that could double as life savers? l Am I to believe that the design incorporates “single level buildings on the esplanade to create an aesthetically more pleasing vista”? My own opinion is that this would create an eyesore, marring those ocean views. l As for being a tsunami-free town, it seems a great and noble idea, but if a tsunami were generated so close that we needed towers on the beach and was of the magnitude of 9.0 on the Richter scale, then what is tsunami-proof? Dunes and trees would not have helped a great deal near the epicentre around Aceh. I truly hope that in its admirable haste to placate the fine citizens of Phuket and the international tourists that visit it that the authorities do not “kill the goose that lays the golden egg”. Again, I would also like to commend SPA for its immediate response to the request of the TAT. This is in no way intended as a criticism of their fine efforts. In closing, my sincere sympathy for all those adversely affected by the tragic events that unfolded on December 26, a day that will be remembered for one of, if not the worst, natural disasters in recorded history. We can only hope that it will in time also be remembered as a testament to all, as a triumph of human spirit over adversity. Barry G Cummings Australia -------------------- The EC is just the top of the polling pyramid Your editorial of January 14 [“The EC has to pluck up some courage”] rightly reminded the national Election Commission of its task to ensure free and fair elections. However, observers should not overlook that the EC is but the highest and most visible level in a multi-layered structure used for organising the election. Below the national level, we find the provincial election commissions, the constituency commissions, the polling station committees and the vote-counting committees. It is at these levels that manipulation in favour of influential political families and their candidates is most widespread. An analysis of who sits on the constituency and vote-counting committees would probably reveal that many candidates have managed to staff them with people from or close to their political groups in order to ensure decisions and behaviour favouring them. It is one thing for the EC to perform a policing function by catching and disqualifying individual candidates who “cheated” in their election campaigns. It is a much more difficult thing to try to counter this “structural cheating”, because the EC and its provincial branches themselves play an active role in it. After all, they appoint people to these committees. If they are not willing to recruit neutral committee members, who else then is supposed to ensure fairness? MN Bangkok
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