Many student protests that were partly set off by the dissolution of Future Forward Party over the past two weeks has also ushered in new hashtags into the lexicon of Thai social media. At the time of writing, it has been reported that there are 28 hashtags associated with campus protests. Some are humourous while others carry strong political stances and sharp gibes. Whether you agree with these students who've chosen to make their voices heard, it's better to get used to their protest hashtags as more student flashmobs are on their way (but many speculate that the designation of Covid-19 as a dangerous communicable disease may be used as a tool to suppress them). Not to mention, an online campaign calling for people to wear black on Fridays as a symbol to oppose dictatorship began last Friday.
For your edutainment, here are the unofficial translations of some of the notable hashtags and the nuanced meanings behind them.
Chulalongkorn University: #เสาหลักจะไม่หักอีกต่อไป #TheMainPillarWillNoLonger BeBroken
The reputation of Chula as the main pillar of the country, as of late, has been used in a mocking way by those who deem Chula fails to live up to it. The hashtag above, according to Sirin Mungcharoen, vice-president of the Student Council of Chulalongkorn University, is a response to the time when a Chula exec openly joined the People's Democratic Reform Committee in the name of Chula, in an interview with Thai Rath TV's Tham Trong Trong Kab Jom Kwan (Blunt Questions with Jom Kwan). She probably referred to the then chairperson of Chulalongkorn University Council who led Chula's students in a march to show support for PDRC, complete with university flags and national flags. Why broken, you ask? The PDRC movement was criticised as undemocratic, despite having "democratic" in its name, and played a major role in 2013-2014 political crisis that led to the 2014 Thai coup d'état and, eventually, premiership of PM Prayut Chan-o-cha.
Thammasat University: #ที่ยุบอนาคตใหม่พี่มหาลัยกูทั้งนั้น #ThoseWhoDissolvedFutureForwardAreMySeniors
This is an obvious response to the Constitutional Court, which dissolved the Future Forward Party by a majority vote of seven judges against two. The majority of the nine-judge panel graduated from Thammasat and 35 Thammasat law professors released a statement to question their verdict. Moreover, several key figures of the Future Forward Party graduated from Thammasat such as Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit, Piyabutr Saengkanokkul and Pita Limcharoenrut. Oh, the irony.
Prince of Songkhla University: #ฝุ่นหกล้านหรือจะสู้ท่านเก้าเสียง #SixMillionDustsDare NotToTrumpNineSirs
The Future Forward Party received around 6 million votes in the general elections in March last year. Dust obviously self-depreciatingly refers to people who voted for the party as their votes are now dismissed by a panel of nine judges in the Constitutional Court.
Suan Dusit University & Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University: #อยู่ข้างบ้านเสียงดังไม่ได้ #WeLiveNextDoorSoWeCan't MakeTooMuchNoise
The funniest hashtag goes to Suan Dusit and Suan Sunandha as they express their stance against the government of Prime Minister Gen Khun Prayut Chan-o-cha without actually saying anything. Look them up on Google Maps and you'll see where these two institutes are located in relation to Government House and Parliament.
Satriwithaya School: #สวที่อยู่ข้างประชาธิปไตย #SorWorOnDemocracy'sSide
Sor wor is the abbreviation for senators in Thai and the all-girl school's abbreviation happens to be the same. This is a gibe directed at the 250 senators, 194 of whom were hand-picked by the National Council for Peace and Order, the NCPO. 249 voted for PM Prayut to be the prime minister in June last year. I think that's pretty obvious what these Matayom students were trying to say.
Kasetsart University: #คืนสู่เหย้าไม่เอาไอโอชา #ReunionWithoutIOCha
The shadiest hashtag goes to Kasetsart University. It is a "two birds with one hashtag" attack that needs a bit of unpacking. First, IO refers to the alleged use of information operations by the Internal Security Operations Command, which falls under the purview of Uncle Tu, to maintain hostility and divisiveness among the people in Thailand's troubled Deep South. A very ironic operation indeed. This serious allegation was brought up by Wiroj Lakkhanaadisorn, a party-list MP from the now-defunct Future Forward Party, during the censure debate last week. "OCha" is the last two syllables from PM Prayut's last name. Thirdly, ไอ (the letter "i" in English) sounds like âi, a Thai pronoun that is not as polite as khun. It's a prefix that comes before a man's nickname (whom you either think poorly of or are chummy with) or a male animal. Google said that not me! Put them all together and it's obvious what and whom the protestors are against.