Published on November 21, 2005

Generals’ attempts to silence Sondhi threaten to undo efforts made to improve armed forces’ reputation. Supreme Commander General Ruengroj Mahasaranond is presenting himself as the wrong man at the wrong place at the wrong time.

By issuing a threat against government critic Sondhi Limthongkul, the new leader of the armed forces has drawn attention not to the outspoken tycoon, who is under a major political spotlight anyway, but to himself and an institution whose old bad reputation is being revived thanks to a few unwise and uncalled-for words. If Sondhi is being perceived as controversial, Ruengroj, by threatening a man who has done nothing but criticise the prime minister in his public speeches, can be considered dangerous by democracy advocates.

The military leader’s attitude is threatening to undo the hard work of the military establishment, which, since the 1992 pro-democracy uprising and until the rise to power of Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, has kept itself well away from politics. The likes of Wimol Wongwanich and Surayud Chulanont helped rebuild a new image for the Thai armed forces by staying beside right principles of democracy. Ruengroj on the other hand has violated one of democracy’s biggest values – freedom of speech – in a worrisome manner.

At a time when democracy is seen as under threat by a government which has shown little respect for social liberty and political diversity, and the Thaksin-Sondhi showdown is creating high tension, Ruengroj was ill-advised to step in. He should have known that even well-meaning remarks, if poorly timed, can lead to dire consequences. When top military leaders make calculated comments that can be perceived as intended to sway politics, they end up projecting the military intimidation against democracy instead of acting as a balancing force to ensure social stability and national security.

Even before Ruengroj’s outburst, the military had shown bad signs that old symptoms were returning. Maj-General Prin Suwannathat, commander of the 1st Infantry Division of the Royal Guard, had approached Sondhi with a thinly-veiled warning: stop attacking Thaksin because elements in the military are not happy about it. Prin ended up being pilloried by democracy lovers, but failing to heed Prin’s lesson, Supreme Commander Gen Ruengroj added to the political heat by trying to sway the sentiment in the government’s favour.

Both Prin and Ruengroj have stepped into the limelight seemingly in order to safeguard the monarchy. But they appear to have further confused the public rather than resolve anything.

In his open letter, Prin said Sondhi inappropriately cited the name of His Majesty the King, a most beloved and respected figure of the Thai people, when he was directing his attacks against his rival Thaksin. Prin called for an end to involving the monarch in the Sondhi-Thaksin bickering, but Ruengroj went a few steps further by saying that the military’s tolerance was reaching its breaking point if Sondhi continued to comment on the Royal Powers as a pretext for verbal assaults against the prime minister.

Even if Prin and Ruengroj mean well in reminding political rivals that the monarchy is above and beyond politics, it’s not their duty to intervene.

Although the message for upholding the monarchy is absolutely correct, the two messengers, Prin and Ruengroj, lack the credibility to preach this.

The two senior military officers seem to side with Thaksin and oppose Sondhi, thus undermine their own integrity as non-partisan messengers. That Ruengroj is close to Chaisit Shinawatra, former supreme commander and Thaksin’s cousin, did not help. Raising more public suspicion are the facts that Prin is a pre-cadet classmate of Thaksin and Ruengroj rose to his position at the blessing of his predecessor, Gen Chaisit.

With regard to Sondhi’s comments on the monarchy, Thaksin has already filed a number of libel suits and the courts will resolve the matter under the rule of law. The military intervention at this juncture is unnecessary and highly inappropriate. If Sondhi has erred, the law will rein him in. Should Thaksin invoke the law to cover up his flaws, the court of law and that of the public opinion will soon pass judgement. Prin and Ruengroj would best serve the country’s interests by keeping themselves in the barracks, or they will put the military’s rebuilt reputation over the past decade under great threat.

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