OPINION

Good old days

Re: "Thankful for what we've got", (PostBag, Dec 22).

Regular PostBag contributor Michael Setter said in his letter there were two English-language newspapers in Thailand when he first arrived in 1979.

In fact, at that time there were four: Bangkok Post, The Nation, Business Times (run by serial protest leader Sondhi Limthongkul), and my favourite, Bangkok World with Trink's legendary Nite Owl column.

Re: "Expelling drug lords at the border", (Editorial, Dec 22).

This editorial raises many questions which should be pointed out.

1) How could Deputy Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai claim Thailand's sovereignty remains intact, despite the recent statement by the Third Army Region urging rebels from the United Wa State Army (USWA) to vacate the disputed border areas between Thailand and Myanmar?

In what capacity was he speaking?

Does he have the authority to issue a statement that lies in such sharp contrast to the army's remarks?

His claim sends a dangerous message to Thais and the world, that the Royal Thai Army is losing its grip on the situation.

As such, Mr Phumtham should be investigated for his remark and punished by the court.

He should also be closely monitored to determine if he has secret ties to rebels from the Wa army.

2) Second, how did the USWA rebels manage to occupy the area?

Surely they didn't take over the area overnight?

Furthermore, why did the army issue a statement urging the rebels to leave, instead of using force to uproot the rebels from their position?

Why didn't anyone raise this issue in parliament during a session called by the opposition parties?

3) The editorial suggests Thai officials have been facilitating the smuggling of drugs from Myanmar for decades, especially along the border in Mae Hong Son province, and Mae Sai district in Tak.

However, this illegal trade cannot flourish for decades without the help of the Thai army and state officials in border provinces, like Tak and Chiang Rai.

Has there been a national investigation to identify the culprits and bring them to justice?

We have the right to know if officials in charge of army operations along the border, the chief of police in border districts, and members of parliaments representing these regions are involved.

The public has the right to know who is working against the nation in this manner.

The Bangkok Post should run an investigation to expose the culprits, like the New York Times and Washington Post routinely run probes.

4) It is well known that China has leverage with the USWA rebels who are occupying Thai territory and running them like Mexican drug cartels in Arizona.

Why isn't the government pushing China to stop supporting the rebels? Do we not have good relations with China or are we too scared to rock the boat?

Last but not least, when it comes to rooting out corruption in Thailand, the task won't be so difficult if we have a brave and iron-fisted, nationalist, prime minister in power.

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