Geek in Thailand. Jody Houton
coup in the traditional sense of the word and there would be no violence. In fact, he stated that the coup was launched to prevent the kind of violence that was being seen at that time in Ukraine. Many Thais and visiting foreigners seemed to agree, with some posing for pictures with bemused soldiers holding machine guns.
HAPPINESS FESTIVALS
Throughout the month of June 2014, the Royal Thai Army staged a number of ‘Happiness Festivals’ in the capital, including at the highly symbolic site of the Victory Monument, popular with protesters past and present, with the aim of restoring happiness to the people. Activities included music concerts, free movie screenings, a petting zoo, free haircuts, free meals and even a sexy coyote performance.
Apart from a few tourists intent on obtaining a soldier selfie, there were many more who were wary of the political situation in Thailand and visitor numbers plummeted.
The Tourism Authority of Thailand hit upon the idea of promoting Martial Law Tourism, stating that, in fact, the country was now safer than ever, what with soldiers, machine guns at the ready, guarding the streets.
Following the murder of two British backpackers in late 2014, the Thai Tourism Minister stated that she had another idea to ensure the safety of the country’s visitors: every single one of them would be asked to wear a wristband containing a serial number that corresponded with their ID, which would work much like a sort of rudimentary tracking device. It was met with a mixture of incredulity and ridicule and the idea was soon dropped. A curfew for tourists was another idea that was quickly dismissed.
From July 2014 onwards, the sight of soldiers in the streets became less and less common and life returned to as normal as it has ever been for the Thai people.
Despite the ‘it’s not a coup’ claims, a curfew was swiftly imposed from 10 am to 5 pm, which quickly had the desired effect of removing the protest camps that were sporadically placed throughout the capital and elsewhere in the country, regardless of color.
BACK TO ‘NORMAL’
Once the coup was imposed and the country was, for the twelfth time, under military rule, Thailand began to return to a sense of military normalcy that almost every generation since 1932 had experienced at one time or another. Suthep shaved his head, joined the monkhood and disappeared from public view for the next few months, while Yingluck went abroad to catch up with her brother. Towards the end of the year, however, she began to be spotted at glitzy events in the capital. The good times weren’t to last, however. In January 2015, Yingluck, despite no longer being in office, was impeached and banned from participating in politics for five years.
The NCPO had cleared the streets and seemed to have been successful in reminding the two warring factions about what really mattered. All that remained was to try to convince the general public that they were doing the right thing. And so began the Happiness campaign in June 2014.
HARDLINE POLITICS
Although the NCPO initially said that it was their ultimate intention to hold elections in the latter part of 2015, when Prime Minister Prayut would step down, the former general also hinted on a number of occasions, especially on his weekly Friday night TV address, Kuen Kwam Suk (Returning Happiness), that this would only be the case if he thought that the government and Thai society were in a stable enough position for him to do so.
Although martial law was finally lifted in April 2015, it was quickly replaced with the invocation of Article 44 from the interim constitution. Commonly referred to as ‘dictator law’, it gave Prayut absolute power to override any branch of government as long as such actions were done in the name of national security.
Prayut, Suthep and Thaksin were front page news for much of 2014 and 2015.
Protestors changed tack, from anti-Shinawatra to anti-coup, in 2014.
THE LAND OF PLENTY
Once touted as a land of plenty because of its rich, varied and abundant agricultural products, Thailand is still able to make such claims, albeit in a slightly more corporate and less romanticized rural way. It continues to have one of the lowest levels of unemployment in the world.
The story of the Thai economy really began to change pace, along with its main characters, when King Rama V, in an attempt to sidestep the sort of bloodshed seen during the American Civil War, abolished slavery and serfdom in 1905. From then onwards, opportunities were available not only to wealthy landowners and noblemen but also to a new wave of entrepreneurs and merchants. Soon after, the export of agricultural products, including most significantly rice, became paramount in the steady growth of the economy and Thailand’s inclusion in the global market.
A cultural and economical hangover from Siam’s reliance on serfdom is, arguably, still present in Thai society. As such, living like a king or a queen, or at the very least a master, is relatively achievable, at least for the middle and upper classes. Taking taxis everywhere, eating out every day, having regular massages and employing gardeners, maids and cleaners is not seen as particularly indulgent for a large percentage of the kingdom’s residents. Of course, this is only made possible by Thailand’s huge socio-economic disparity, its ingrained, clearly defined hierarchical structures and its slew of servile jobs. In Thailand, there are whistle-blowing car park attendants, guards who appear to be guarding little more than their plastic seats, well-dressed doormen employed solely to salute customers at shopping malls, and countless other subservient jobs that have disappeared from many a developed country’s workplace.
Gender inequality is another remnant of traditional Thai culture that hasn’t dramatically changed over the years. Although women can be found on construction sites, collecting trash and generally doing any job that men do, they also tend to earn, on average, 81 percent of what men earn for doing the same job. Thai women have to compete with very traditional, stereotypical and downright sexist views, both inside and outside the office. At home, they are expected to take care of the children and perform all domestic duties, all of which are done with virtually no governmental assistance.
Most Thais work long, hard days, the average being from 8 am to 6 pm, five days a week, often with a half or full day on Saturday.
Although rice fields can still be found in the countryside, many rural Thais have migrated to the cities to find work.
WHEN DISASTER STRIKES
As long as Thai workers have not been fired or have left their position without due cause, they are eligible for up to 15,000 baht (US$450) unemployment benefit per month, depending on the amount of social security contributions they have made. Although this may not seem like a huge amount, the minimum wage in Thailand is just 300 baht a day ($9), so 15,000 baht a month is actually a well above average monthly amount.
Any Thai who earns less than 150,000 baht (US$4,500) per year is exempt from paying tax, meaning, in effect, that a huge percentage of the Thai population and workforce do not pay taxes or make any social security contributions whatsoever. This includes Thailand’s street vendors, fruit sellers, DVD merchants, tourist touts, illegal taxi drivers, and all those employed in cash-in-hand industries. A downside of this seemingly kind concession is that should disaster strike and they find themselves unable to sell pineapples, or without customers, then they will invariably find themselves on their own, unable to receive any help from the state. In Thailand, one must be part of and pay into the system to benefit from it.
Foreigners in Thailand who find themselves in a similar situation are also rarely entitled to any financial support despite the significant tax and social security payments they may have made. This is because a foreigner’s residence and status as a non-tourist in Thailand is usual dependent on having a work permit. Once that is taken away, so too are the majority