Why Jureeporn Thaidumrong, a member of the creative team behind banned TV commercial 'Apologise Thailand, thinks debate is healthy
The official title of the Positive Network's latest television advertisement may be "Kor Thot ... Prathet Thai" ("Apologise ... Thailand") but most Thai people probably now know it better as "that banned commercial".
Jureeporn "Judee" Thaidumrong, founder and president of Jeh United advertising agency, who's responsible for the ad, is sorry for the losses that have resulted from the political conflicts, but she also sees some positive sides to what has occurred.
"I never thought I shared any responsibility for the conflict. I do an honest job, I always pay my taxes," she says. "The burning of the city on May 19 and 20 was a wake up call. I asked myself what happened to our country. How did it get it far? Only then did I see just how many problems have been plaguing this country for so long."
Jureeporn, one of Asia's most awarded talents in the advertising industry, pauses for a moment. "If it hadn't happened, then Positive Network would not have been born and I would never have had run a campaign like 'Apologise Thailand'. I would just have continued writing advertising copy to sell things. I never cared what the protesters were doing."
The Positive Network was formed in the aftermath of the political turmoil. Jureeporn's small group was quickly expanded to include other veterans of the advertising, public relations and communications fields among them Bhanu Inkawat, now network chairman, Chaipranin Visudhipol, and IT big shots like Paramet Minsiri and Pongsuk Hiranprueck. The Thai Health Promotion Foundation and the media also joined.
"Don't Underestimate the Power in You," is the core message of all the network's campaigns, telling everybody that they can help. The network currently has thousands of supporters on Facebook.
And last month, the Board of Censors took a look at its commercial for the free TV channels and promptly banned it, on the grounds that it might increase rifts in society.
To allow the commercial to air, the Board of Censors has ordered that six scenes of the 150-second commercial be cut. The offending scenes involve images that are deemed "legally and morally improper" such as the burning of buildings, soldiers pointing guns, nudity, monks being arrested and violent protests.
While the ban and the ensuring criticism have not come as a total surprise to the creative team, they didn't expect the level of debate that the issue has caused.
Pongsuk posted a question on the Internet asking for ideas of how to fix the ad. Opinions and debates flooded in, with the sentences "What did we do wrong?" and "If it was somebody's fault, it was everybody's fault" among the most hotly debated topics.
"We just posed questions. We were not blaming anyone in particular. The key message for the campaign was we want to apologise to Thailand. But just one person cannot do that. Furthermore, we must fix the problems, not just say, 'I'm sorry'," says Jureeporn.
"I'm happy to see people debating. Now they talk to each other and pose questions that will lead to wisdom and the answers.
"The debate as to whether the commercial in its present form should be allowed to air is different from the non-creative arguments. Some say it hurts people while others say we should accept the truth. But in the end they are debating for the same goal, which is never to allow violent conflicts to happen again in our country," says Jureeporn.
"The trouble is so much of the division over the past five years has to do with the individual's interests and well-being. That's something we need to recognise."
Despite the extraordinary high number of opinions posted on websites, the producer of the commercial is still trying to fix it so that Positive Network's first TV commercial can actually show on free TV and reach most Thai viewers.
Jureeporn says she understands the censorship committee is just doing its job.
"In every society, there are rules to keep peace and prevent problems. I believe the censors used their personal judgement according to the basic rules of society. At the same time, we are professionals and we have ethics in mind," she says.
"When a ban is issued on the basis of society's rules, it is not violating peoples' rights of expression."
Declining to say how far Thailand needs to go, Jureeporn adds that a censoring body would be unnecessary if the civil sector were really strong and citizens were self-disciplined with a good understanding of their rights and duty.
Right now, the Positive Network is working on plans for its three-phase campaign. The first phase is to raise awareness of the problems and ensure that no one sits on the sidelines through indifference.
The second phase is to stimulate people to be "Active citizens", daring and caring enough to voice opinions, debate democratically and do things creatively.
The third phase will be a national poll.
"After people are activated in the first two phases, now we should be able to find out what the most important and urgent problems are," she says.
Being a member of the Positive Network is a long-term commitment and Jureeporn certainly regards herself as a positive person.
"No one can be happy every day. I have my bad hair days too and want to express my anger on Facebook. Then I stop and think, 'Oh I'm a member of the Positive Network. That stops me throwing it all away," she says with a grin.