Anti-government protesters have adopted a wide range of tactics from flash mobs to banners in order to defy the powers that be. Last weekend, demonstrators gathered outside the Criminal Court surrounded by barbed wire on Ratchadaphisek Road to call for reforming the monarchy, the ouster of the military from politics, and a shift towards a welfare state. They first dumped garbage and then performed the symbolic act of setting it ablaze.
However, political observers have said that the pro-democracy movement has been on the wane since late last year. As protest leaders face a slew of charges, including lese majeste, demonstrators have dwindled in numbers. Panusaya Sithijirawattanakul, one of the protest leaders, attributed this to the resurgence of Covid-19 infections and financial hardship. So, what is the best strategy by which the demonstrators can achieve their goals?
The answer might lie in a new book titled Beautiful Trouble: A Toolbox For Revolution by Andrew Boyd and Dave Oswald Mitchell. It has been translated by Netiwit Chotiphatphaisal and Sorawisit Totharong and was published by the Nisit Sam Yan Press and released last week.
Beautiful Trouble: A Toolbox For Revolution by Andrew Boyd and Dave Oswald Mitchell has been translated into Thai by Netiwit Chotiphatphaisal and Sorawisit Totharong.
The book is a collection of best practices from seasoned activists and artists around the world. It is a compilation for changemakers who long for a better society. It explores numerous tactics -- be it leafleting, debt strike, culture jamming and mass street action -- and fundamental principles. One of the points it deals with is anger, which it states works best when protesters have the moral high ground because there is a distinction between moral indignation and self-righteousness. At the book launch, Assoc Prof Sustarum Thammaboosadee, a lecturer in international relations at Thammasat University, commented that the book promotes non-violent resistance in an American context. It focuses on the individual struggle and short-term successes even though it is more volatile and time-consuming. He said the book mentions the success of Greenpeace but doubted how they could help whales without noticing that climate change and inequality results from capitalists.
When asked about the flagging pro-democracy movement, Sustarum said demonstrators should address the question of what kind of society they want. Is monarchy reform and the unseating of Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha from power enough? Is it acceptable to leave their allies intact? Some protesters think if demands are too high, they will not gain public support.
"However, if we don't talk about this, the elite will think for us. That is what happened after the Oct 14, 1973, uprising when we got a royally appointed prime minister. The problem is that we never talk about what we want," he said.
However, Sustarum said he disagreed with the growing call for vandalism because it is less effective than strikes.
"Eighty percent of our life is in the economic domain. Can we bring political struggle into that?" he asked.
The book can be purchased at samyanpress.bentoweb.com/th/product/701358/product-701358
