A visit that matters to Thailand

General News - Tuesday December 11, 2007

IN TOUCH

A visit that matters to Thailand

It is hard to believe that Thailand's own transgressions in human rights were far from the minds, if not on the lips, of both the prime minister and Mr Ban Ki-moon, as they met on the day dedicated to these rights.

ANURAJ MANIBHANDU

Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont has secured a measure of respect for his government by inviting United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to visit Thailand.

Mr Ban is one of only a few foreign dignitaries who have visited this country since the coup on Sept 9, 2006 convinced governments to distance themselves from an administration put in place by the generals who staged it.

Among the few however, was China's State Councillor, Tang Jiaxuan, who came in late February. Predictably, Mr Tang assured Prime Minister Surayud that China would promote good neighbourly relations and mutually-beneficial relations no matter what changes occur internationally. He also extended an invitation from Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao for Gen Surayud to visit China, which he took up the following May.

But it was Malaysia's Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi who was the first head of government to lend support to the coup-installed government. A joint statement released at the end of his Feb 11-13 visit, said the two prime ministers "shared concerns" over the situation in the deep south of Thailand and "regarded it as imperative that violent attacks on civilians and innocent people be stopped".

In late March, Sri Lanka's Prime Minister Ratnasiri Wickramanaya paid a "working visit" during which the two heads of government expressed "overall satisfaction" with the close ties between the two countries based on strong cultural and religious bonds dating back over 800 years.

In late October, France's Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner became the first, and probably last, member state of the European Union to visit the Surayud government. That was unsurprising, not only because member states opposed the forced takeover of government but also because of Thailand's treatment of the EU proposal to observe the upcoming general elections. Mr Kouchner was in Thailand as part of a three-country tour to advance the setting up of a trust fund as an incentive for Burma to embrace democracy while keeping them on their toes with sanctions.

The United States has sent no minister to Thailand since the coup but US Ambassador Ralph Boyce was the first envoy in Bangkok to pay a courtesy call on Prime Minister Surayud after he assumed the mantle of head of government.

Prime Minister Surayud invited Mr Ban Ki-moon to visit Thailand when he went to New York in September to address the UN General Assembly. In announcing the visit to media in late November, Gen Surayud said he thought both sides would benefit from it.

Mr Ban is on his way to attending the climate change conference in Bali, and Bangkok is a regional hub for UN agencies, whose officers yesterday met the world body's helmsman for the first time since he stepped up to the position in January.

In New York, Prime Minister Surayud made a point of telling the UN General Assembly that Thailand was "keeping to the timeline for the revitalisation of parliamentary democracy, with general elections scheduled for Dec 23".

Mr Ban will have seen for himself _ from posters in city streets crying out for favour, and perhaps from the sounds of candidates wooing voters from the top of pickup trucks _ how much political parties are engaged in the race to Parliament. Though sceptics may still see democracy as a distant dream for Thais, Mr Ban should be able to attest internationally that the country is getting back on track.

Mr Ban's visit has also given him a chance to put the accent on universal values. On the occasion of International Human Rights Day yesterday, he unveiled the logo of the 60th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which is being celebrated year-long until Dec 10, 2008.

Mr Ban also highlighted the development aspects of climate change during a keynote address at the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific yesterday afternoon.

Prime Minister Surayud was emphatic that his talks with Mr Ban this time would not extend to the situation in Burma, as that had already been covered when he was in New York in September.

But it is hard to believe that Thailand's own transgressions in human rights were far from the minds, if not on the lips, of both the prime minister and Mr Ban, as they met on the day dedicated to these rights.

As a career soldier who once served in the special forces, Prime Minister Surayud knows well the extent of breaches in human rights in this country. Despite the atmospherics of the day, however, Mr Ban _ who was last in Thailand in August 2004 as South Korea's foreign minister _ likely stayed with the course of discretion.

By : Bangkok Post