Showing 191 - 200 of 233
Charter draft has checks, lacks balances
News, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 06/03/2015
» When political reforms themselves are reformed time and again, they can revert back to their pre-reform beginnings. This phenomenon appears to be afflicting Thailand's ongoing constitutional-drafting process, which is stuck in a circuitous time warp.
A 'third-way' compromise is imperative
News, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 23/01/2015
» As Thailand is gripped yet again by a political climax surrounding former prime minister Yingluck Shinwatra's impeachment trial for dereliction of duty over her ousted government's rice-pledging scheme, it is instructive to take a long view beyond the drama of the day.
A saga and sideshow with much at stake
News, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 09/01/2015
» The impeachment case against former prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra this month for dereliction of duty while in office over the rice-pledging budgetary losses is both a saga and a sideshow.
Virtual lockdown to spill over into 2015
News, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 26/12/2014
» In the wake of a deceptive calm following the military coup on May 22, prospects for next year are characterised by anxiety and apprehension over what is to come.
On the political front, it's curiously quiet
News, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 07/11/2014
» Nearly six months after its latest military coup, Thailand's political landscape looks pitiful and puzzling at the same time.
A 'third way' is imperative for Thailand
News, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 03/10/2014
» As the new government's missteps — from the insensitive comment on bikini-wearing to the microphone procurement scandal — mount, Thailand may soon revert to the same polarisation of the past decade that revolved around former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra's rule and legacy.
Govt faces self-imposed bumps ahead
News, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 26/09/2014
» Four months after the military coup on May 22, it is emerging that Thailand will either end up with the most benevolent, enlightened and effective military-dominated regime of the country's political annals that will clean up graft and institute reforms like no previous government could, or an inevitable collision course between pro- and anti-coup forces.
Don’t repeat 1992 hijack of democracy
News, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 05/09/2014
» As it approaches its four-month mark after seizing power on May 22, Thailand’s military regime has boldly taken over the entire apparatus of governance and policy-making processes. Not since the 1950s and 1960s have the top brass been so directly and personally engaged in running the country. What it must do now is to avoid the fatal mistakes of past military-authoritarian governments and to prevent good intentions from rotting into ill outcomes.
Thai authoritarianism: past and present
News, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 22/08/2014
» Thailand’s political pendulum has swung wildly. It has now completed a dramatic reversal, pitting the electoral authoritarianism of Thaksin Shinawatra from the early 2000s against the thinly veiled dictatorship of General Prayuth Chan-ocha in the mid-2010s.
How far can the Thai clock be turned back?
News, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 08/08/2014
» As the military coup on May 22 is being converted into a military government with a civilian face, at issue is how far the Thai clock can be turned back.