CONTENTS PREFACE <strong>Political</strong> assass<strong>in</strong>ations <strong>and</strong> extra-judicial kill<strong>in</strong>gs s<strong>in</strong>ce 1947 4 Lèse majesté . . . some recent cases 24 APPENDICES 1. Letter from political prisoners <strong>in</strong> Bangkok Rem<strong>and</strong> Prison 34 2. Free Somyot Campaign 35 Further <strong>in</strong>formation: www.timeupthail<strong>and</strong>.net 2
PREFACE Will the 9th ‘successful’ military coup aga<strong>in</strong>st the ‘People’s Assembly’ on 19 September 2006 <strong>and</strong> the massacre <strong>of</strong> people <strong>in</strong> the streets <strong>in</strong> April-May 2010 lead to a 10th ‘successful’ military coup, with even more loss <strong>of</strong> civilian life? This document br<strong>in</strong>gs together some <strong>of</strong> the evidence <strong>of</strong> the fearful tension that underlies the power struggle between the Institution <strong>of</strong> Monarchy <strong>and</strong> the Parliament <strong>of</strong> the People, tension that must be faced with dispassionate reason<strong>in</strong>g by all sides if the governance <strong>of</strong> Thail<strong>and</strong> is to mature <strong>in</strong> the name <strong>of</strong> peace <strong>and</strong> susta<strong>in</strong>able development. Between these two compet<strong>in</strong>g forces there squats the greatly over-grown, hugely self-important Royal Thai Army - play<strong>in</strong>g the game <strong>of</strong> ‘protect<strong>in</strong>g the Monarch’ from ‘corrupt government’. Our decision, after April-May 2010, to attempt to fill the void <strong>of</strong> public data about the fallen heroes <strong>of</strong> the people’s struggle for democracy gradually became an eye-opener - even for the seasoned activist, not just because <strong>of</strong> the number <strong>of</strong> top-down political assass<strong>in</strong>ations but because <strong>of</strong> the consistency <strong>of</strong> the top-down brutality throughout the 6 decades <strong>of</strong> the current k<strong>in</strong>gship. In this document about the L<strong>and</strong> <strong>of</strong> Smiles we br<strong>in</strong>g forward evidence, s<strong>in</strong>ce 1947, <strong>of</strong> close to 11 000 people who, <strong>in</strong> one way or other, were assass<strong>in</strong>ated <strong>in</strong> their struggle for democratic representation. For six decades the power elite <strong>in</strong> Thail<strong>and</strong> has done all it can to cover-up the trail <strong>of</strong> extra-judicial political kill<strong>in</strong>g it oversees with impunity, <strong>and</strong> it must be understood that the figure <strong>of</strong> 11 000 is probably less than half, or even only one third, <strong>of</strong> the actual level <strong>of</strong> sacrifice. Susta<strong>in</strong>able development <strong>and</strong> state violence <strong>in</strong> the name <strong>of</strong> protect<strong>in</strong>g ‘national borders, Buddhism <strong>and</strong> K<strong>in</strong>g’ are <strong>in</strong>compatible. The rulers <strong>and</strong> high adm<strong>in</strong>istrators <strong>in</strong> Thail<strong>and</strong> must either face, or be made to face, their own feudalism. And, the ‘International Community’ needs to underst<strong>and</strong> that, as with Burma, if it does not respond to the reality beh<strong>in</strong>d the smiles, the pa<strong>in</strong> beh<strong>in</strong>d the smiles will only harden. After <strong>60</strong> years <strong>of</strong> non-stop monarcho-militarism, heavy censorship <strong>and</strong> bra<strong>in</strong>-wash<strong>in</strong>g about what it means to be ‘Good People’ or ‘True Thai’, the people <strong>of</strong> Thail<strong>and</strong> are fac<strong>in</strong>g a crisis <strong>of</strong> selfconfidence that is challeng<strong>in</strong>g their traditional submissiveness <strong>and</strong> their loss <strong>of</strong> ability to be truthful. As the people say <strong>in</strong> Thail<strong>and</strong>: 'Truth cannot be eaten but it can br<strong>in</strong>g you death'. The data <strong>in</strong> this report serves to confirm that, for the ord<strong>in</strong>ary people, fear <strong>of</strong> political victimisation <strong>and</strong> death is real, <strong>and</strong> is the reason why people <strong>in</strong> ‘Amaz<strong>in</strong>g Thail<strong>and</strong>’ cannot speak the truth, <strong>and</strong> the reason why the data <strong>in</strong> this document has never been brought together before. Never-the-less, despite <strong>60</strong> years <strong>of</strong> autocratic oppression <strong>and</strong> suppression, the people’s upris<strong>in</strong>g that followed the 2006 military coup shows that the process <strong>of</strong> democratisation that began with the abolition <strong>of</strong> absolute monarchy <strong>in</strong> 1932 is alive <strong>and</strong> stronger than ever. The next step <strong>in</strong> the process <strong>of</strong> build<strong>in</strong>g ‘Thai Democracy’ is to remove lès majesté as a weapon <strong>of</strong> the rul<strong>in</strong>g elite. Junya Yimprasert Action for People’s Democracy, Thail<strong>and</strong> (ACT4DEM) savethail<strong>and</strong>@gmail.com Many thanks to Richard Thompson Coon for his assistance with the preparation <strong>of</strong> these documents. 3
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