Showing 1 - 8 of 8
When students rise
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 28/10/2025
» Back in the mid-19th century, female education increased literacy and access to jobs and they began to fight for participation in public life. The public sphere promised them a new horizon. From the 1890s onwards, print media began to allow women to express their voice and authors vaunted personal talent and equality, including gender relations. Following the Siamese Revolution in 1932, women were enfranchised for the first time.
Memes of dissent
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 14/08/2023
» It is not as whimsical as it seems. After the onset of the largest pro-democracy movement since the military coup in 2014, university and high school students cuddled hamster dolls and ran around in circles. "Delicious tax!", hundreds of them sang, from a cartoon jingle at Democracy Monument in late July 2020. Crowdsourced from a social media platform, Hamtaro, a shorthand for caged mice demanding freedom, spawned many internet memes, including a greedy caricature of junta leader Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha.
Giving evidence
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 20/03/2023
» Under authoritarian rule, truths are silenced, censored and mutilated. Yet, many people find ways to tell their stories. It is an irony, though, that a repressive regime is a precondition of creative resistance.
No one benefits as old regime drags out its end
Oped, Thana Boonlert, Published on 01/10/2021
» Standing together in a space demarcated as a forbidden area, two actors began to spread red paint over their bodies and create flags out of ropes and twigs. When they ran wild and cried out "Long live the people!" the message could not be clearer. Performed by the Layyim Theatre group, the gig was a part of the rally held by the United Front of Thammasat and Demonstration (UFTD) to commemorate the first year of the movement. It was held in front of the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre on Sunday.
Hanging by a thread
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 13/04/2021
» For Korn, the coronavirus outbreak has heightened loneliness. He feels trapped in his cave-like apartment in Samut Prakan where he has been living and working, with his depression still lingering after a painful break-up three years ago. Songkran is the only time of year he visits his family in the Thon Buri district of Bangkok. They are not close but at least the thought gives him a sense of belonging. Moreover, Songkran allowed him to join boisterous pool parties and water fights and "free his spirit".
Storekeepers see silver lining
News, Thana Boonlert, Published on 29/04/2020
» Many business operators in Bangkok who will be allowed to reopen are jumping for joy as they prepare to start pulling in money, albeit under the shadow of Covid-19.
Volunteers on the frontline
News, Thana Boonlert, Published on 20/04/2020
» Knocking on the door is a life-and-death mission for now. While medical staff are combating the coronavirus outbreak on the frontline, under-resourced village health volunteers are conducting house-to-house visits to monitor the health of community residents at their own risk.
Students rally to abolish strict uniform dress code rule during exams
News, Thana Boonlert, Published on 26/05/2019
» Thammasat University has long been known for its liberal attitudes. It has a legacy of being involved with political protests in which students played major roles in the 1970s.