Dreams and censorship in an amazing, surreal land

A foreign friend found it incomprehensible when she chanced upon a news photo of anti-Thaksin People's Alliance for Democracy co-leader Chamlong Srimuang holding a ceremony to hand-over Suvarnabhumi Airport to a representative of the Airports of Thailand (AoT) management after a week-long occupation.

Instead of being arrested for acting illegally and wreaking havoc on the economy by shutting down two airports in Bangkok, Chamlong was instead all smiles in the picture, as if he and his followers had help clean up the new airport after their protest.

Equally surreal is the fact the PAD didn't even bother to issue an apology to people affected by their act. Instead, they warned that if provoked they would do it again.

Why did the police and military failed to stop the mob from taking over the airports in the first place? That's what people want to know.

The Thai mainstream media didn't even try to investigate the matter. That task was taken up by foreign correspondents like BBC's Jonathan Head. Those who were digging discovered that some powerful figures wanted the security officers to simply watch the PAD invade the airport like a tsunami.

And a Tsunami it was to the Thai economy, with experts at the National Economic and Social Development Board (NESDB) saying over the weekend that the eight-day closure set the national economic growth back by more than 1 per cent.

So with Thailand in dire straits, any sane person would expect the local media to analyse, re-analyse and comment about the state of politics in all its complexity. That didn't happen, partly due to lese majeste laws and the culture of self-censorship om regard to the monarchy. So people like political scientist Ji Ungpakorn, who wrote an article about the crisis, had to get it published in Korea Times last week. The Economist magazine also wrote a strong article, which put the monarchy in the equation but its that edition did not reach news-stands in Bangkok.

One Asia Books staff member told this writer he had read the article online, but they weren't giving the real reason why the mag wasn't available. The man assured, however, that the next edition of the magazine will be on sale on Friday.

But that's not the end to Amazing Thailand's politics.

As all observers of the political landscape must be aware by now, Army Chief Gen Anupong Paochinda, has been busy telling politicians what the new coalition should look.

Army spokesman Gen Sansern Kaewkamnerd was quoted by Post Today on Monday defending his boss, saying Anupong couldn't stop others from seeking his advice. He also said this was not the Army meddling in politics or staging a "hidden coup d'etat".

Anupong's colleague who commands the Air Force did a similar thing yesterday when he told the media he didn't meddle in politics, but did support a switch of parties and a Democrat-led coalition.

Many more amazing things may have escaped your attention, such as the attack on a man last week, allegedly by PAD guards. The man was found naked and unconscious in a ditch near Suvarnabhumi Airport with a gunshot wound to his neck. Only papers critical of the PAD like Matichon and Khao Sod and prachatai.com reported this.

Some amazing remarks about Thailand are heard not here but abroad. But they are from Thais nonetheless.

While this writer was on a forced extended visit to Korea, thanks to the PAD, he went to look for Thai tourists to ask what they thought of the airport closure. I found two Thai women tourists in Seoul's fashionable shopping district and one of them denied the PAD had closed down the airport.

"It was the airport staff who refused to work," the lady insisted.

To be sure, the PAD has some amazing supporters, and no doubt more it can count on in the days and weeks to come.