The ‘Land of Smiles’ is smiling again - well almost.
Finally, and much to the relief of many who feared further political protest and possibly violence, Thailand has a new Prime Minister.
Forty four year old Abhisit Vejjajiva was born in Newcastle England to a wealthy Thai-Chinese family; he attended the famous Eton School and studied Philosophy, Politics and Economics at Oxford University. He became Thailand’s youngest politician at the age of 27 and is now the youngest Prime Minister in 60 years. Perhaps more concerning to him though will be the fact that he is the third Prime Minister in as little as four months.
Abhisit Vejjajiva pledged to reunite the country and bolster the economy shortly after he was Royally endorsed as Prime Minister on Wednesday. On arriving for his first day at work, Mr Abhisit took full advantage of a photo opportunity to show his intended dedication to working men and women by helping workers sweep the steps outside Government House. It will however take a lot more than a token photo to win over the hearts of the Northeast region of the country, where the ousted Thaksin Shinawatra still has a huge stronghold of support. In a recent poll conducted by Suan Dusit University, 46% of people said they were happy with the new government and hoped the country could now move forward, but a large 34% indicated that they were worried about conflicts emerging from anti-democratic groups. Such is the worry of new anti-government feeling that the Army has already drawn up plans to visit the Northeast in an attempt to soothe tensions among hard line red-shirted Thaksin supporters. Soldiers are also on standby to assist Police in monitoring any gatherings around the country, the first gathering of major concern will be next week’s protest in Suan Luang led by anti-government group the United Front of Democracy Against Dictatorship. Only three days ago a red-shirted taxi driver informed me that he and many others were attending a pro-Thaksin stadium conference that evening, he highlighted clearly his disapproval of the newly elected Prime Minister.
Before the new government was formed, concerns were publicly voiced regarding the involvement of senior Army officials in the formation of the government and its subsequent rule. When considering the Army’s post election support, it appears these concerns may be well founded and will no doubt be raised again by members of the opposition as 2009 dawns. Positively though, at least for the time being, the storm is calmer and there appears to be better weather on the horizon. One hopes, for the small businesses and street traders, that this new found promise of stability will restore faith in holiday makers who have visibly deserted the country. The absence of foreigners on the streets of Bangkok is quite apparent. I have visited the notoriously busy Night Bazaar at Suan Lum three times over the last ten days only to find the aisles deserted, with only a handful of tourists doing more browsing than buying.
One trader literally bargained on his own as I pondered a belt on his stool. By the time I tried to walk away, he had dropped the price from 450 Baht to 150 Baht and explained, “Please sir, come on, I have no customers, no one is coming now”. Needless to say, at under £3 I was not going to turn down a genuine leather belt.
The country certainly has not been helped by the general global downturn and like many Brits living here, I have curbed spending my pounds due to the awful exchange rate on offer. The Euro may be one saving grace as it continues to strengthen, but the question remains of whether Europeans will want to return to the country after such bad recent publicity in the media. Mr Abhisit has stated that his primary immediate goal is to restore confidence amongst foreign investors and restore Thailand’s global ‘Land of Smiles’ image. Well, let’s face it, he can’t do much worse than the attempts of his immediate predecessors.