THAILAND: Amid Thai Crackdown, A Few Gather for Peace
|
By Lynette Lee Corporal
"Stop the killing!' many in the emotional, distraught group of protesters shouted. Thus far, at least 43 people have been killed and 365 injured since the army started on May 13 its crackdown on the two-month protest of the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD). Attended by about 150 people, the ‘Solidarity for Peace’ rally had been planned ahead of the crackdown to urge the Thai government and the protesters “to go back to the negotiation table and find a peaceful resolution to the conflict." But after the eruption of arson attacks in the wake of the UDD leaders’ surrender and after the army operation, Chalida Tajaroensuk, director of the People Empowerment Foundation, said: "What happened today will never help in the reconciliation process for both sides.” Both the government and the protesters need to take responsibility for the crisis if there is to be true healing and reconciliation afterwards, many in the peace rally said. Chulalongkorn University Prof. Kasem Phenpinant says it will be very difficult to rebuild the trust between the two sides. "Both have moral and legal responsibilities. It is also important that fairness and justice prevail in the legal system," he said. At the same time, Kasem adds, it is important to address social justice issues. "As long as double standards exist in this country in favour of the ruling government, expect to have more problems in the future as the real issue is not being addressed," said Akaraphong Khamkoon, a lecturer at Thammasat University. Akaraphong says that the upper and middle class do not really understand the poor and so tend to dismiss them. "The poor, meanwhile, continue to aspire for better things and to be treated as equal but society does not allow them that opportunity," he explained. Feeling cheated out of their electoral mandate after the political parties they voted won but were ousted from parliament in 2008, the red shirts, so-called because of their protest uniform colour, took to the streets in March to demand a new election. After government troops crashed through barricades to get the Rajprasong protest site Wednesday, renegade protesters set fire to various buildings around the city, including a shopping mall, a theatre, the stock exchange building and a supermarket. For healing to occur, both sides have to have a clear and similar idea of what reconciliation should be, Chalida says, but this is not happening. "There is much confusion and disagreement among many people on what reconciliation is, or what democracy is. Many people don't even know what good governance and rule of law are. If they don't have a common understanding of these concepts, then how do you expect them to live together peacefully?" she asked. "We never learn from the mistakes of the past simply because these are not being taught in school," said Akaraphong. Chalida agrees that education about these deep-seated issues is lacking in the Thai consciousness. "People should know that there is more to democracy than just elections," she said. On more practical terms, Kasem sees the need for the government to "resign and submit to the legal process, such as an election". (END/AMF/LLC/JS/10) |
BANGKOK, May 19 (Asia Media Forum) — As reports spread of soldiers moving to the rally site of the anti-government protesters and the expected surrender of its leaders Wednesday, a small group of activists and individuals gathered at the United Nations complex here to call for talks and reconciliation.
Aung Htun (not his real name) is one of the young video journalists featured in the award-winning feature documentary 'Burma VJ (Reporting from a Closed Country)'. 
