East Timor puts Thailand army to the test

East Timor puts Thailand army to the test

By Nicolas Revise

BANGKOK (AFP): The role of the Thai military is rapidly and
profoundly evolving beyond purely defense constraints as it
embarks on a new mission as a defender of humanitarian ideals in
East Timor.

Thailand is the deputy commander of the multinational force
attempting to safeguard security in the strife-torn Indonesian
territory which has voted for independence. The first batch of
1,500 Thai troops is set to leave here for East Timor on Friday.
But for the Royal Thai Army's chief of staff, Gen. Chokchai
Homgthong, the operation in East Timor "does not only have
security aims, but is also a humanitarian operation".

The army's commander in chief, Gen. Surayud Chulanont, said
during a recent lecture on the Thai army that nobody should use
the argument of territorial integrity "as an excuse to commit
crimes against humanity including genocide and ethnic cleansing."
The generals' stance is a significant step away from the Thai
army's recent past.

The armed forces have instigated a dozen coups since World War
II, the most recent in 1991. Democracy was restored a year later,
but only after a bloody military crackdown against unarmed pro-
democracy protesters which claimed at least 52 lives in May 1992.

Now democracy appears firmly entrenched. At the height of
Thailand's economic crisis in October 1997, the military command
is believed to have refused a request from then prime minister
Gen. Chavalit Yongchaiyudh to impose a state of emergency.

Chavalit's successor, Chuan Leekpai, is the first civilian to
hold the post of defense minister in more than two decades.
Chuan has seized on the East Timor crisis as an opportunity for
Thailand to pursue its vision of a more democratic Southeast Asia
which fosters rather than tramples on human rights.

Thai Deputy Foreign Minister Sukhumbhand Paribatra says East
Timor signals a new direction for the region's pre-eminent
political body, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

"I think that history will say a new chapter is being written
in the development of Southeast Asia and the development of
ASEAN," he said.

Sukhumbhand acknowledged the Timor crisis had reinforced
Thailand's determination to play "a pro-active role in
international affairs".

At the same time the military, in line with Surayud's
principled stand on East Timor, appears to be retreating from its
former role as the ultimate arbiter of power in Thailand.

Surayud, in a first for a senior Thai commander, signaled his
acceptance of the job last year by resigning as a senator. He has
also launched an ambitious program to make the 228,000-strong
army a more professional outfit.

The engagement in East Timor, one military analyst noted, gave
the army the opportunity to "go beyond Thailand's backyard."

The Thai deputy commander of East Timor's international
peacekeeping force, Maj. Gen. Songkitti Jaggabatra, says: "We
want to make peace in the region so we can live in harmony."

Songkitti has a delicate task of liaising between the
Australians in charge of the East Timor operation and
participating Asian countries, including Indonesia, which have
accused the Australian military of heavy-handedness.

But having formerly served as Thailand's military attache in
Jakarta, he is well-equipped to assuage sensitive Indonesian
fears about the operation.

Songkitti's deputy command in East Timor demonstrates
Thailand's growing willingness to participate in multinational
military operations and resolving regional security concerns.

A Thai military observation team served in the aftermath of
the 1991 Gulf War, and Thai personnel helped prepare for
Cambodia's 1993 elections held under United Nations auspices.
East Timor represents a new departure for the Thai military which
has the full backing of Gen. Surayud.

"I strongly support the decision of the government to restore
peace in East Timor. I think it is the right decision to give
support to the regional community," he said.