Debates on Ratchadamnoen rally figures miss the mark

Debates on Ratchadamnoen rally figures miss the mark

The number of protesters who attended the anti-government rally on Ratchadamnoen Avenue on Sunday is being hotly debated.

The photos of the enormous crowd at the Democracy Monument and the surrounding areas dominated the front pages of newspapers and social media channels. To the north, the crowd spilled overwhelmingly into the Royal Plaza, while to the south, Sanam Luang and Pin Klao Bridge were inundated. Yet political rivals have made different claims concerning the numbers of rally-goers in attendance.

Protest leaders insisted the number reached a million, the goal set by former Democrat MP Suthep Thaugsuban. The government, via the police, attempted to foil this claim, by offering the much lower figure of 98,000. The military intelligence unit gave slightly higher figures: 150,000 to 180,000.

The international media, which keeps a close watch on Thai politics, also cites different numbers. Even the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship, which is staging another rally in Ratchamangkala Stadium in support of the government, alleged that their political opponents must have doctored photos to distort the number of protesters.

This leads me to ask whether the number really matters? If the figure is lower do the protesters lose and the government win?

I rarely pay attention to the figures and beg others to look beyond them too. This is not a game in which each side bids for higher scores.

What matters to me is how the protest, started earlier this month after Pheu Thai lawmakers pushed for the so-called wholesale amnesty bill aimed at whitewashing Thaksin Shinawatra, became a political awakening.

The mass protest reminds many people of the Oct 14 uprising, which ousted Field Marshal Thanom Kittikachorn and his minions from power in 1973.

This time, the protest has attracted many middle class people who refuse to remain Thai choey _ a term used to brand those who care only for themselves. More importantly, it has intrigued many youths from "Generation Me" who normally spend time in the world of social media: Facebook, Line, and Instagram.

I talked to Waewwika Sriban, a 34-year-old office worker, who also joined the protest on Sunday.

She said that, like many Thais, she likes to follow the news via social media, and exchange views online with her friends from the faculty of arts, Silpakorn University, rather than participating in a protest in person.

But for her and her friends, the passing of the amnesty bill which she feels revealed the true nature of the Pheu Thai Party, was the last straw.

"We were angry and talked about the issue widely on social media. About 70% of the over-400 members of the alumni group decided to come out onto the streets and protest," Ms Waewwika said.

She joined the Democrats' earlier protest at Samsen railway station and followed it to other locations, including the Asok intersection, Silom Road, and Pratunam Plaza to join the whistle-blowing campaign organised by the Business Club for Democracy.

Apart from office workers like Ms Waewwika, there are so many young people, from high schools, vocational and university students, who do not shy away from expressing their political views. A number of university students recently took to the stage at the Ratchadamnoen rally and voiced their desire to fight the "corrupt" government.

In recent weeks, many people have voiced concerns that the country's political problems will adversely affect the economy or tourism, especially after the protesters stepped up their actions to seize the Budget Bureau and other government offices. But we should not discount the current political awakening that has emerged from the rally, especially within the younger generations.

Ms Waewwika, for one, believes that the dispute over the number of protesters is meaningless.

"I do not care about how many protesters will join me, I just want to do the right thing and fight this corrupt government," she said.


Walailak Keeratipipatpong is Deputy Business Editor, Bangkok Post.

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