Sat, 16 Aug 2003

Another step taken to rule by decree

The Nation, Asia News Network, Bangkok

Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra is missing the point. Critics of the executive decrees on terrorism are not questioning Thailand's need to toughen its security laws to cope with the slick, sophisticated and suicidal global menace. The real concern centers on the government's decision to bypass Parliament while handling a very delicate issue that cries out for transparency. Considering this administration's track record regarding key aspects of the legislation, such worries are justified.

Thaksin must have hoped the decrees would send a good international message ahead of the meeting of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in Thailand, and that's probably why he has overlooked all the bad signals the laws are generating domestically.

Most of all, these are laws that affect civil liberty in the name of national security, so prudent and democratic leaders must try to strike a balance between state interests and public diplomacy. Our prime minister has not done that, and instead he is pouring scorn on those simply asking why.

He has taken Thailand on a roller-coaster ride regarding how serious terrorist threats are in this country. The nation was safe, we had been told. The prime minister was always quick to dismiss foreign news reports suggesting Thailand was becoming a hideout for militants, including members of the Indonesia-based Jamaah Islamiyah. And he chastised western governments for issuing travel warnings to their citizens coming to Thailand.

Now all of a sudden he has announced Thailand could become a safe haven of terrorists. "I wonder what the critics will say if a bomb is thrown into their houses," he said on Wednesday as opposition to the decrees grew. Now the government suggests we have to listen to the United Nations -- an organization which, according to Thaksin only recently, "is not my father".

This is not the time, however, to discuss how many standards the PM has. The more urgent issue at hand is the ruling coalition's tendency to ignore the legislature when it comes to both dubious business interests and human rights.

The decrees on telecom excise taxes were issued despite a public outcry that they would serve only wealthy businessmen. The latest anti-terrorism decrees have been adopted while Parliament is still in session, and in spite of the coalition's overwhelming command of the House of Representatives.

Thaksin explains that he despises "parliamentary games" and that he is never good at them. Sorry, Prime Minister, if you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen. This is what democracy is all about -- debate, gaming, foot-dragging and so on. It's frustrating but it allows all arguments to sink in and finally conscience to be exercised. There have been other leaders who loathed parliamentary politics, but they include Adolf Hitler.

The decrees are controversial because they give Thai authorities more power to deal with perceived national security threats. And Thaksin's decision to bypass Parliament is controversial because it's an example of how one can become self- centered if equipped with enough power.