Get out of our country: Thai right wings to US Ambassador

The Thai right-wing political elite has raged at the US Ambassador after he publicly shamed the Thai Foreign Minister last Thursday. The right wing has also used nationalist discourse to gain public support to oust the Ambassador, saying that the lèse majesté law makes Thailand more civilized than the US.   
 
On Thursday, 12 May 2016, Glyn T. Davies, the US Ambassador to Thailand, confirmed to the media that the statement expressing US concerns about Thailand’s human rights situation is authentic after Don Pramudwinai, the Thai Foreign Minister, previously claimed that the statement was not issued by the State Department. (see more
 
However, instead of waking up the junta’s supporters, Davies’ action has triggered public outrage among the Thai right wing. 
 
Arthit Ourairat, a former Parliament Speaker, posted on Facebook that Davies’ action was despicable and lacked diplomacy. He suggested that the Thai government should send him back to the US in order to protect the dignity of the Thai monarchy, reported Matichon Online.
 
“Thailand, as a country with an older and greater culture than the US, should be able to teach the US that by sending such an ill-mannered person to be an Ambassador is an insult to our country. Therefore, Thailand should react by labelling him [Davies] as an unwanted person -- Persona Non Grata -- and sending him back to the US,” Arthit said in his post.
 
Mallika Boonmeetrakool, a former deputy spokesperson of the Democrat Party, posted an image of Davies on her Facebook page with the message "Get Out." The post got more than 4,000 likes and was shared more than 2,000 times. 
 
 
 
The image on Mallika's Facebook
 
Jermsak Pinthong, a former senator and a prominent activist from the People’s Democratic Reform Committee, posted on Facebook that Davies would only worsen US-Thailand relations. 
 
Jermsak added that US history was full of bloodshed and violence, so the US might not understand Thailand’s social norms, culture, and the reason why the lèse majesté law was necessary for Thailand. He also alleged that Davies was serving a political group in Thailand
 
“The Ambassador’s duty is to improve relations between the two countries, not to intervene in Thailand’s internal affairs or to be a mechanism for a political interest group in Thailand” Jermsak posted.
 

 

Since 2007, Prachatai English has been covering underreported issues in Thailand, especially about democratization and human rights, despite the risk and pressure from the law and the authorities. However, with only 2 full-time reporters and increasing annual operating costs, keeping our work going is a challenge. Your support will ensure we stay a professional media source and be able to expand our team to meet the challenges and deliver timely and in-depth reporting.

• Simple steps to support Prachatai English

1. Bank transfer to account “โครงการหนังสือพิมพ์อินเทอร์เน็ต ประชาไท” or “Prachatai Online Newspaper” 091-0-21689-4, Krungthai Bank

2. Or, Transfer money via Paypal, to e-mail address: [email protected], please leave a comment on the transaction as “For Prachatai English”