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Junta use Yingluk's rice policy as an excuse to destroy elected politicians
Ugly Truth Thailand - August 11, 2017
The junta claim that she must take responsibility for losses incurred under this scheme and the corruption that took place. No one disputes the fact that Yingluk was never involved in any corruption and did not gain anything financially from any corruption that may have taken place.
On the one hand Yingluk does need to take responsibility for any wrong-doing that took place under her time as Prime Minister. In the same way Prayut and Abhisit must answer for the mass murder of pro-democracy red shirts in 2010. Abhisit was the military installed Prime Minister at the time and Prayut was the most powerful general in the military. There is clear evidence that they were directly involved with orders which led to the cold-blooded shooting of demonstrators.
In the case of Yingluk and the rice price guarantee scheme, she needs to take "political" responsibility for any corruption by others, if it took place. In a democracy that would be resolved in elections or a politician might be forced to resign.
But when we are talking about "financial losses" under the rice price guarantee scheme, they are not mainly about corruption. Such losses to the state budget which took place in order to support the livelihoods of poor farmers are perfectly right and proper.
Of course, the neo-liberal free-marketers decry using state money to relieve poverty. Yet they remain silent about the huge amount of state spending on Thailand's new idiot king, his father's wasteful funeral and on the tanks, submarines and aircraft for the military.
I do not really care if the millionaires in the Shinawat family have their riches taken off them. I care more for the plight of ordinary working people, including the farmers. That is why Yingluk's rice price guarantee scheme was a good scheme. That is why the Universal Health care policy brought in under Taksin needs to be defended from the military vultures who want to bring in "co-payments".
If anyone should be in the dock for not preventing corruption, it should be Generalissimo Prayut. Not only has he incurred massive state losses on weaponry and the royals, he has failed to prevent endemic military corruption which is taking place right now. His friends and relations have benefitted from this corruption. Soldiers have also enjoyed free junkets abroad at taxpayers' expense.
Prayut should also be charged with mass murder and over his military coup which destroyed democracy. That can only happen if a mass movement is built to overthrow the military.
It would be foolish to predict if such a mass movement could develop and grow out of public anger over the way Yingluk is being treated. Some Pua Thai politicians are hoping for mass support on the streets for Yingluk. That would be a good thing. If this does actually happen, and there is no guarantee that it will happen because of the way that Pua Thai has demobilised the red shirts, then pro-democracy activist should be part of such a movement. Pro-democracy activists need to be arguing that the movement go well beyond merely defending Yingluk and develop towards confronting the military and demanding the release of all political prisoners. But that requires political organising independent of Pua Thai.
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