End of mission impossible but no time to gloat

End of mission impossible but no time to gloat

It is hardly surprising that Gen Boonlert "Seh Ai" Kaewprasert called off his second Pitak Siam rally on Saturday after failing to amass the 1 million people he had earlier promised.

The mission was impossible from the start.

It's obvious even to outsiders that the retired general lacked a strong enough platform to bring down a democratically elected government whose photogenic leader remains highly popular with her electorate.

Gen Boonlert had no ideological cause apart from the same, old, unproven allegations of disloyalty to the monarchy.

He also seemed to lack the organisational means, personal charisma and leadership qualities to carry such a campaign through to the end.

What probably caught some people off guard, however, was how quickly the seemingly ambitious demonstration ended, and how complete the former soldier's capitulation appeared to be.

Gen Boonlert did not just announce that he would wash his hands of the anti-government protest, but went so far as to say that a part of him, what he called "the old Seh Ai", had already died.

Such an easy defeat was quite baffling given that the government was so alarmed by Seh Ai's threat that it decided to invoke the Internal Security Act.

Seh Ai cited several reasons why he decided to end the protest with a whimper and accept the humiliating defeat. He said he was concerned about snipers and did not want to endanger the lives of supporters who joined the rally. Whether these reasons are true or not, only Seh Ai knows. But what should be noted is that while Seh Ai may be labelled a loser by his political opponents, his decision to call off the protest when he saw no hope of achieving his goal was a courageous one.

He shouldered the blame himself, and could now be prosecuted for leading a public protest to topple the government.

He will also be ridiculed for leading a campaign that had feet of clay.

But at least nobody can blame him for putting his own ego before his political objectives.

So what have we learned from the weekend's demonstration? One obvious thing is that the supremacy of electoral democracy has taken root in the psyche of many Thai people _ even those who do not support the ruling Pheu Thai Party.

Seh Ai's defeat is partly the result of his own right-wing, dictatorial way of thinking. His calling for a coup and his stated preference for the country to put parliamentary democracy on hold for a few years _ freezing Thailand so to speak _ spelled the death of his campaign right from the start.

There was no way such an anti-democratic drive could be successful, and that in itself is a positive development. It's a cause for celebration.

Seh Ai's goal, no matter how undemocratic it sounded, did attract thousands of people to the Royal Turf Club last month and on the weekend to the Royal Plaza. That is something the government should pay attention to.

It would be wrong for the powers-that-be to bask in their fresh victory and dismiss the people behind the Pitak Siam movement as nonsensical fanatics or remnants of the broken-hearted elites.

Some of them may indeed be, but some also represent the real dissatisfaction with the ruling party that exists within elements of the population.

The government must find ways to deal with this dissatisfaction that don't involve lining up police by the thousand and using tear gas.

They should be aware that the weekend rally is but a prelude to a larger and fiercer anti-government campaign that will rise as soon as there is a renewed attempt to amend the constitution and pass an amnesty bill for political cases stemming from the 2006 coup. The timing for that could be early next year when parliament resumes.

There is no doubt that these issues are far more sensitive and divisive than the outdated ideas on which Seh Ai built his doomed campaign. They will serve as rallying points not just for those wanting to vent their dissatisfaction with the government, but for those who strongly oppose its actions.

If the government plans to treat such a protest in the same manner as it did Seh Ai's crowd, it could end up losing more than Seh Ai did on Saturday.


Atiya Achakulwisut is Deputy Editor, Bangkok Post.

Atiya Achakulwisut

Columnist for the Bangkok Post

Atiya Achakulwisut is a columnist for the Bangkok Post.

Do you like the content of this article?
COMMENT (17)