Spirit of ‘1984’ in regime’s cloistered ranks
Prawit Wongsuwon, held in high regard as a “big brother” among members of the junta, normally maintains a cool and calm composure when meeting the press corps. Earlier this week, the regime’s secondin-command showed a rare lapse in his placidity when faced with questions regarding a statement by a former subordinate.
He lashed out at Gen Yossanan Raicharoen for lacking the gratitude for his advance in his military career, calling the former deputy supreme commander a “colour-changing lizard”.
Gen Prawit’s outburst came after Gen Yossanan officially joined the Thai Raksa Chart Party, a Pheu Thai Party spinoff.
Speaking to the press after applying for membership in the party, Gen Yossanan said he decided to join the TRC because the party “beholds the ideal of democracy and its development paradigm has kept up with the changing times”.
Then he added: “The lessons over the past four years since the [coup] have shown the country is not moving forward, people are suffering and the economy shows no growth.”
His statement leaves no room for misinterpretation. The country has been deprived of democracy and people are suffering economic hardship since the regime came to power.
It’s a slap in the face for the coup makers, and it’s a cause for Gen Prawit to invoke an old saying reminding Gen Yossanan of his gratitude for khao daeng kaeng ron — sustenance given him by his superiors throughout his life in the military.
To show gratitude to one’s benefactors is a virtue held highly in Asian culture.
As children, it was drilled into our heads that we must feel gratitude for those who help us during our lives. That includes our parents, teachers, bosses and whoever else provides any significant assistance.
It also means you must repay them with respect or in kind when the time comes, and that you never speak ill of them.
Such a cultural value is held even dearer within the military and police circles. It’s considered a grave sin for any member to air their dirty laundry in public.
That’s why when news surfaces of a soldier suffering cruel treatment or found dead from injuries, there is always a frenzy of attempts to keep it quiet. Rarely, if ever, have there been apologies from the top brass for such misdeeds.
Gratitude may be a virtue but freedom of speech certainly is not.
So whenever the military seizes power, the first thing it does is to impose this culture of silence upon the citizenry.
For the current regime, such an
imposition manifests itself in many forms, including laws such as the Computer Crime Act or cyber security bill, which is in the process of becoming a law. Many orders issued by the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) have become law, sometimes fast-tracked by the use of Section 44.
But it is also expressed in direct or indirect threats and intimidation against opponents of the regime.
While gratitude and loyalty are glorified by the big brass, the word “hypocrisy” has slipped their minds.
So junta leader Prayut Chan-o-cha never considers his power seizure as an illegal act, but rather a great deed to help the country.
His rule is not a dictatorship but a democracy, Thai-style. Freedom of speech is not a right but a tool to stir up trouble.
Thaksin and Yingluck Shinawatra relied on populist policies that were a huge waste of taxpayers’ money and ultimately detrimental to the country. What Prayut and friends have proposed and implemented — essentially drawing from the same playbook — is apparently good for the country and money well-spent.
Talking about gratitude, whose money is it that saw them through their military careers and current positions, only to later subjugate the public?
George Orwell’s 1984 may be approaching 70 years since its publication, but its spirit is alive and well.
It’s considered a grave sin for any member of the military to air their dirty laundry in public.