Chang Noi's excellent two-part article on the sufficiency economy had an interesting juxtaposition. In the same issues you reported on two official surveys of levels of happiness among Thais, both of which conclude, perhaps surprisingly, that it is the people of the Northeast who are the happiest. Despite being among the poorest, earning less than a third of the national average, they value caring family ties, financial stability and freedom from debt - which are more important than the unthinking pursuit of wealth.

 Self-sufficiency and happiness should certainly go hand in hand and it is a primary role of government to create a favourable environment for the huge numbers of Thais who live on the land. Thaksin's policies of stimulating the economy through credit and domestic demand and by massive spending on mega-projects did nothing for the rice farmer. It only encouraged unrealistic expectations and the migration of young wage earners to the bars and sweatshops of the cities. In contrast to this, ensuring the integrity and steady progress of rural society is all about preserving Thailand itself.

 It will not be easy for the new government to apply the sufficiency economy in decision-making, though as sufficiency stresses honesty and integrity, these can only be fully assured through legality and the Rule of Law. The arbitrary abuse of power and unrestrained corruption are the very antithesis of sufficiency principles.

 If the interim government is to persuade the people that it seized power in order to restore legitimacy, then it is essential it now makes accountable those whose illegality was the reason for their seizure of power. If the people are not to lose patience with a non-elected government, they must be assured there is a strong commitment to this process and progress is already being made. Nothing less will do, if they are to accept the somewhat sober promises of the new sufficiency economy.

Andrew Hicks

Surin

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Restrict the committee roles of senior civil servants

Re: "Pridiyathorn fires salvo over boards", News, October 31.

Jaruvan has raised a very valid case against officials sitting on a number of committees. Her role is to point out such anomalies in our system which might have a corruptive influence in decision-making. That these officials monopolise committee membership for additional money is another issue. All said, civil servants have to take these comments from Jaruvan with an open mind.

The public must know what ails our system and all must cooperate to improve our systems so that yet another Toxin may not emerge to buy out officials. Jaruvan has a very valid point. We all applaud her courage and we want all those civil servants sitting on more than three committees to accept the suggestions of Jaruvan voluntarily. Let not the interim officials become thick-skinned and arrogant so soon and so fast. Old habits die hard.

Just an Onlooker

Bangkok

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Temasek continues to seek the easy way out of the mess

Re: "Court to rule on Shin deal, PM tells Lee", News, October 31.

The attempt of PM Lee of Singapore, asking our PM to amicably resolve the problems on the Temasek buy-out of Shin Corporation, has the implication of shifting in part the blame for Temasek's mistake to our Thai government. Our PM did not take the bait and came out quickly to deny involvement. Thank you, PM Surayud!

When will Temasek ever learn? Privately, the buyer and seller consummated a deal that turned out to be dubious on both sides, with no previous involvement of any government departments. Remember, it was the then PM's family who sold the shares and not the PM himself. Then why should a head of state seek to resolve the problem amicably with our interim PM? Is Temasek using state influence to mend their mistakes? That seems to be their consistent attitude in resolving problems through devious means, relying on big names rather than righteousness.

If I were them, I would simply admit the "misunderstanding" and blame their advisers. Temasek has no choice and ultimately has to reduce its holding in Shin from 96 per cent to 49 per cent. The sooner it does that, the quicker its problem will evaporate. One leading banker has already given his free advice on how to dispose of that 47 per cent. No entity would touch the deal except through public offerings. Monetary loss is inevitable but the gains of sympathy and of a future partnership with Thailand would far outweigh the clumsiness of Temasek in its current direction.

Spade

Bangkok

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Give visa overstayers a last chance to clean their slates

Re: "How about an amnesty for visa overstayers?", Letters, October 31.

I wholeheartedly agree with D Amaan that the untold numbers of foreigners who have overstayed their visas should be given some form of amnesty. He is correct when he points out that most of these people are not hardened criminals but just common criminals. As guests in Thailand they have let their lifestyle and circumstances cause them to break the laws of the land. They work without qualifications or permits and remain in the country without even a tourist visa. What other county lets foreigners flaunt the law like Thailand.

Most of these people should not have to go to jail. Perhaps a 60-day amnesty should be established where all would be forgiven if the violator presents a one-way ticket out of Thailand with the understanding that no criminal charges would be filed by the Thai government. The violator would be blacklisted, leave the country and agree not to return for let's say four or five years. If the violator returns he would be subject to prosecution for past deeds, permanently blacklisted and deported.

If the violator for some reason cannot get the family out, there would be some hardships, but laws have been violated and there is usually sanction for such behaviour. I think we can all agree that something should be done. Let's give a break to these people and let them clean their slates.

David Barkdull

Bangkok

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Iraq cannot be abandoned to sort out its own mire

I admit, I was one of those people, years ago, who believed Iraq should be invaded by the "coalition forces". The fact that WMDs were in Iraq in the years leading up to the more recent invasion is undisputed. However, it's become evident that there were none to be found during the more recent military operation. To me that's of secondary importance - compared to removing Saddam and his henchmen from their reign of terror over the Iraqi people. Much could be said, and has been said about what's right or wrong about the current imbroglio. However, how much thought has been given to what might happen should American and British forces pull out?

Already, civil war has been smouldering there, and I think most observers agree that it will flame out full force as soon as foreign military forces leave. It could very well be a three-way civil war, with one or two neighbouring countries jumping in the fray. After all, it wasn't long ago that the Iranians had a full-fledged war against the Iraqis.

This time, however, there's not Saddam and his Baathists to fight, but instead their fellow Shi'ites to support - and quite possibly some territory to be gained. The Kurds also have an axe to grind, and have made no secret of their desire to form a separate state in the north. The Turks won't be too happy about that, as they might feel compelled to get involved if things get messy.

Currently, Iraq is a magnet for Middle Eastern young men who crave a venue for their anti-Western zeal. Will the same type of zealot continue to flock to Iraq when there's a three-way civil war among Muslims? Time will tell. The biggest losers in such a conflict will likely be the Sunnis, who could be left with land-locked territory with no oil wells. Either way, the manifold conflicts won't be quickly resolved because people in those regions hold grudges for centuries (many still get fired up about the Crusades of over 1,000 years ago).

Actually, the biggest loser overall will be the environment, though there's not much left to lose. That region, the "birth of civilisation", became desert several thousand years ago. If the hot-headed young men there really wanted to do good for their people and their region, they would find out about, and implement ways to nurture back a semblance of the flora and fauna that once graced that region.

Ken Albertsen

Chiang Rai

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American letter-writer performs a valuable service

Dear Mr Cymbalsky, please keep writing to the letters page. I'd hate to think all the published diatribes against the United States were unjustified. Besides, you're performing a valuable service for Muslim people by ensuring the whole non-Muslim world is not united against them. Keep up the good work.

Sibeymai

Bangkok

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Electorate should get behind the president they voted for

To answer the three most recent letters to the editor (on October 26, 28 and 31) complimenting my idea and condemning President Bush, Cheney and Rumsfeld.

We voted President Bush in office. Mistakes, accolades etc go with the job. We as a nation voted him in. Are your and my opinions of consequence? Have another beer and shut up. I tire of people who think they are wiser and better informed than the President of the USA. We voted President Bush and, by extension, his team into office. I say "go, go, go" to our leadership.

Islam is a major worldwide, economic, military, social and freedom threat. Rock and roll, President Bush.

Al Eberhardt

Bangkok