• OPINION

  The hand that feeds them

  News, Alan Dawson, Published on 03/03/2019

  » When the columnists and panjandrums and degree-clutchers come to analyse the state of Thailand in mid- and late May, it's probably this past week that will fascinate them.

• OPINION

  Independence muted

  News, Alan Dawson, Published on 09/12/2018

  » The famously annoyable general prime minister was annoyed last week. The country's two largest political parties politely RSVP'd his invitation to a prayer meeting but declined because of the raucous nature of the worship.

• OPINION

  The death of vote-buying

  News, Alan Dawson, Published on 25/11/2018

  » The government announced a brand new and unexpected Big Welfare Aid Programme (BWAP). Cynics, sceptics, anti-regime critics and even honest people wondered if the sudden decision to help the least-advantaged Thais just possibly has something to do with that other government programme -- so tantalisingly unspecified -- of an election that for the fourth year in a row has been pencilled in for, in the highly familiar phrase used by the general prime minister, "next year".

• OPINION

  Censors without borders

  News, Alan Dawson, Published on 17/06/2018

  » US President Donald Trump announced last Thursday that the North Korean nuclear threat is over, and that "fake news" is thus the No.1 threat. The men of Asia's only remaining military regime nodded.

• OPINION

  Art of the graft

  News, Alan Dawson, Published on 03/06/2018

  » Coup leader Gen (Ret) Prayut Chan-o-cha first mentioned his programme concerning corruption in late May, 2014, not long after seizing power. It was so long ago that there wasn't even a National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO). It was still called the National Peace and Order Maintaining Council (NPOMC).

• OPINION

  It's the corruption, stupid

  News, Alan Dawson, Published on 27/05/2018

  » After promising the nation a Mercedes Benz C-500 of an anti-regime protest, activists produced a three-owner 2007 Toyota Corolla gathering. It impressed and struck fear into the hearts of, well, no one.

• OPINION

  Long and winding roadmap

  News, Alan Dawson, Published on 01/04/2018

  » Question: Is it more scary, or less scary, that the junta doesn't have an actual plan slash conspiracy to keep itself in power? That it has extended its time and generous pay and perks without any design ever since the phantom 2015 election?

• THAILAND

  Time on their side

  News, Alan Dawson, Published on 18/03/2018

  » They took down the Interpol Red Notice to locate, arrest and hold for extradition Thailand's most infamous wilding child last week. Vorayuth "Boss" Yoovidhya is further off the hook than ever.

• THAILAND

  Live and kicking

  News, Alan Dawson, Published on 11/03/2018

  » They say Thailand is an ageing society. Thailand's getting older, they say. At one end, old farts and fartettes live longer, they point out, and at the other these young couples today, you know, they say a lot of them don't even want to have kids. All true, too.

• THAILAND

  Election perfection

  News, Alan Dawson, Published on 04/03/2018

  » The general prime minister reached behind himself to a very dark place and pulled out the sixth promise for a date for the 2015 election. This time the card he pulled out said "February 2019".

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