STRAIGHT TO THE POINT
Is the military really protecting our monarchy?
- Published: 18/05/2011 at 11:57 AM
- Newspaper section: News
A recent article in New Mandala about King Chulalongkorn's abolishing the practice of prostration before the king in 1873, has been the subject of online discussions. A similar article in Asia Sentinel is blocked by at least one internet service provider and replaced by a blank page bearing the familiar address
It seems that our ever-zealous internet censors don't want the Thai public to ponder over the enlightened act of Thailand's most highly-regarded king and ask why his act of reform was undone over 80 years later.
In the New Mandala article, Pavin Chachavalpongpun, a research fellow at Singapore's Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, translates excerpts from the Royal Gazette of 1873 in which King Chulalongkorn is quoted as saying, "The practice of prostration in Siam is severely oppressive. The subordinates have been forced to prostrate in order to elevate the dignity of the phuyai. I do not see how the practice of prostration will render any benefit to Siam."
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About the author
- Writer: Jon Ungphakorn
- Position: A human rights and social activist, winner of the
