Thaksin’s plea for reconciliation rings hollow

Ihave lost count of the number of times ousted former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra has pleaded for reconciliation. The last one was delivered from Beijing in his phonein address to his supporters in Thailand on the occasion of his 64th birthday last Friday.

Thaksin urged his Thai compatriots to set aside their mutual mistrust and to face one another for talks to build reconciliation.

‘‘We should talk the way Thais do in the Thai language, talk right down to the core about what problems we want to solve together with the national interest as the basis,’’ he said.

The exiled ex-premier noted that some of the problems were overblown and had become big issues because ‘‘we do not talk to one another’’.

He said that although family, friends and supporters occasionally came to visit him and brought him things from Thailand, he still missed his family and his homeland.

But he quickly added that it didn’t matter much when he would be able to come home. He had to be patient because there are some duties which still have to be done. He also said he was ready to make sacrifices for the sake of the national interest.

I couldn’t agree more with Thaksin every time he preaches the reconciliation mantra. But every time after his plea I have become disappointed and my hopes for reconciliation are dashed.

Again this time, I am not so convinced that he genuinely means what he says, especially after that video clip incident posted on YouTube a few weeks back.

It reputedly involved a discussion between him and Deputy Defence Minister Yutthasak Sasiprapa on such matters as seeking collusion from the top brass for an amnesty decree in exchange for post-retirement careers for some generals, and a military reshuffle.

The video seems to cast Thaksin in a light contrary to the image of a man seeking reconciliation or a man who is willing to sacrifice for the national interest, as he wants us to believe.

For hard-core Thaksin opponents and the Democrats, the timing of his recon-

I am not so convinced that he genuinely means what he says, especially after that video clip incident on YouTube.

ciliation plea, which coincided with the ruling Pheu Thai Party’s plan to table in parliament MP Worachai Hema’s amnesty bill for deliberation on Aug 7, only serves to confirm their suspicion the bill will be drastically changed during the scrutiny period to include Thaksin and other political offenders, making them beneficiaries of the amnesty.

However, Pheu Thai has insisted the exiled ex-premier and other key players in the April-May 2010 protests, including former prime minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and former deputy prime minister Suthep Thaugsuban, will not benefit from the bill.

For the anti-Thaksin camp, they are against the amnesty issue whether it is Worachai Hema’s bill or the reconciliation bill proposed by Chalerm Yubamrung when he was still deputy prime minister, or the one proposed by retired general Sonthi Boonyaratglin.

A rally was planned by a group calling itself the People’s Army led by a retired admiral.

Mere words alone from Thaksin about reconciliation or about his desire to wash his hands of politics will not help the cause of reconciliation.

He should realise that mutual distrust between the pro-Thaksin and antiThaksin camps is so deep that it requires more than empty pleas from him for the trust to start building.

His opponents are not to blame for not trusting him. How many times has Thaksin talked about quitting politics or about sacrificing himself for the national interest, only to be proven untrue the next day with his seemingly endless meddling in the government’s affairs.

‘‘Actions speak louder than words’’ is an old saying. So Thaksin must act — and start acting — to convince his doubters and to break the wall of mutual distrust.

To begin with, he should stop meddling in the government’s affairs and let Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra have a free hand to do her job since she is surrounded by a number of capable advisers.

Even given the benefit of doubt, I don’t think Mr Worachai’s amnesty bill will be distorted to include Thaksin in the dragnet as that will invite trouble for the government.

The People’s Alliance for Democracy has not raised any objection to the bill and will not join the rally called for Aug 6 by the anti-Thaksin grouping.

If the government is serious about reconciliation, it should dust off the reports on the topic by King Prachadipok’s Institute and Kanit na Nakorn’s Truth for Reconciliation Commission, and adopt their recommendations for implementation.