TSB Note: While we are all waiting for #thaistory part 3, which has been promised “soon”, here’s an important article by Bill Schiller in The Star.

BANGKOK—Towering high in the heavens overlooking the courtyard of Bangkok’s Siriraj Hospital stands an illuminated portrait of Thailand’s King Bhumibol, with a garland of dazzling neon lights proclaiming, “Long Live The King.”

But how long does the king have to live?

On his own private floor in this hospital on the west bank of the Chao Phraya River, the 83-year-old king has battled Parkinson’s, depression and a series of strokes since being admitted here in September 2009.

Now his days appear numbered, a fact that has many in this nation of 68 million worried.

Stock markets have tumbled on rumours of his death. As recently as May another round of rumours sent foreign diplomats scrambling for confirmation.

Days later the royal household rolled the monarch out in a wheelchair, calming nerves.

The longest reigning monarch in the world — he was crowned in 1950 — King Bhumibol Adulyadej is also the world’s richest by far. His $30 billion in treasure makes Saudi Arabian King Abdullah’s $18 billion look modest by comparison; Queen Elizabeth’s estimated $500 million seems like pocket change.

But what is more important is this: although he is a constitutional monarch, King Bhumibol is worshipped and adored as a demi-god here, a semi-supernatural force that binds the nation.

When he goes, many fear an eruption could occur in this ever-fractious country, increasingly known for its political street battles.

“It will be a gigantic moment,” says Paul Handley, author of the definitive and unauthorized biography, The King Never Smiles.

“No one really knows what will happen. And that’s why people are frightened.” Handley’s book, which is banned in Thailand but widely available in photocopy form on the street, chronicles a dysfunctional royal family that would rival any from Shakespeare’s best historical plays: a good king, the plotting wife, a flawed son who is the heir apparent — who bizarrely made his pet dog an air marshal in the Thai Air Force — and a beloved princess who, according to sources, will flee to China the moment her father dies.

Perhaps most daringly, Handley deals with Thailand’s most sensitive subject of all: did the current king, as a young man, kill his older brother Anand — then reigning king — in a 1946 shooting accident prior to taking the throne?

The very fact that Handley deals with the issue has ensured that he is unlikely to set foot in Thailand without fear of arrest.

Critical or probing questions regarding the king and his family are not taken lightly.

Still, what will happen to Bhumibol’s fortune and the future of the monarchy upon his death are questions weighing on everyone’s mind here.

Few Thais have known any other monarch, and as the country approaches its most critical moment in more than 60 years, one might expect a national discussion in which succession and the security of the nation are carefully considered.

But that’s not what is happening.

Today, Thailand’s powerful lèse majesté law, which makes it illegal to insult the royal family, has made any discussion about the royals a potentially dangerous activity — one that can land people in jail for 15 years.

David Streckfuss, the recognized authority on lèse majesté and author of Truth on Trial in Thailand, “in terms of punishment, the world has never seen anything like this in a century or so.”

The law “has become essentially a treason law,” he says, “almost like high treason, but without capital punishment.”

Since the beginning of last year the police, the palace and loyalist politicians — backed by the military — have been cracking down hard, trying to quell a conversation about the future of the monarchy and vowing to “protect” it by any means.

Those pushing for a more fully-fledged democracy — the so-called “Red Shirts” who align themselves with former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra — say lèse majesté has been used for partisan purposes, to support the “Yellow Shirts” or royalist camp.

And few believe the recent election of a new government led by Shinawatra’s sister, Yingluck, will bring any lightening of enforcement.

Charges of lèse majesté were once rare, but last year they skyrocketed to 478.

“This is not really a law to protect the king anymore,” observes magazine editor and publisher Thanapol Eawsakul, who has been charged under the law but never successfully prosecuted. “It is being used to protect political interests.”

Eawsakul says if the monarchy as an institution were transformed or even ended on the king’s death, much would be at stake for the network of royals, bureaucrats, business people and hangers-on who rely on the royal family for power and privilege.

This is not the way good king Bhumibol’s reign was supposed to end.

Born near Boston in 1927, where his father Prince Mahidol was studying medicine at Harvard, Bhumibol returned to Thailand in 1950, from his own studies in Switzerland, to be crowned Rama IX.

Bhumibol had brought back with him a radiant 17-year-old Thai woman he’d met in Switzerland, married her and made her Queen Sirikit.

The palace went to work building a cult around the king and his Buddha-like personality, involving him mainly in development projects and building the royal brand into Thai daily life: News of the monarch and his family was to be carried in daily newspapers; dedicated nightly television broadcasts featured royal news; and in theatres, movie-goers had to stand at attention as a film portraying the king as the essence of all that is good in Thailand aired with the national anthem.

These routines continue to this day.

Yet, today there is no shortage of defamation and anger afoot against the royal family inside Thailand, some of it pointedly directed at the king as well as Queen Sirikit. And it seems to be growing.

In Bangkok you can acquire DVDs with cartoons encouraging the use of the guillotine against the royals; view a lengthy segment of the king, dancing and tipsy, at a what appears to be a royal birthday party; and see an infamous video of heir apparent Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn, 59, with his third wife Princess Srirasmi — naked except for a g-string — singing “Happy Birthday” to their miniature poodle Fufu for a rolling camera.

It was at a 2007 dinner with the prince and princess, that departing U.S Ambassador Ralph “Skip” Boyce learned that Fufu had been awarded the rank of Air Marshall in the Thai Air Force.

With the prince in line to succeed his father, some advisers in the palace are concerned if not alarmed.

Queen Sirikit, meanwhile, has seen her influence grow steadily over the past decade and enjoys major support from a loyal Thai military. But she has also had a polarizing effect in Thailand’s political ferment.

Unlike the king who has always appeared, at least publicly, to be above politics, the queen signalled her open support for the Yellow Shirt loyalists in 2009, when she attended a funeral for a young Yellow Shirt protester.

Someone who has always spoken openly is the country’s most famous social thinker and well-known Buddhist, Sulak Sivaraksa.

A long-time friend of Canadian writer Jon Ralston Saul and former governor general Adrienne Clarkson, Sulak declares himself “loyal” to the king and stresses he does not support violence.

“But loyalty demands dissent,” he observes, seated in his lush garden, where he has lived for 60 years. “Without dissent you cannot be a free man, you see.”

Despite his gentle demeanour, Sulak, even at 78, is accustomed to speaking truth to power, and he has been charged for it under the lèse majesté law.

Once close to the king, in fact part of “the inner circle,” he says, he had a falling out when he rejected the palace’s old official line that the king’s older brother had been assassinated.

“The truth is the present king killed his brother — accidentally. I’ve not only said it openly, I’ve published it,” he says. He was charged and last year let off, apparently on instructions from the king.

Looking to the future Sulak sees the end of an era.

“To put it negatively, I think the monarchy will end with the demise of the present King.

“If the new king is willing to be a puppet, say like the Cambodian king, it will survive that way,” he notes. “But no longer as a real monarchy.”

You see his image towering everywhere: King Bhumibol Adulyadej, Rama IX, of Thailand. His stern visage gazes across the cities, villages and countryside of the nation, seemingly everywhere, yet still a mystery — who is the man, not the king, that scowls at us from billboards, magazines, websites and portraits in living rooms throughout the land?

Thais afford him in such great veneration that I long assumed he must be a great and kind leader, the weight of his burden borne quietly, his acts — like a massive granite ballast — anchoring the murky, bewitching culture of such languid beauty and at times startling cruelty.

What, I often wondered, does he really think?

Today, almost 20 years after I first arrived in Thailand, I still have no idea what goes on in the mind of Bhumibol, of course — only a very few on the entire planet do.

But the mystery, I now know, is intentional, just as it was for the Great Oz.

If we were to pull back the curtain and peer inside, would we find as Dorothy and Toto did, an illusionist yearning to step out from behind the smoke and mirrors?

Because Bhumibol is unknowable, we can only attempt to penetrate the sparkling skein that surrounds him by catching glimpses of his reflected character.

A few facts are certain — information in the world press before Bhumibol was swallowed up and wrapped in the raiment of the semi-divine — and some from more recent ground-breaking work:

• He was born in the US — the only king to date born there — and raised in Switzerland.
• He was something of a teen-aged bon vivant in Europe, playing the saxaphone and driving sports cars.
• He was one of the few people present in the inner sanctum of the royal palace when his brother, Ananda Mahidol, King Rama XIII, was shot in the forehead and killed. Bhumibol’s involvement in the death — murder, suicide or accident? — has never been ruled out by unbiased historians.
• One of his mentors was his uncle Prince Rangsit, who was determined that the monarchy should reclaim the powers it lost in the “revolution” of 1932 and WWII years.
• Judging from subsequent events, his favorite among Thai leaders seems to have been Field Marshall Sarit, a strongman whose funeral was given royal patronage — a lying in state for 100 days and attendance of the king and queen at his cremation. But before he died of alcoholism at age 50 in 1963, Sairit had amassed 100 “wives” and $140 million (again in 1963 terms). It was in Sarit’s time that the king began have the mystical aura that was to become so familiar to later generations.
• His son, Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn, is widely disliked and even feared in Thailand due to his scandalous and reckless life. But he remains Bhumibol’s designated heir despite his lifestyle and serious questions about his innate intelligence.
• Recent information has revealed that Bhumibol and his wife, Queen Sirikit, have been estranged for 20 years.
• The king’s mother, a commoner named Mom Sangwal, lived in Switzerland, not Thailand, almost all her long life. She was also present in the royal palace when her oldest son was killed by a gunshot wound.
• In 2008 Fortune magazine said Bhumibol was worth $35 billion, more than the Sultan of Brunei and the Saudi King, making him the richest royal in the world.

Even these facts are difficult to prise loose and will land you in prison in Thailand for repeating. The country’s lese majeste writ is among the most repressive and draconian laws on the books of any so-called democracy on the planet.

Perhaps another way to glimpse Bhumibol amid the blinding glare of the great royalist machine is to look at the state of “his” country today:

• Despite vast spending in Thailand the by the US during the Vietnam War – a time when all neighboring countries except Malaysia were wracked by civil war or closed to the outside world –Thailand squandered the advantage. As the powerful jockeyed to divide up the spoils, the poor remained just that.
• After more than 60 years with Bhumibol as king, every aspect of Thai society is profoundly corrupt including the police, the educational and medical systems, and of course the politicians and powerful godfathers. Certainly he did not start the practice, but one would hope a benevolent “father” of the nation would have helped stop it. He’s had plenty of time to do so. But he didn’t neglect is own household, now so vastly wealthy.
• The social safety net for many families is a daughter, or daughters, working in prostitution. Or it could be the male children too.
• One reason for the coup that overthrew the elected government of Thaksin Shinawatra in 2006 appears to be the royal family — in particular Queen Sirikit, an open backer of the “yellow shirt” movement — who seem view Thaksin with great alarm. Is he a gatecrasher unwilling to fully support the Great Oz pretense?
• Bhumibol’s unceasing efforts to restore royal prestige — in concert with military dictators or in their palm? — could have impeded democracy in Thailand for two generations. His insistence that his son will be the next king – despite overwhelming evidence he is entirely unsuited – threatens to damage the country even after his death.

Notes: Bhumibol is the grandson of Chulalongkorn, Rama V, who had 77 children.

Chulalongkorn’s four formal wives were all his half-sisters — all daughters of his own father Mongut, Rama IV. Bhumibol is descended from Savang Vadhana, one of Rama V’s half-sister wives.

His wife Queen Sirikit’s grandfather is also Rama V, whose third son was Prince Kitiyakara Voralaksana, her father, by the consort Chao Chom Manda Uam — who was not the king’s half sister.

The bloodline raises serious questions of inbreeding. Perhaps because Bhumibol is descended from a commoner mother he has all the appearances of normality, but his son the crown prince and daughter Princess Chulabhorn exhibit physical traits that raise the specter of deficiencies due to inbreeding.

2. Those in Thailand for whom commenting on some #thaistory cables is highly dangerous will still find many others that are safe to discuss. I would urge everyone to use blogs and social media to discuss & share the #thaistory cables. They can greatly aid our knowledge of Thailand. If Thai (and most international) media want to pretend #thaistory cables don’t exist, it’s up to us in the wired world to show otherwise. If the mainstream media fails in its duty to report #thaistory cables, it is a great opportunity for blogs and social media to do the job. So please treat #thaistory cables as an open shared resource. All I ask is that you’re careful & responsible. Over to you. Best wishes.

Andrew Marshall, July 10

Note to readers: Feel free to comment or submit posts to thaistoryblog.

After nearly two decades with Reuters, journalist Andrew MacGregor Marshall wanted to write about Wikileaks cables that shed light on the true nature of Thailand’s monarchy. He tells us why he felt compelled to quit his job in order to reveal the truth.

Listen to this story at WBEZ.

Public commentary that deals with the messiness of Thailand’s recent political history is risky. Anything that touches on the personalities, activities or priorities of the royal family is especially dangerous.

On royal topics, the sensitivities of the Thai authorities know few bounds; clamping down on subversive strains of analysis has become core bureaucratic business.

Transgressions can lead to tough consequences. Thais and foreigners alike have gone to gaol for stepping out of line.

Andrew MacGregor Marshall, a former Reuters man, is under no illusions about these realities. With little thought for his immediate prospects he ditched a 17-year career with the global wire service to publish a mega-essay about Thai royal political intrigue.

The first two installments of his long-awaited, four-part contribution, known as #thaistory or more formally as Thailand’s moment of truth: A secret history of 21st century Siam, have quickly become online sensations.

An active blogger and Twitter commentator, Marshall made good on his promise to publish the Wikileaks cables from United States officials based in Thailand and to offer a lengthy interpretative treatment of their value.

Due to the nature of the analysis he wanted to publish, and its consistent references to the Thai royal family, he opted to leave behind a stable career and strike out on his own. And while it is a more modest sacrifice, he will not be returning to Thailand any time soon.

We all benefit from Marshall’s brazen moves. Since the initial tranches of Wikileaks cable material were published in 2010 one of the obvious limitations has been interpretative capacity.

Unless an individual journalist or academic spends months devoted to the cables for a particular country or issue it is impossible to fully grasp the context and details.

For Thailand, Marshall has provided a thorough treatment of thousands of leaked diplomatic communications, and is following the hundreds of pages in the mega-essay with a set of shorter articles.

His insights will reverberate in Thai analytical circles for many years to come.

Diligent caution meant he redacted sensitive personal details from the cables. Marshall has done his best to ensure that anybody who is “not a player in the game” avoids undue implication in the blow-back that may follow.

His revelations could generate blow-back because he examines a long list of topics where winks-and-nods have tended to compensate for insufficient substantiation.

There are many parts of his story that help fill in the blanks around previously unconfirmed speculation. Marshall’s account will now serve as a further source book to be read alongside journalist Paul Handley’s The King Never Smiles: A Biography of Thailand’s Bhumibol Adulyadej.

Taken together these will be fundamental starting points for anyone who wants to understand royal involvement in Thai political affairs.

Of course, not everyone will agree that Marshall’s work is worthwhile.

There are some, particularly in Thailand, who have queried the timing so close to last weekend’s national election. The election set the sister of deposed former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra against the Democrat Party leader, Abhsisit Vejjajiva. With Yingluck Shinawatra storming to power this is a tense and uncertain time; royal matters are particularly sensitive right now.

Others will challenge the value of publishing leaked materials that were never meant for a public audience. There are good reasons for supporting the need for governments to keep some matters, and their internal deliberation, secret. United States officials will probably be embarrassed at the range of colourful topics canvassed in their cables.

They should also be proud that the work now showcased to the world does them much credit. It is generally well-informed, deeply enmeshed in substantial issues, and clearly the product of much hard graft and strategic interrogation.

This means that a new and freely available set of materials, as consolidated by Marshall, will over time get chins wagging the length and breadth of the kingdom. A translation of the mega-essay into Thai will lead to even greater influence.

With its critical interpretations of the role of the royal family, Marshall’s contribution is part of a brewing perfect storm for those who hope to defend royal prerogatives at the end of King Bhumibol’s 65-year reign.

That almost all of the country’s political actors come out of Marshall’s expose somewhat diminished is not a surprise.

With further dissemination, this feat of journalism will also help to generate vibrant debate in the country, and may lead towards the democratic liberties that so many Thais crave.

2004

October

04BANGKOK7216 PM THAKSIN KICKS OFF HIS RE-ELECTION CAMPAIGN WITH PROMISES APLENTY

04BANGKOK7313 THAI VIEWS OF A MORE ASSERTIVE CHINA

2005

January

05BANGKOK628 LOST IN THAILAND’S TSUNAMI: BURMESE MIGRANT WORKERS

05BANGKOK673 THAILAND REFOCUSES ON NATIONAL ELECTION

05BANGKOK685  NORTHEAST THAILAND: PARLIAMENTARY ELECTION CAMPAIGN OVERVIEW

05BANGKOK704  PACOM COMMANDER ADMIRAL FARGO MEETING WITH PRIME MINISTER THAKSIN, JANUARY 19

05BANGKOK706  PACOM ADM FARGO’S MEETING WITH THAI FM SURAKIART, JANUARY 19

05BANGKOK801 PRE-ELECTION VIOLENCE AND ELECTION FRAUD DISQUALIFICATIONS

05BANGKOK868  THAILAND: NEWS AND NOTES ON THE ROYAL FAMILY 

February

05BANGKOK948 THAI ELECTIONS: PROMINENT DEMOCRAT PARTY CANDIDATES IN TOUGH FIGHTS IN SOUTHERN CONSTITUENCIES

05BANGKOK953  THAI ELECTIONS: PAPER TIGER CAN’T KEEP UP WITH THE MONEY

05BANGKOK954  ON THE EVE OF THAILAND’S GENERAL ELECTION:  THE MAJOR PARTIES

05BANGKOK955  CHAT THAI ELECTION PROSPECTS GOOD IN CENTRAL THAILAND

05BANGKOK980  THAI ELECTION: THAKSIN IN AN “AVALANCHE”

05BANGKOK1026 AMBASSADOR BOYCE CALLS ON THAI COMMERCE MINISTER

05BANGKOK1036 THAILAND: AMBASSADOR CALLS ON DEFENSE MINISTER SUMPUN

05BANGKOK1038 SCENESETTER FOR VISIT OF CDR SEVENTH FLEET VADM GREENERT

05BANGKOK1039 THAILAND ELECTION UPDATE

05BANGKOK1072 AMBASSADOR’S COURTESY CALL ON FINANCE MINISTER SOMKID JATUSRIPITAK

05BANGKOK1105 THAILAND: AMBASSADOR CALLS ON ROYAL THAI SUPREME COMMANDER CHAISIT

05BANGKOK1157 SCENESETTER FOR VISIT OF FORMER PRESIDENTS BUSH AND CLINTON

05BANGKOK1169 THE AMBASSADOR’S MEETING WITH PM THAKSIN, FEBRUARY 14

05BANGKOK1187 AMBASSADOR CALLS ON ROYAL THAI NAVY COMMANDER ADM SAMPOP

05BANGKOK1233 AMBASSADOR’S MEETING WITH PRIVY COUNCILOR GENERAL SURAYUD, FEBRUARY 16

05BANGKOK1278 THAKSIN’S VICTORY – CREDIT THE MAN, INNOVATIVE POLICIES, AND THE THAI RAK THAI POLITICAL MACHINE

05BANGKOK1375  THAI PRIME MINISTER RATTLED BY CRITICS OF SOUTHERN SECURITY ZONING POLICY?

05BANGKOK1431 FORMER PRESIDENTS BUSH AND CLINTON MEETING WITH PRIME MINISTER THAKSIN

05BANGKOK1454 NGO HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH ASIA HIGHLIGHTS NEGATIVE TREND

March

05BANGKOK1527 INITIAL MEDIA COVERAGE, GOVERNMENT AND OTHER REACTIONS TO THE 2004 HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT

05BANGKOK1573 THAI MFA PERMSEC SUMMONS THE AMBASSADOR OVER 2004 HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT

05BANGKOK1578 ASEAN INTER-PARLIAMENTARY BURMA CAUCUS VISITS BANGKOK

05BANGKOK1737 PEACEFUL PROTEST IN BANGKOK

05BANGKOK1739 THAI PARLIAMENT FORMALLY RE-ELECTS THAKSIN AS PRIME MINISTER

05BANGKOK1774 OPPOSITION MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT FACES LESE MAJESTE CHARGES

05BANGKOK1775 A KINDER AND GENTLER THAKSIN?

05BANGKOK1819 THAKSIN’S NEW CABINET FAMILIAR, BUT WITH SOME SURPRISES

05BANGKOK1842 THAI LAW SOCIETY CALLS FOR INDEPENDENT COMMISSION TO INVESTIGATE MISSING MUSLIM LAWYER’S CASE

05BANGKOK1921 THAIS SEEK RETURN OF CLAIMED ROYAL HEADDRESS

05BANGKOK1924 THAILAND: CHILD MARRIAGE

05BANGKOK1933 AMBASSADOR CALLS ON FORMER PRIME MINISTER CHUAN LEEKPAI

05BANGKOK1969 THAI PRIME MINISTER SKIPS LUNCH DATE WITH ASSEMBLY OF THE POOR

05BANGKOK2010 LOCKHEED MARTIN PROMISES COUNTERTRADE TO THAILAND AS PART OF F-16 DEAL

05BANGKOK2017 THAILAND’S WEEK IN POLITICS, MARCH 13-18

05BANGKOK2087 AMBASSADOR CALLS ON NEW DEMOCRAT PARTY LEADER APHISIT

05BANGKOK2088 THE AMBASSADOR’S MEETING WITH THAI NSC SECRETARY GENERAL WINAI

05BANGKOK2137 MEGAPROJECTS: WE KNOW WHY, NOBODY KNOWS HOW

05BANGKOK2219 THE THAKSINIZATION OF THAILAND – IMPRESSIONS AFTER THREE MONTHS

05BANGKOK2255 NATIONAL RECONCILIATION COMMISSION ANNOUNCED

05BANGKOK2257 THAI POLITICAL UPDATE – MARCH 30

05BANGKOK2261 AMBASSADOR HILL’S MEETING WITH OPPOSITION MP SURIN PITSUWAN

April

05BANGKOK2318 THAILAND’S POSITION ON BURMA AND ASEAN: NEW FACE, SAME POLICY

05BANGKOK2347 THAILAND: THE WEEK IN POLITICS: MARCH 27 – APRIL 1

05BANGKOK2602 MORE REPORTS OF FACTIONAL FERMENT IN THE THAI RAK THAI PARTY

05BANGKOK2743 AMBASSASOR DISCUSSES SECURITY ISSUES WITH DEFMIN: SOUTH THAILAND, OIF, F-16 ET AL

05BANGKOK2749 SCENESETTER FOR VISIT OF PACOM CDR ADM FALLON

05BANGKOK2822 F-16 AND RTAF FIGHTER REPLACEMENT: ELEVATING PROFILE OF LOCKHEED MARTIN BID

05BANGKOK2837 QUEEN CALLS FOR UNITY AND VIGILANCE IN THE FACE OF CONTINUING SOUTHERN VIOLENCE

05BANGKOK2838 SCENESETTER FOR VISIT OF DEPUTY SECRETARY ZOELLICK

May

05BANGKOK3020 PACOM COMMANDER ADM FALLON MEETING WITH NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: SOUTH, BURMA, CHINA, ET AL

05BANGKOK3128 PACOM ADM FALLON MEETING WITH FM KANTHATI: KOREAS, BURMA, CHINA

05BANGKOK3208 MY DINNER WITH THAKSIN

05BANGKOK3283 DEPUTY SECRETARY ZOELLICK’S MAY 4, 2005 MEETING WITH FM KANTHATI

05BANGKOK3327 THAILAND: MAY 1992 DEMOCRACY HEROES TO BE REMEMBERED WITH MONUMENT IN BANGKOK

05BANGKOK3333 THAIS CONTENT WITH LOCAL NEGOTIATIONS TO DEFUSE BORDER TENSIONS WITH CAMBODIA AT ANCIENT KHMER TEMPLE

05BANGKOK3381 REPLACEMENT OF RTG AUDITOR-GENERAL SPARKS CONTROVERSY

05BANGKOK3436 SCENESETTER FOR THE VISIT OF SECRETARY OF DEFENSE RUMSFELD

05BANGKOK3471 TRT FACTIONAL TENSIONS FLARE OVER AUDITOR-GENERAL CONTROVERSY

05BANGKOK3521 NATIONAL COUNTER CORRUPTION COMMISSIONERS RESIGN AFTER CONVICTIONS FOR UNAUTHORIZED PAY RAISES

June

05BANGKOK3635 NCCC RESIGNATIONS SPUR MOVES TO AMEND CONSTITUTION

05BANGKOK3722 SECRETARY RUMSFELD’S MEETING WITH THAI MINISTER FOR DEFENSE THAMARAK

05BANGKOK3725 SECRETARY RUMSFELD’S MEETING WITH THAI PRIME MINISTER THAKSIN

05BANGKOK3945 WORKING WITH THAILAND TO ENGAGE OTHER MILITARIES IN ASIA

05BANGKOK4001 THAKSIN RUNS INTO POLITICAL TURBULENCE

05BANGKOK4220 UPDATE ON CONTROVERSIAL PAK MUN DAM

05BANGKOK4238 CENSURE OF TRANSPORT MINISTER ENDS IN AFFIRMATIVE VOTE OF CONFIDENCE

05BANGKOK4284 THAKSIN CONSIDERS CABINET CHANGES FOLLOWING CENSURE DEBATE

July

05BANGKOK4324 SCENESETTER FOR THE SECRETARY’S VISIT TO THAILAND

05BANGKOK4367 PARLIAMENT AMENDS CONSTITUTION; CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION OF BAGGAGE SCANNER DEAL LAUNCHED

05BANGKOK4723 TRIAL BEGINS IN LIBEL CASE FOR RESPECTED THAI MEDIA ADVOCATE

05BANGKOK4780 CHINA REVALUES; THAI BUSINESS SHRUGS

August

05BANGKOK4998 THAKSIN’S FIRST CABINET RESHUFFLE BRINGS FEW NEW FACES

05BANGKOK5217 THAI ECONOMY CONTINUES TO SLOW

05BANGKOK5271 AMBASSADOR’S FTA MEETING WITH DEPUTY PM

05BANGKOK5366 THAI MFA EMBRACES CONCEPT OF STRATEGIC DIALOGUE TO BE CALLED “THAI-U.S. DIALOGUE”

05BANGKOK5393 THAKSIN COMES TO LUNCH

05BANGKOK5419 MORE CONCERNS ABOUT FREEDOM OF THE PRESS AS RTG RADIO STATION, SUES LEADING ENGLISH-LANGUAGE NEWSPAPER

05BANGKOK5456 MFA PROPOSES NOVEMBER 7 AND 8 FOR STRATEGIC DIALOGUE

September

05BANGKOK5626 FLU PANDEMIC PREPAREDNESS: THAILAND

05BANGKOK5627 THAI MFA OFFICIAL GIVES READOUT ON FOREIGN MINISTER’S TRAVEL TO PYONGYANG

05BANGKOK5748 REGIONAL ARCHITECTURE – THAI PERSPECTIVES

05BANGKOK5791 PM THAKSIN’S TRIP TO WASHINGTON

05BANGKOK5917 CONFLICT OVER AUDITOR GENERAL EMBARRASSES THAKSIN GOVERNMENT

05BANGKOK5940 FOT (FRIEND OF THAKSIN) BUYS UP HUGE SHARES IN TWO OF THAILAND’S LEADING NEWSPAPERS

05BANGKOK6095 TWO MOVES AGAINST THE THAI MEDIA: NEWSPAPER AVOIDS TAKEOVER BUT TV SHOW GETS THE AXE

05BANGKOK6098 MEDICAL TOURISM: OUTSOURCE YOUR KNEE SURGERY TO THAILAND

05BANGKOK6101 AMBASSADOR RAISES KANTATHI’S COMMENTS TO PRESS ON FTA AND BURMA WITH MFA PERMANENT SECRETARY

05BANGKOK6119 THAILAND’S ELECTION HOOLIGANS – ELECTION COMMISSION LOWERS THE BOOM

05BANGKOK6240 UPDATE ON AUDITOR-GENERAL CONTROVERSY

05BANGKOK6269 SENATE SELECTION OF NATIONAL BROADCAST COMMITTEE COMES AMID CONTROVERSY

October

05BANGKOK6462 UNCERTAINTY OVER PUBLIC HEALTH MINISTER’S RESIGNATION

05BANGKOK6524 DEMOCRACY PROMOTION STRATEGIES FOR EAP FOCUS COUNTRIES – THAILAND

05BANGKOK6727 THAI EXPECTED TO INVITE FORMER PRESIDENTS TO TSUNAMI COMMEMORATION

05BANGKOK6761 PRIVATIZING EGAT UNLIKELY TO REFORM THE POWER SECTOR

05BANGKOK6798 OPPOSITION POLITICIAN PESSIMISTIC ON SOUTH, PARTY PROSPECTS

November

05BANGKOK6852   SUPRISE MOVE: MINISTERS SWAP JOBS TO QUELL TRT IN-FIGHTING

05BANGKOK6855   OPPOSITION WINS 3 0F 4 THAI BY-ELECTIONS, BUT DOES IT MATTER?

05BANGKOK6901  THAI TELECOM SECTOR: NORWAY’S TELENOR BUYS OUT UCOM AND TAC

05BANGKOK6953  THAI REACT TO “SECRET PRISONS” ARTICLE: WILL THAKSIN SUE THE WASHINGTON POST?

05BANGKOK6958  MORE CONTROVERSY WITH THE SELECTION OF THE NATIONAL COUNTER CORRUPTION COMMISSION

05BANGKOK6978  FORMER PRIME MINISTER ANAND CRITICIZES SURAKIART RUN FOR UN SECRETARY GENERAL POST

05BANGKOK7000 EXPORTS REVIVE THAI ECONOMY

05BANGKOK7030  U.S.-THAI STRATEGIC DIALOGUE

05BANGKOK7033   U.S.-THAILAND FTA: GOOD PROSPECTS FOR PROGRESS IN NOVEMBER NEGOTIATING ROUND

05BANGKOK7040 THAILAND GOVERNMENT PROCUREMENT: RICE FOR ROLLING STOCK?

05BANGKOK7043  THAI TELECOM SECTOR REFORM:PROSPECTS FOR PRIVATIZATION OF STATE-OWNED TELCOS TOT AND CAT

05BANGKOK7090  PRIME MINISTER’S SENIOR ADVISOR PANSAK MEETING WITH DAS ERIC JOHN AND AMBASSADOR BOYCE

05BANGKOK7091  PRIVY COUNSELOR SURAYUD ON SITUATION  IN SOUTHERN THAILAND

05BANGKOK7100  AUDITOR-GENERAL SELECTION PROCESS TO BEGIN ANEW

05BANGKOK7116  DAS ERIC JOHN’S MEETING WITH FORMER FOREIGN MINISTER SURIN PITSUWAN

05BANGKOK7124  COURT SUSPENDS PRIVATIZATION OF STATE-OWNED POWER PRODUCER EGAT

05BANGKOK7184  EXCELLENT THAI-DPRK RELATIONS NOT SO USEFUL IN ABDUCTION CASE

05BANGKOK7197  THE KING AND HIM; THE OPPOSITION PLAYS THEIR KING AGAINST THE PRIME MINISTER

05BANGKOK7213  THAI COURT TRIES “GAG ORDER” TO SHUT UP PROMINENT ACTIVIST

05BANGKOK7242  PATTAYA: THAILAND’S EXTREME CITY

05BANGKOK7253  TENS OF THOUSANDS GATHER TO LISTEN TO SONDHI DISH DIRT ON PRIME MINISTER

05BANGKOK7272  SCENESETTER FOR PACAF COMMANDER GEN HESTER’S VISIT TO THAILAND

05BANGKOK7289  THAILAND AMBITIOUS ON HONG KONG, BUT WARY

05BANGKOK7305  BESIEGED AUDITOR-GENERAL TALKS TO EMBASSY ABOUT CORRUPTION AND AIRPORT PROCUREMENT SCANDAL

05BANGKOK7317  COURT VICTORIES FOR RABBLE-ROUSING JOURNALIST SONDHI

05BANGKOK7345  SONDHI’S TENTH AND LARGEST RALLY TO DATE ATTRACTS 50,000

December

05BANGKOK7458  TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS DEVELOPMENTS

05BANGKOK7529  LUNCH WITH THAKSIN

05BANGKOK7574  OLD FRIENDS, BAD DEALS, AND COMMUNITY RADIO: THE STORY OF THE REOPENING OF 92.25

05BANGKOK7581  HALF-BAKED IDEA FOR ZOO INCREASES DOUBT ABOUT THAI COMMITMENT TO WILDLIFE

05BANGKOK7613  CODEL SMITH MEETS WITH PRIME MINSITER THAKSIN

05BANGKOK7729  THAILAND: 2005 COUNTRY REPORTS ON TERRORISM

05BANGKOK7732  THAKSIN ALLY PAINTS GLOOMY PICTURE OF PM’S STANDING

2006

January

06BANGKOK350  BRIGADIER GENERAL ALLEN’S MEETING WITH SENIOR ROYAL THAI SUPREME COMMAND CHIEF OF JOINT STAFF

06BANGKOK355  SCENESETTER: AMBASSADOR CRUMPTON’S VISIT TO THAILAND 

06BANGKOK429 CODEL GILLMOR MEETING WITH PM THAKSIN AND PARLIAMENT SPEAKER

06BANGKOK524  F-16: AMBASSADOR RAISES WITH PM THAKSIN

06BANGKOK538  THAILAND’S DEAL OF THE CENTURY: TEMASEK BUYS OUT PM’S SHIN CORP

06BANGKOK551  MEGAPROJECTS CONFERENCE PRODUCES MORE SMOKE THAN LIGHT

06BANGKOK636  CORRUPTION ISSUES IN THE HEADLINES

February

06BANGKOK965  DEMOCRAT PARTY LEADERS DISCUSS POLITICAL SITUATION

06BANGKOK1034  GANGING UP ON THAKSIN – SNAP ELECTIONS NEXT?

06BANGKOK1091  CHALLENGE TO THAKSIN – ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE

06BANGKOK1093  OPPOSITION PLANS FOR THAKSIN’S OUSTER, TRANSITION

06BANGKOK1115  UPDATE ON TRAFFICKING PROJECTS IN NORTHERN THAILAND

06BANGKOK1117  BURMESE MIGRANT LABORER MURDER TRIAL IN THAILAND CONTINUES

06BANGKOK1174  SENATOR FEINGOLD’S MEETING WITH THAI DEFENSE MINISTER THAMMARAK

06BANGKOK1176  SENATOR FEINGOLD’S MEETING WITH PRIME MINISTER THAKSIN

06BANGKOK1180  MASSIVE PROTEST IN SANAM LUANG – POLITICAL OPPOSITION ADRIFT

06BANGKOK1204  FTA ON HOLD AS THAI PM ANNOUNCES SNAP ELECTION

06BANGKOK1208  PERSPECTIVES ON CURRENT POLITICAL STALEMATE

06BANGKOK1209  UPDATE OF THAI POLITICAL SITUATION: OPPOSITION BOYCOTTS, OTHERS JOIN IN

06BANGKOK1214  PRIVY COUNCILLOR/FORMER ARMY COMMANDER ON STATE OF PLAY

06BANGKOK1215  SENATOR FEINGOLD’S MEETING WITH FOREIGN MINISTER KANTATHI

March

06BANGKOK1236  SCENESETTER FOR VISIT OF PACFLT COMMANDER ADM ROUGHEAD

06BANGKOK1248  THAI POLITICAL PARTIES DIG IN AND BRACE FOR THE WEEKEND

06BANGKOK1286  RTG ADVANCES ON HILL TRIBES CITIZENSHIP

06BANGKOK1293  MEANWHILE, SURAKIART STILL WANTS TO BE UN SECGEN

06BANGKOK1301  TO BE OR NOT TO BE: THAT IS THE THAI SNAP ELECTION

06BANGKOK1302  THE THAI ARMY COMES TO DINNER

06BANGKOK1317  THAILAND’S POLITICAL CRISIS AND THE FTA 

06BANGKOK1342  LABOR LEADER PREDICTS LARGE MARCH 5 ANTI-THAKSIN TURNOUT

06BANGKOK1346  BANGKOK READIES ITSELF FOR TWO OPPOSING WEEKEND POLITICAL RALLIES

06BANGKOK1372  CHINESE INVESTMENT IN THAILAND

06BANGKOK1408  ANTI-THAKSIN FORCES TO MOUNT FURTHER PRESSURE TO OUST THAKSIN

06BANGKOK1411  THAILAND POLITICAL CRISIS: WHAT IT’S ABOUT, AND WHAT WE SHOULD DO

06BANGKOK1445  THAILAND POLITICAL UPDATE: MORE CALLS FOR THAKSIN’S RESIGNATION

06BANGKOK1470  THAILAND POLITICAL UPDATE: EXPLOSION NEAR PRIVY COUNCILLOR’S RESIDENCE; DEMONSTRATION AT THE SINGAPORE EMBASSY

06BANGKOK1472  EAP DAS JOHN MEETS WITH THAKSIN’S BRAIN TRUST

06BANGKOK1473  EAP DEPUTY ASSISTANT SECRETARY JOHN’S MEETING WITH DEMOCRAT PARTY DEPUTY LEADER SURIN

06BANGKOK1475  THAI SNAP ELECTION REGISTRATION ENDS; A PREVIEW OF THE CONTEST

06BANGKOK1521  THAILAND POLITICAL UPDATE MARCH 10

06BANGKOK1538  DCM RECEIVES DEMARCHE – HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT

06BANGKOK1539  DCM RECEIVES DEMARCHE – MYSTERY FLYERS IN LA

06BANGKOK1546  DELPHIC ORACLES AND BLACK MAGIC – THAILAND UPDATE MARCH 13

06BANGKOK1549  SHIN CORP DEAL IS LEGAL, SO WHAT?

06BANGKOK1575  THAILAND POLITICAL UPDATE: HUGE ANTI-THAKSIN RALLY BOISTEROUS BUT PEACEFUL

06BANGKOK1601  PALACE SUPPORTS MEDIATION, DOES NOT COMPLETELY RULE OUT INTERVENTION

06BANGKOK1602  THAILAND POLITICAL UPDATE: MARCH 15

06BANGKOK1626  MORE CANDIDATES DISQUALIFIED FOR THAI SNAP ELECTION

06BANGKOK1627  ‘NO EXIT’ – SENIOR TRT OFFICIAL ON THE WAY OUT OF THE DEADLOCK

06BANGKOK1629  MEDIA ACTIVIST WINS LANDMARK LIBEL CASE AGAINST THE SHIN CORPORATION

06BANGKOK1630  THAILAND POLITICAL UPDATE: PROTESTS CONTINUE, THAI MAINSTREAM GROWING WEARY

06BANGKOK1665  POLITICAL PROBLEMS EFFECT ON THAI ECONOMY

06BANGKOK1667  DPM SURAKIART SEES “WINDOW CLOSING” ON THAKSIN’S POLITICAL FUTURE

06BANGKOK1692  ELECTION UNCERTAINTIES LOOM OVER TRT IN EASTERN THAILAND

06BANGKOK1693  THAILAND POLITICAL UPDATE: FATIGUE SETTING IN

06BANGKOK1747  TELEVISION IN THAILAND: WHO HOLDS THE LEASH

06BANGKOK1767  PRIVY COUNCILOR PREM THINKS THAKSIN SHOULD GO, BUT STAYS ABOVE THE FRAY

06BANGKOK1825  NSC SECRETARY GENERAL JOINS CHORUS: THAKSIN’S DAYS ARE NUMBERED

06BANGKOK1844  SOUTHERN THAILAND: MORE ELECTION UNCERTAINTY

06BANGKOK1845  A WEEKEND OF DEMONSTRATIONS; NOTHING CHANGES

06BANGKOK1872  PALACE REITERATES – LEAVE ME OUT OF THIS

06BANGKOK1873  CABINET SECRETARY-GENERAL PREDICTS THAKSIN WILL RESIGN AFTER ELECTIONS

06BANGKOK1889  POLITICAL UPDATE: REFUGE AT THE MALLS

06BANGKOK1918  THAILAND POLITICAL UPDATE: MARCH 30

06BANGKOK1945  THAILAND POLITICAL UPDATE: THAKSIN LOYALISTS FIGHT BACK

06BANGKOK1946  ELECTION ON APRIL 2. THEN WHAT?

06BANGKOK1947  RESPONSE TO APRIL 2 ELECTIONS

April

06BANGKOK1971  THREE COMMENTARIES ON ELECTION RESULTS, THE PM’S FUTURE

06BANGKOK2005 THAKSIN SAYS, “I WON”

06BANGKOK2047  AND NOW THE REAL FUN BEGINS – THAILAND POLITICAL UPDATE

06BANGKOK2048  THAKSIN TAKES A BREAK. WHAT NEXT?

06BANGKOK2082  THAKSIN TELLS ALL (ALMOST)

06BANGKOK2088  THE 1997 CONSTITUTION – FINDING AND FIXING THE LEAKS

06BANGKOK2124  THAILAND POLITICAL UPDATE – RESULTS, RESULTS, COME AND GET THEM!

06BANGKOK2149  PRIVY COUNCILLOR CONFIRMS – KING DID NOT GIVE THAKSIN THE BOOT 

06BANGKOK2156  THAILAND’S OTHER ELECTION: SENATE ELECTIONS APPROACH AS THAILAND GIRDS FOR MORE LOWER HOUSE POLLS

06BANGKOK2291  DPM SURAKIART PLEDGES TO RESOLVE SHAN TRAFFICKING CASE

06BANGKOK2293  LABOR EXPORT IS BIG BUSINESS IN THAILAND

06BANGKOK2294  MORE TROUBLED ELECTIONS: SENATE RESULTS AND MP UPDATE

06BANGKOK2330  LIFTING THE BAN ON PROVINCIAL POLICE TRAINING

06BANGKOK2336  RE-RUN ELECTIONS TO BE HELD AMIDST A CLOUD OF LITIGATION

06BANGKOK2360  THAI ECONOMY REACTS TO POLITICAL UNCERTAINTY

06BANGKOK2370  ELECTION RERUN LEAVES PARLIAMENT’S OPENING STILL IN QUESTION

06BANGKOK2391  INCHING TOWARD A PARLIAMENT

06BANGKOK2418  STATELESS TIP VICTIMS TO BE REPATRIATED TO THAILAND AFTER 14 MONTH DETENTION

06BANGKOK2425  THE KING SAYS, IT’S A MESS

06BANGKOK2484  SCENESETTER FOR THE VISIT OF THE VICE CHAIRMAN OF THE JOINT CHIEFS, ADM GIAMBASTIANI

06BANGKOK2502  ANNULLING THE ELECTIONS? THE COURTS DECIDE TO THINK ABOUT IT

May

06BANGKOK2567  COURTS LEAN TOWARD NULLIFICATION; TRT FIGHTS BACK

06BANGKOK2596  LIMBO, LAWSUITS, AND LUMPINI PARK – HOW MUCH LONGER??

06BANGKOK2617  NEW PRICING POLICY REINTRODUCES DIESEL SUBSIDY

06BANGKOK2624  THAILAND: THE ANDAMAN SEA MARITIME SECURITY INITIATIVE

06BANGKOK2643  SCENESETTER FOR THE VISIT OF PACOM ADM FALLON

06BANGKOK2644  SCENESETTER FOR THE VISIT OF USARPAC LTG JOHN M. BROWN III

06BANGKOK2646  SENIOR THAKSIN ADVISOR: “HE’S COMING BACK“

06BANGKOK2688  CONSTITUTIONAL COURT ANNULS APRIL 2 POLLS

06BANGKOK2747  UNIVERSAL HEALTH CARE MENDING BONES BUT BREAKING BUDGETS

06BANGKOK2750  WHERE TO NOW IN THE WAKE OF COURT POLL DECISION?

06BANGKOK2826  SCENESETTER FOR THE VISIT OF EAP A/S HILL

06BANGKOK2856  SPECIAL REPRESENTATIVE IN BANGKOK – THAILAND’S CONTAINMENT OF AVIAN INFLUENZA

06BANGKOK2889  THAILAND UPDATE: ELECTION DATE DEBATED, THAKSIN TO RESUME DUTIES?

06BANGKOK2978  INVESTMENT SLOWDOWN

06BANGKOK2988  PRIVY COUNCILOR ON THAI POLITICAL SITUATION

06BANGKOK2990  THAKSIN SEES SELF AS THAILAND’S AUNG SAN SUU KYY

06BANGKOK2991 MANICHAEAN STRUGGLE FOR THE SOUL OF THAILAND

06BANGKOK3147  THAKSIN BACK AT HIS DESK

06BANGKOK3180  DAS ERIC JOHN MEETS THAKSIN’S ORACLE

06BANGKOK3202  THAILAND IN 2006 – POLITICS AND THE SOUTH

06BANGKOK3231  ASSISTANT SECRETARY HILL’S MEETING WITH FORMER PM ANAND: SOUTH, POLITICS

06BANGKOK3237  SEED PIRACY IN THAILAND: A “GROWING” PROBLEM

06BANGKOK3277  CHECKS, LIES AND VIDEOTAPE

June

06BANGKOK3348   SUPREME COURT DISSES ELECTION COMMISSION

06BANGKOK3354  DELAY IN FTA TALKS LIKELY TO HIT US EXPORTS

06BANGKOK3435  THAI TELECOM ROUNDUP: MERGE OR DIE?

06BANGKOK3477  CLEANING UP PIRACY FOR THE KING

06BANGKOK3481  ATTORNEY GENERAL CONSIDERS POSSIBLE DISBANDING OF THAI RAK THAI

06BANGKOK3538  THAILAND CELEBRATES ITS KING

06BANGKOK3586  KING CELEBRATIONS FINISH; RETURN TO POLITICS AS USUAL

06BANGKOK3673  THAI POLITICAL UPDATE JUNE 20: DUELING LAWSUITS

06BANGKOK3745  PRIME MINISTER THAKSIN’S BAD DAY AND OTHER UPDATES

06BANGKOK3790  ATTORNEY GENERAL SAYS: “OFF WITH EVERYBODY’S HEAD!”

06BANGKOK3828  CREDIT TIGHTENTING IN THAILAND

July

06BANGKOK3916  WHAT’S THAKSIN UP TO?

06BANGKOK3955  VITAL VOICES CONFERENCE ON TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS

06BANGKOK3963  THAKSIN SAYS IT AGAIN, “I’LL TAKE A BREAK”

06BANGKOK3997  PREM ON THAKSIN

06BANGKOK4038  THAI ARMY CHIEF ON POLITICAL SITUATION

06BANGKOK4040  KING’S PRIVATE SECRETARY DISMISSES THAKSIN CLAIMS

06BANGKOK4041  STEAK WITH THAKSIN

06BANGKOK4093 OPPOSITION SEEKING USG SUPPORT IN CORRUPTION INVESTIGATION

06BANGKOK4181  “UNCLE SAM, I’M BEING BULLIED!”

06BANGKOK4212  AND THE PAD MARCHED ON

06BANGKOK4277  JOCKEYING INTENSIFIES

06BANGKOK4343  PRICE CONTROLS IN THAILAND

06BANGKOK4373  SHUFFLING THE DECKS IN A HIGH-STAKES GAME

06BANGKOK4416  PALACE APPROVES OCTOBER 15 THAI ELECTION

06BANGKOK4525  ELECTION COMMISSIONER TO ENTER MONKHOOD; ONWARD TO ELECTIONS

06BANGKOK4530  AVIAN INFLUENZA RE-SURFACES IN THAILAND; ONE HUMAN DEATH AMID NUMEROUS POULTRY DIE-OFFS

06BANGKOK4610  MORE ON MILITARY RESHUFFLE — THAI ARMY PUTS APOLITICAL OFFICERS IN CHARGE OF KEY UNITS

06BANGKOK4612  THAILAND AVIAN INFLUENZA UPDATE

06BANGKOK4613 AVIAN INFLUENZA AND FIGHTING COCKS IN THAILAND

August

06BANGKOK4685  THAILAND AND THE END OF GSP: WHO LOSES, WHO WINS?

06BANGKOK4725  SURAKIART ON THAKSIN’S SUDDEN VISIT TO BURMA

06BANGKOK4742  SURAKIART ON HIS UNSYG CANDIDACY

06BANGKOK4792  THAILAND’S SECOND HUMAN AVIAN INFLUENZA DEATH IN THE PAST TWO WEEKS

06BANGKOK4880  CHINESE INVESTMENT STRATEGIES: FAIR OR FOUL PLAY?

06BANGKOK4881 EDUCATION REFORM OR NOT

06BANGKOK4888  A NEW CHINESE EXPORT

06BANGKOK4889  THAILAND’S ENERGY PLANS

06BANGKOK4896 EDUCATION AND SUPPLYING THE SKILLS FOR THE LABOR FORCE

06BANGKOK4978 THE ECONOMICS OF PIRACY (AND WHY IT’S NOT GOING AWAY)

06BANGKOK5032  UNSYG UPDATE: SURAKIART’S CAMPAIGN MANAGER

06BANGKOK5058  SCENESETTER FOR THE AUGUST 26 – SEPTEMBER 2 VISIT OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY SAUERBREY

06BANGKOK5072   SCHISMS AND UNCERTAINTIES

06BANGKOK5075  NEW ANTI-PIRACY MOU BRINGS MALLS INTO THE FIGHT

06BANGKOK5148  SCENESETTER FOR THE VISIT OF THE USS KITTY HAWK

06BANGKOK5204  CAR BOMB DISCOVERED NEAR PRIME MINISTER’S RESIDENCE

06BANGKOK5228  NO CLARITY ON ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT

06BANGKOK5229  THE GHOST OF DEALS PAST: THAKSIN DEFENDS AGAINST PERJURY CHARGE FROM FORMER AMERICAN BUSINESS PARTNER

06BANGKOK5255  CABINET MEMBER DISCUSSES THAI POLITICAL SITUATION

06BANGKOK5335  ALLEGED BOMB PLOT: MILITARY ON DEFENSIVE

September

06BANGKOK5406  THAILAND REJECTS ASEAN-KOREA FTA

06BANGKOK5423  AMBASSADOR’S SEPTEMBER 1 MEETING WITH PRIVY COUNCILOR SURAYUD CHULANONT

06BANGKOK5424  FOREIGN INVESTORS LEERY AS SHIN INVESTIGATION WIDENS

06BANGKOK5429  THAILAND: DIVIDED

06BANGKOK5430  ELECTION COMMISSION SAYS: ELECTIONS SOON

06BANGKOK5463  SECRETARY ASSESSES PM THAKSIN’S POSITION

06BANGKOK5466  THAKSIN ADVISOR HEAPS SCORN ON OPPONENTS

06BANGKOK5497  COMMERCE UPDATES ON INVESTIGATION INTO NOMINEES

06BANGKOK5500  THAKSIN DEPUTY REVEALS LITTLE OF TRT PLANS

06BANGKOK5565  THAKSIN LOYALIST SEES LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL

06BANGKOK5567  THAI DEPUTY PM OPTIMISTIC ABOUT UPCOMING ELECTION

06BANGKOK5568  NEW ELECTION COMMISSION CHOSEN; ELECTION DATE WILL BE SET SHORTLY

06BANGKOK5705  EYE ON AMERICA? – CHINESE MEDIA IN THAILAND

06BANGKOK5706  WHAT IS THE “SUFFICIENCY ECONOMY”?

06BANGKOK5711  MILITARY AND PRIME MINISTER FACE OFF OVER MILITARY APPOINTMENTS, ALLEGED BOMB PLOT

06BANGKOK5797  LIMITED ECONOMIC FALLOUT FROM COUP

06BANGKOK5799  THAILAND COUP: IMPLEMENTING SANCTIONS

06BANGKOK5800 THAILAND COUP: PROPOSED STATEMENT REGARDING POSSIBLE USG SANCTIONS

06BANGKOK5812  THAILAND: WHO’S IN CHARGE? WHAT’S NEXT?

06BANGKOK5814  THAILAND MILITARY COUP LEADER BRIEFS FOREIGN ENVOYS, PROMISES TO APPOINT CIVILIAN PRIME MINISTER WITHIN TWO WEEKS

06BANGKOK5832  FORMER PREMIER ANAND: COUP FORESTALLED VIOLENCE

06BANGKOK5834  THAILAND UPDATE: LIFE RETURNING TO NORMAL

06BANGKOK5836  THE MONARCHY’S ROLE IN THAILAND’S SEPTEMBER 19 COUP

06BANGKOK5837  The Coup and the Media: TV Censorship and Print Freedom

06BANGKOK5866  SNAPSHOTS OF YOUTH REACTION TO COUP

06BANGKOK5874  CONTINUED CALM; THAKSIN TAKES A BREAK

06BANGKOK5894  NEW CONSTITUTION DRAFTER BRIEFS AMBASSADOR

06BANGKOK5895  THAILAND UPDATE: SEPTEMBER 25

06BANGKOK5908  PRIVY COUNCIL PRESIDENT PREM DISCUSSES TRANSITION

06BANGKOK5928  THAI MFA PERMSEC CONFIDENT OF MEETING TWO WEEK DEADLINE

06BANGKOK5929  THAI OFFICIALS PLEA FOR UNDERSTANDING

06BANGKOK5939  LIFE BEFORE THE COUP – EC COURT VERDICT

06BANGKOK5949  THAILAND UPDATE: SEPTEMBER 27

06BANGKOK5972  DEMOCRAT PARTY LEADER DISCUSSES COUP AFTERMATH

06BANGKOK5973  THAILAND COUP: SONTHI ASKS SURAYUD TO BE INTERIM PRIME MINISTER

06BANGKOK6002  CENTRAL BANK GOVERNOR EMERGES AS TOP ECONOMIC ADVISER TO CDR, PUSHES ACTIVIST AGENDA FOR SOON TO BE APPOINTED GOVERNMENT

06BANGKOK6003  CONCERNS OVER DRAFT INTERIM CONSTITUTION

06BANGKOK6004  AMBASSADOR PRESSES CDR ON TRANSITION

October

2007

January

2008

January

May

08BANGKOK1612 HOW HOT IS IT, ANYWAY?

2009

January

October

09BANGKOK2587 THAILAND’S LOWER NORTHEAST: A LOOK AT NEWIN CHIDCHOB’S WOULD BE FIEFDOM

November

09BANGKOK3003 AMBASSADOR ENGAGES THAKSIN’S SISTER AND ADVISER ON UPCOMING RED SHIRT PROTESTS, POLITICAL PROSPECTS

2010

February

10BANGKOK269 CHINA’S SUSTAINED, SUCCESSFUL EFFORTS TO COURT  SOUTHEAST ASIA AND THAILAND – PERSPECTIVES AND IMPLICATIONS

10BANGKOK478 GT200 BOMB DETECTOR FAILURE IGNITES DISCUSSION  ON CIVIL-MIL RELATIONS, HUMAN RIGHTS, PROCUREMENT

The depressing reality is that a clear-cut election victory in Thailand may not settle anything. The people have voted decisively but the popular voice is far from decisive.

Politicians still tear at each other, the King totters slowly towards his grave, the military and the elite agonise, and Thailand still confronts the danger of a civil war. After five years of commotion and sometimes bloody contest, Thailand’s nightmare is that the election result merely hits the reset button to restart the same cycle of conflict.

The previous two parties expressing Thaksin Shinawatra’s political mastery have been outlawed. Will this third manifestation, led by his sister, be able to avoid the same fate?

This is the great curse of Thailand’s distorted democratic deadlock: ‘The election winners can’t rule and the rulers can’t win elections.’

That elegant judgement is offered by Thitinan Pongsudhirak, of Bangkok’s Chulalongkorn University, who says the true meaning of the election will be decided by what happens next in Bangkok and the temper of the red and yellow forces: ‘If the two sides continue to treat politics as a win-at-all-costs, winner-takes-all game, recent history will repeat itself. But if they reach a compromise and establish some norms that both abide by, there is a chance for progress.’

After such a clear election result, why should the spectre of civil war even be mentioned? The answer, so often demonstrated since Thaksin was overthrown in 2006, is that the conflict is more than just a struggle between the Bangkok elite and the country; the Shakespearean element is the conflict surrounding the monarchy.

Thailand is afflicted by a dysfunctional royal family as much as a poisonous political culture. The vigorous use of the lèse majesté law means this is still a dangerous discussion inside Thailand, but understanding the tumult requires tackling one of the great media taboos of Asia: what King Bhumibol’s 65-year rule has really done to Thailand.

Our understanding of the King Lear element in the Thai agony has been vastly illuminated by the WikiLeaks masterwork being produced by the former Reuters journalist Andrew MacGregor Marshall. Marshall describes his distillation of 3000 US diplomatic cables on Thailand as ‘lèse majesté on an epic scale’. This is a statement of plain truth, not bravado. To publish as he has, Marshall had tosacrifice his 17-year career with Reuters.

Marshall’s series — entitled ‘Thailand’s Moment of Truth’ — is being published in instalments here, based on cables on Thailand, filed between 2004 and 2010. The result is journalism of the highest order.

Joshua Kurlanzick makes a fair call in describing it as ‘the biggest bombshell of reportage on Thailand in decades… Marshall’s account is the most thorough, and in many ways damning, assessment of the royal family’s influence over politics in history’.

Marshall uses the cables to construct a sophisticated history, illustrating the ‘absolutely pivotal role’ of the monarchy in Thai politics: ‘Explaining Thai politics without reference to the role of the palace is like trying to tell the story of the Titanic without making any mention of the ship.’

Combining his own understanding of Thailand with the US cables, Marshall details the banned topics that fuel Thai gossip but which can never be openly discussed:

• The sense of fear, even panic, that grips all levels of Thai society as the King’s death draws closer.
• The 20 year estrangement between the King and Queen.
• The suggestion in a 2009 cable that the Crown Prince suffers from ‘a blood-related medical condition’ which requires regular blood transfusions. Various sources claim the Prince is HIV positive or has Hepatitis C or is afflicted by a rare form of ‘blood cancer’
• For many years, Queen Sirikit actively promoted Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn’s interests and was seen as his greatest backer in the face of widespread public opposition and open preference for Princess Sirindhorn. The growing rift between the Queen and the Prince in recent years has fundamentally altered the power dynamics underlying the country’s political crisis.
• Thaksin has built a close relationship with the Prince. As Marshall observes: ‘The nightmare scenario for the establishment is that upon Bhumibol’s death, Thaksin sweeps back to power as Vajiralongkorn takes the throne, and the two men sweep away everything the royalists have fought for and take vicious revenge on those who have crossed them’.

The election of Thaksin’s sister (‘my clone’) breaths a huge gust of life into that nightmare scenario. The moment of truth for Thailand’s monarchy is approaching but the uncertainties abound. Marshall offers this judgement (Page 33/ Part 2) :

‘The modern monarchy is under threat because the military and bureaucracy have for decades used the palace to legitimize an increasingly unsustainable political status quo based on myths that cannot stand up to scrutiny. As Thailand enters the 21st century with its citizens better educated and better informed than they have ever been in history, more and more people are quite naturally questioning the fables underpinning the official narrative, and more and more people are demanding openness, accountability and a greater voice in politics. Rather than adapt to accommodate this inevitable — and positive — pressure for change, Thailand’s ruling elites are unable to find any better response than paranoia and repression. But they cannot win. It is inevitable that, sooner or later, the archaic power structure still in place in Thailand and the fairy tales invented to sustain it will be swept away. The only question is whether this happens through an inclusive and peaceful process of evolution or through destructive and violent revolution. The looming death of Bhumibol has made the crisis even more dangerously acute. Popular reverence and love for Rama IX is the magical ingredient that has induced Thailand’s people to suspend their disbelief and put their faith in the fairy tale. Many Thais are quite rightly deeply suspicious of the actions and motives of the ruling elite and the military, but believe that as long as the wise and virtuous Bhumibol approves of them, then everything must be alright. When he goes, the glue holding the whole increasingly unstable edifice together will dissolve.’

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SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/21/2016
TAGS: PGOV, PHUM, KDEM, MOPS, ASEC, TH
SUBJECT: THE MONARCHY\’S ROLE IN THAILAND\’S SEPTEMBER 19 COUP

REF: BANGKOK 5812 (WHO\’S IN CHARGE?)

Classified By: Ambassador Ralph L. Boyce, reason 1.4 (d).

SUMMARY
——-

1. (C) It remains unclear whether Thailand\’s King encouraged
or provided approval in advance for the September 19 coup
d\’etat by the Council for Democratic Reform Under the
Monarchy (CDRM). However, the CDRM is publicly linked to the
monarchy to a greater extent than previous coup plotters, and
the CDRM\’s September 19 royal audience sent a clear public
signal of Palace endorsement. Palace endorsement likely
contributed to public support for the coup, although polls by
two prominent institutions provide divergent accounts of the
coup\’s popularity. The ill health of the King might have
influenced the timing of the coup. End Summary.

ROYAL AUDIENCE KEY TO COUP SUCCESS, ACCEPTABILITY
——————————————— —-

2. (C) On the night of September 19, soon after the CDRM
seized control of the media, word spread that CDRM leaders
would have an audience with King Bhumibol Adulyadej. The
audience took place at Chittralada Villa from 12:19 a.m.
until 1:24 a.m. the same night, according to an Embassy
contact at the Palace. The willingness of the King to
receive the CDRM representatives so quickly sent a clear
public signal of royal endorsement of the coup. And by
including Supreme Commander Ruangroj, previously thought to
be firmly in Thaksin\’s camp, the audience displayed the
military\’s unity and loyalty to the King — to the point of
deflating Thaksin\’s hopes that he could prevail against the
rebellious soldiers (reftel).

3. (C) The CDRM\’s public claims that it acted to maintain
peace and order, and to protect the King against acts of lese
majeste, were not unexpected or atypical. The CDRM\’s
inclusion of reference to the monarchy in the coup-plotters\’
group name, however, appears unprecedented in Thai history.
(A literal translation of the Thai version is: \”Council for
Reforming Governance in the Democratic System having His
Majesty the King as Head of State.\”) Also unprecedented is
an alleged Royal Command, published online by the Prime
Minister\’s Office, in which the King \”appoints General Sonthi
as leader of the (CDRM), and demands… all government
officials follow the orders of General Sonthi.\” (Full text
of the alleged Royal Command provided septel.) Embassy
contacts at the Palace tell us they have not seen a copy of
the signed Royal Command, however.

4. (C) Given the widespread public understanding, especially
in Bangkok, that Thaksin was increasingly engaged in
confrontation with members of the Privy Council (if not with
the King himself), most Thais view the CDRM as acting on
behalf of the King\’s interests. Almost universal Thai
reverence for the King has likely contributed significantly
to popular acceptance of the coup.

5. (C) The King is in ill health and has not been seen in
public since his August 4 departure from a Bangkok hospital.
However, we hear that the CDRM has requested the release of
photographs and video footage of the royal audience with the
CDRM. Our contacts told us that the King\’s Secretary will
likely release the photographs, but is unlikely to release
the video footage. Release of images from the audience would
convey further signals of royal endorsement.

KING\’S HEALTH INFLUENCING COUP TIMING?
————————————–

6. (C) Given the King\’s ill health, we do not dismiss the
possibility that the coup\’s timing was determined in part not
only by Thaksin\’s travel abroad, but also by a desire by CDRM
figures to make their move while they could still obtain the
support of the King. (Not only does the King\’s imprimatur
carry much more weight than the Crown Prince\’s would, but a
coup mounted during any period of mourning would be seen as a
deep affront to Thai sensibilities, no matter how unpopular
the government. Similarly, whatever constitutional reform
efforts begin under the CDRM will likely be suspended for a
lengthy period in the event of the King\’s demise.)

COMMENT
——-

BANGKOK 00005836 002 OF 002

7. (C) The now-terminated 1997 Constitution provided no basis
for military intervention in politics. The monarchy appears
to be the sole institution capable of legitimizing the
September 19 coup in the eyes of the Thai people. By its
actions to date, the Palace seems to be playing that role.
The King\’s imprimatur — combined with widespread hatred of
Thaksin in elite circles — appears to have provided a
certain amount of breathing room for the CDRM.

BOYCE
“

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SIPDIS
NOFORN

NSC FOR PHU

E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/08/2017
TAGS: PGOV, PINR, KDEM, TH
SUBJECT: PALACE INSIDER PROVIDES UPDATE ON ROYAL HEALTH
ISSUES

REF: A. BANGKOK 5718 (KING LEAVES HOSPITAL)
B. BANGKOK 5717 (PPP CONCERNS)

Classified By: Ambassador Ralph L. Boyce, reason: 1.4 (b) and (d).

SUMMARY
——-

1. (S/NF) Tej Bunnag, Deputy Principal Private Secretary of
the King (strictly protect), told the Ambassador in a
November 8 meeting at the Privy Council chambers that the
King\’s health appeared reasonably good. The King wanted to
remain active, although his health constraints complicated
the duties of his schedulers. Tej asserted definitively that
no planning was under way for the King\’s eventual death; the
Privy Council would determine what to do after the event.
Tej confirmed Princess Galyani\’s condition was poor, and he
said the King was fully aware of this fact; her death, if
prior to December 23, should not affect the upcoming
election. Tej relayed the King\’s bluntly expressed decision
that the Crown Prince represent him in the November 5 royal
barge ceremony; this was taken as a strong indicator of the
King\’s determination to have the Crown Prince retain his
current status as the King\’s designated successor. Tej
sought and received the Ambassador\’s assurance his remarks
would be kept in the strictest confidence. End Summary.

KING\’S HEALTH AND SCHEDULED ACTIVITIES
————————————–

2. (S/NF) Tej Bunnag, Deputy Principal Private Secretary of
the King (strictly protect), told the Ambassador that King
Bhumibol, whose hospitalization ended on November 7 (ref A),
appeared to be in relatively good condition. Responding to
the Ambassador\’s questions, Tej said the King was able to
speak and to stand on his own. (Note: November 7 television
footage showed the King walking out of the hospital at a
quick pace with the assistance of a walker; the King was not
seen speaking in public, however. End note.) Tej said the
King was resuming his regular duties, and approximately 80
files were awaiting the King\’s signature. If the King\’s
health were to worsen, Tej said, the King would immediately
return to the hospital.

3. (S/NF) Tej said the King had made it clear on more than
one occasion that he wanted to leave the hospital, but his
doctors held him back. Given the King\’s desires, Palace
staff members were unable to clear the King\’s schedule; they
had to cancel all events at the last possible moment. The
Ambassador noted the upcoming visit under Embassy auspices of
the Preservation Hall Jazz Band. Some members of the King\’s
musical entourage had indicated to Embassy officials that the
King would like the band to come to the Palace for a private
performance, with his possibly joining in a jam session. The
Ambassador asked if these reports seemed credible. Tej
replied this scenario sounded quite possible, although, like
other events, a performance for or with the King could be
canceled at the last moment. The Palace was continuing to
plan for the King\’s participation in the full range of
ceremonies and celebrations during the several days around
his 80th birthday (December 5).

\”THE CROWN PRINCE IS MY REPRESENTATIVE\”
—————————————

4. (S/NF) Tej explained that the King had very much wanted to
participate in the November 5 royal barge procession. Given
his medical condition, Palace figures prepared five
alternatives for his consideration. When they presented
these, however, the King quickly dismissed them. According
to Tej, the King said, \”I don\’t need these; the Crown Prince
is my representative.\” (In the event, Crown Prince
Vajiralongkorn took the King\’s place on the Suphannahongse
barge.) Tej said Palace insiders interpreted the King\’s
blunt decision as the clearest indication yet of his
determination to have the Crown Prince retain his current
status as the King\’s designated successor.

PRINCESS\’ HEALTH
—————-

5. (S/NF) The Ambassador inquired about the health of

BANGKOK 00005738 002 OF 002

Princess Galyani Vadhana, the King\’s older sister, indicating
some skepticism about official reports of her recovery (ref
B). Tej reluctantly conceded in imprecise terms that the
Princess was in a state of continual dependence on medical
equipment. The Ambassador asked whether the King was
\”completely aware\” of Galyani\’s condition. Tej replied
unambiguously that the King was, noting the King had visited
Galyani on a daily basis while in the hospital.

6. (S/NF) The Ambassador asked if Galyani\’s eventual demise
would affect the upcoming election (as some fear — ref B).
Tej stated with conviction that it would not, noting as one
important factor Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont\’s strong
desire for the elections to take place as scheduled. The
Ambassador observed that Thais should not need to choose
between mourning the death of a respected figure and being
able to elect a government; Tej agreed.

NO PLANNING FOR MOURNING
————————

7. (S/NF) With due sensitivity to the issue, the Ambassador
asked whether anyone was engaged in planning for funeral
arrangements, in the event of the Princess\’ or King\’s
passing. \”Absolutely not,\” replied Tej, noting that this
would be culturally taboo. The Ambassador asked whether
Galyani\’s death would be marked by a 100-day mourning period;
Tej said this scenario sounded plausible, but nothing had
been determined. Tej also explained there would be no
advance planning for how to respond to the King\’s death; the
Privy Council would determine what to do after the event.
The Ambassador noted the Embassy had heard speculation of a
1,000-day mourning period after the King\’s death. Tej said
he simply did not know what would happen, but he was able to
confirm that the Crown Prince, if he remains the designated
successor, would immediately become King, although his
coronation ceremony would take place after the mourning
period and royal cremation.

STRICTLY PROTECT
—————-

8. (S/NF) At the conclusion of the meeting, Tej highlighted
the extraordinary sensitivity of the matters they had
discussed. He sought and received the Ambassador\’s assurance
of complete confidentiality regarding his remarks.

COMMENT
——-

9. (S/NF) Few contacts with Tej\’s level of access to Palace
information have been as open with us as he was in this
meeting. We see nothing incongruous about his claim that
there is no ongoing planning for how to respond to the King\’s
passing; we also take heart that the latest signs indicate no
reason to believe this is imminent.
BOYCE
“