Thread: Burma's coup leader and new dictator, Min Aung Hlaing was one of "Prem's children" (ลูก ”ป๋า”), meaning he had a close relationship with the now deceased Thai elder statesman, who was the central architect of Thailand's royalist-military establishment. #รัฐประหาร ImageImage
You could say that Prem was like a godfather to the Burmese general.

Another interesting Thai-Burma connection, at least symbolically, is the powerful local political godfather, Newin Chidchob, of Buriram Province. #รัฐประหาร
Newin is the de facto leader of the Bhumjaithai Party, who are key coalition allies of the pro-military government, led by former coup leader and dictator Prayut Chan-o-cha. #รัฐประหาร
Newin was given his unusual name by his father, in honour of the Burmese coup-leader and dictator General Ne Win, whose "strength" and "power" Newin's father respected. #รัฐประหาร ImageImage
Despite the convenient role Thais and Burmese play as each other's "historical enemies", the Thai elites in fact share a mutual respect and, very often, a close relationship with their Burmese counterparts. #รัฐประหาร
They enjoy these close relations while helping to create distrust, hatred and discrimination between the people of each country (e.g. policies to migrant workers, nationalist historiographies, movies like The Legend of King Naresuan). Don't be fooled by it. #รัฐประหาร

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More from @JBuchananBKK

1 Feb
Thread: the disconnect between many Thais and their government is clear. While Deputy PM Prawit refused to condemn the #BurmaCoup, saying it is their business, Thai pro-democracy groups quickly organised a #StandWithMyanmar protest near the Myanmar embassy today. #รัฐประหาร
Thailand has suffered two coups in recent memory (2006 & 2014), and is one if the most coup-prone countries in the world. This disconnect between people and governments is often felt in ASEAN. The ASEAN organisation will almost certainly echo Gen. Prawit's statement that...
...the coup is Myanmar's internal matter. This is why it's important for Southeast Asian civil society to think and act regionally, in solidarity and cooperation with progressives in other ASEAN countries. They can, to an extent, do the work their ASEAN leaders are failing to do.
Read 7 tweets
23 Oct 20
Thread: Some remarkable scenes from the king and queen's appearance with the (presumably carefully selected) public at the palace area this evening. The king was introduced to a man who recently made headlines for standing among youth protesters holding a royal portrait. /1
The king thanked him, touched him on the shoulder and said he was very brave. The king also gave a friendly greeting to a man who appears to be Buddha Issara, touching him several times and whispering in his ear. /2
Buddha Issara is a former monk who led a radical faction of the royalist-nationalist PDRC protest in 2014. He was then defrocked for a number of crimes, including firearms offences and misuse of royal insignia. He recently vowed to rally supporters to "defend the monarchy" /3
Read 9 tweets
22 Oct 20
Thread: last year I wrote an article arguing that the era of red versus yellow isn't over in Thailand. This picture was taken about a week ago, on the 14th October. /1
The things that separated the red and yellow shirts a decade ago were different ideas about representative democracy, equality under the law, the supremacy of the constitution and the role of the monarchy and military in Thailand. /2
The younger generation grew up watching this struggle take place and were so sickened by the behaviour of the "yellow" side, that they turned completely against them, rejecting their royalist-nationalist, undemocratic vision of Thailand. /3
Read 5 tweets
22 Oct 20
เทรด: ปีที่แล้วผมเขียนบทความว่ายุคเหลืองแดงในไทยยังไม่จบ รูปนี้ถ่ายไว้ประมาณอาทิตย์ก่อน ช่วงวันที่ 14 ตุลา /1
สิ่งที่แยกเหลืองแดงจากกันเมื่อสิบปีที่แล้ว คือแนวความคิดเรื่องผู้แทน ความเท่าเทียมกันภายใต้กฎหมาย ความเป็นกฎหมายสูงสุดของรธน. และบทบาทของราชวงศ์และทหารในประเทศไทย /2
คนรุ่นใหม่เติบโตมาโดยที่ต้องคอยดูการต่อสู้นี้เกิดขึ้น และเกิดความรู้สึกแย่กับพฤติกรรมของฝ่าย “เหลือง” ก็เลยต่อต้านขึ้นมาแบบสุดใจ ปฏิเสธรอยัลลิสต์ และความไร้ประชาธิปไตยของไทย /3
Read 5 tweets
16 Oct 20
Thread: I'm extremely concerned about Francis Bunkueanun Paothong, an International Relations student in our faculty at Mahidol University International College (MUIC) /1 #Saveบุญเกื้อหนุน
Police have opened a case against him and another well-known activist, Ekachai Hongkangwan, using Section 110, which states that "whoever commits an act of violence against the liberty of the queen shall be punished with imprisonment for life, or of 16 to 20 years" /2
This case is highly unusual. Legal experts believe it is the first time this section has been used since the reign of Rama 8. /3
#Saveบุญเกื้อหนุน
Read 11 tweets
4 Aug 20
Prayut as trash cans (thread)
Read 21 tweets

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