Suu Kyi must be set free, or else
The Nation
Burmese junta's satest extension of the detention of Nobel Peace laureate could prove very damaging to Asean
Nobel Peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi has now been spent nearly 12 years in incarceration under Burma's military. Ahead of the expiry of her latest one-year period of detention on Saturday nearly 60 current and former leaders around the world joined hands to press for her release from house arrest. But, as expected, the military junta in Burma decided to extend her detention for another year out of fear that her freedom would threaten the survival of their dictatorial rule.
Continued
The Nation is a joke of a newspaper. It proves it time and time again with these hypocritical editorials.
Seriously, how do these people look at themselves in the mirror everyday?
Currently, Thailand is under a military dictatorship. The civil rights of Thais are being stripped away every single day. The internet is being censored. Political activists are prevented from expressing themselves. Those who are opposed to the junta are systematically silenced. The supporters of the former prime minister are being harassed and silenced. The new constitution, written by a committee handpicked by the junta, has stripped away rights and protections that were enshrined in the last constitution.
All this is happening, but what does The Nation do? It criticizes Burma's political system, as if Thailand was the region's democratic star. These idiots at The Nation are truly delusional.
The Nation insists that Aung San Suu Kyi have justice, yet it supports the Thai junta's attempt to get Thaksin by any means necessary, which includes prosecuting him for tax crimes that were supposedly committed before he was in power and for land deals his wife was making. These are the crimes that The Nations feels justified a coup that punished 65 million people.
The Nation has one standard for Thaksin, which it hates; one standard for all other Thai politicians, who are still doing what they have always done and have been given a free pass by the hypocrites at The Nation, and another standard for Burma, which lives under a tyrannical system of government run by a military junta.
How can The Nation have a high democratic standard for Burma and no standards for Thailand?
It is intellectually inconsistent to support military juntas in Thailand and condemn juntas right next door.
Instead of pointing fingers at Burma, The Nation better twist those fingers back at itself, because it is no paragon of democratic virtue, considering that it supported the illegal overthrow of the last legitimate government.
Maintaining the state’s impunity
1 day ago
10 comments:
In order to make you happy, I will totally agree with your statement since you seem to be more intelligent than me. You know it all. Mind you, I am not good at articulating myself in English as I did not attend a university abroad. I am just self-taught.
The reason that I called you a hypocrite- which occasionally everyone is, is because you said you support free speech but you removed someone’s messages, didn’t you? You said that that person lied about you. Yes, he or she might have, but why are you so scared to let anybody else see his or her messages or maybe that person told you a true story and you cannot stand it. Are you a coward then, or a pussy cat? Let others make up their mind.
Can you explain to us what your ideal of democracy is? I cannot comprehend since I am not Mr. Know It All like you. If you want to promote democracy, I will fully support you, but please go and talk to Thai people in Thai, instead of finding support from your foreign fellow gangsters around the blog. I am sure Thais can find the system that suits our way of living. Currently, you come across as someone who tries to please his fellow bloggers by smearing your country in their language. I am sure you always give them a good “rimming”. I am so proud.
Since many webblogs link to one another, I thus want to pass on my opinion to your fellow bloggers. One of your pals said “Do we (Farangs) complain too much?” what is his name? “Mr. Crook thingy Fish and chips also known as Jade Goody number 2 or whatever his name is?” It is not about whether they complain too much. They should ask themselves why they cannot mind their own business. Why do they like to interfere with other people’s lives? Should they not consider themselves guests? I guess they will rant about free speech again? Has Mr. Crooky ever read messages on BBC’s comment section: “Have your say”? From time to time when there is a debate about immigration, Mr. Crooky’s fellow citizens will say the same as us – if they don’t like Britain, immigrants should go home. The different thing is that those immigrants in his country know their situation and many do not dare to complain much. They do not go and tell his government how to run his country either.
It is like when people allow someone to live in their house. What would you think if a guest keeps telling you that you must do this and that in your house and you ought to do things that the guest wishes? I personally reckon it is inappropriate and interfering.
I do not mind why Farangs come to Thailand; working, going to the beach, partying or even having intercourse with whoever or whatever. I personally don’t give a flying *** what they do, providing that they know how to spell the sentence “mind their own business”
Everything is all about foreigners not understanding Thais and vice versa. Many Thais will try their best to get along with Farangs even though we are totally different. What about you?
Sooksiam: Your rant makes Thais look stupid. I'm a Thai and I certainly welcome criticism from anyone, especially when they're based on facts. If you don't like the criticism or thinks it's unfair, then argue with him, prove him wrong, rather using all that space to say why he shouldn't be doing it. Your English seems to be good enough! To all those bloggers who disagree with the Shark--or whatever his name is--take up his challenge and prove him wrong--not whine about why he's doing this or that to the Thai image (what's left of it) or being paid by Thaksin. If I had half the time and the guts, I'd be doing what he's doing.
Sometime I agree with Fonzi, sometime I dont. But I do notice one thing. Currently Fonzi's update seem to slow to a halt, is it perhap relate to the amount of reply to all the comment? Or did he got snatch by junta's gestapol already?
Let it slide, Fonzi. People who read this blog can think for ourselves.
I would like to see what 'pearls of wisdom' Fonzi will write if Thai Rak Thai party is dissolved tomorrow. To Fonzi Thaksin was 'legitimate' despite his many unsavory criminal deeds that led to street protests at Bangkok, then the coup. Will Fonzi condemn the Constitutional Tribunal because Thai Rak Thai Party, like its boss Thaksin, merely committed honest mistakes?
And what will Fonzi's pearls of wisdom be when the courts rule against the Shinawatras on their Baht 28 billion tax evasion case?
Fonzi - Have you heard yet of that patriotic song "Don't cry for me Thailandia"?
To Fonzi,
I wonder Fonzi if you realize that when you pushed that 'delete' key twice to remove my aggravating posters you showed lack of patience? And this was about such an insignificant and inconsequential matter about my 'suspicions' that you are a paid pro-Thaksin blogger (it so easy to presume Fonzi that you are the center of the universe contributing pearls of wisdom!),
Fonzi do you now realize how much aggravation Thaksin Shinawatra brought to the Kingdom of Thailand? Thaksin manipulated the constitution, but violated its spirit, to enrich himself and his family, evade taxes and extrajudicially kill, et al. When the Bangkok city protests that went on for 3 months still did not make any impression on Thaksin to leave power, what are patriotic soldiers suppose to do other than a coup to restore order.
Even soldiers possess 'delete' keys Fonzi!
Agree totally with both sooksiam and matty. Give Fonzi power to rule and he will erase all opposing opinions or sarcasm or insulting political cartoons ha ha ha. A taste of your own medicine, Fonzi? If one freedom-fighter blogger cann't stand free speech on his blog, how can we expect a military junta to be noble, huh? Oh I'm still very mmoved and touched by his freedom of expression lecture regarding youtube. Wow, Fonzi. You are a super-hypocrite caught red-handed.
Sooksiam-
I don't get you.
You criticize foreigners for criticizing Thailand, yet you say you live abroad and are not totally happy with the country that you live in.
So what?
People have opinions. People share their opinions. All human beings are critical. That is what makes us human and not like animals.
Does it matter which country you live in to have an opinion?
Do opinions have a nationality?
The Buddha teaches us to examine, examine, and examine some more.
Does delusion have a nationality? Do thoughts have a nationality?
Does challenging things that are illogical and irrational make one a traitor or a hater of a person's own country or another country?
Dhamma has no nationality. Reason has no borders. Integrity has no passport.
As for Matty, he can write what he wants, but I warned him that if he slandered me again with his lies, I would remove the post.
I haven't blocked him completely. All his other messages remain.
Matty-
If Thai Rak Thai is dissolved because it bought fake political parties in the last election, then it should be dissolved if that is the will of the court.
Frankly, I don't have the evidence in front of me. King Bumibol is right. The court will need to justify to the people the verdict it will make based on the facts of the case.
As for Thaksin, Matty, I agree with you, and think he should have stepped aside last year for the good of the country.
But just because he didn't, doesn't justify the coup.
There were legal ways of getting rid of him without resorting to a coup.
Stevie G-
What do you have to offer besides sarcasm and snide remarks?
Maybe you are the spirit of Tulsie from The Nation here to haunt me.
There is no need to censor you. You are welcome to embarrass yourself as long as you want.
Here we go; this is free speech according to Fonzi. He/she said he/she would remove Matty’s messages if Matty speaks ill of the owner of this blog. What kind of free speech is that? You are ironically supporting this cliché by way of a dictatorship. Why are you so upset with merely a rant, sweetie pie? So as to make you happy I will recommend that everyone should agree with whatever you say. You are right! You are the man!
If those aliens want to interfere with Thai’s business, that’s ok, as long as they don’t just bark in, instead of acting snobbishly like you are doing. It is the way those people speak, that makes many Thais not want to hear their pretentious speech. I nearly forget that they are the same species as you – pompous homogeny.
To Trirat, I guess you are about 59 year old, if I remember correctly. Again, a pensioner speaks; I thus will take your advice on board. I will always welcome anyone’s opinion, but that does not mean I like the way they speak. I still want them to mind their own business. If they still want to bark in, I will give them a piece of my mind. I will rant. It is free speech. Don’t you know it?
You are doing the same as me, by telling everyone what to do. I will do whatever I want. I do not have low self esteem as you do either; that’s why I don’t care what anyone else thinks about Thailand. I quite understand though that the reason you want to tell everyone else what to do is because of you being an elderly person. It is typical of being old, needing attention. You could be my dad or even my granddad. So, please don’t be so uptight. I don’t want you to suffer from severe constipation.
I love free speech.
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