OPINION

No need for bum deal

Re: "Teacher quits over assault", (ThaiPulse, June 30).

There can be no excuse for a primary school teacher, Cherngkol Ngamplod, in Ang Thong province disciplining his student by hitting him 40 times on his bottom for failing to clean the classroom.

Corporal punishment in Thai schools is illegal under the Ministry of Education Regulation on Student Punishment (2005) and the National Committee on Child Protection Regulation on Working Procedures of Child Protection Officers Involved in Promoting Behaviour of Students (2005), pursuant to Article 65 of the Child Protection Act. I should add that Sathit Pratumwan and Sathit Prasarnmitr, where I and my kids went to, never resorted to such methods.

The school in Ang Thong should have hired other students or had the boy's parents clean the classroom and, in the former, billed the errant boy's parents. The lesson taught in this case would have lasted far longer than a spanking and would have been legal.

I recently had the distinct pleasure of attending the opening of the 7th Arts of the Kingdom exhibition of the Royal SUPPORT Foundation at Ananta Samakhom Throne Hall and, on the same day, the dedication of the Borommangalanusarani Pavilion on the Throne Hall grounds. The pavilion is of traditional Thai architecture and is made of metal alloy and marble, gilded and decorated with small pieces of mirrored glass. It is like a jewel shining in the bright sunlight.

I was astonished to learn that the Royal Pavilion, which commemorates a number of auspicious occasions, including the 70th anniversary of His Majesty the King's accession to the throne, and his 90th birthday celebration in December next year, was funded by the Royal SUPPORT Foundation.

While the Ananta Samakhom Throne Hall is a beautiful and well built building, it is done in the Western Classical style. The Borommangalanusarani Pavilion is entirely Thai in design and built by the hand of Thais only. The Royal Pavilion is something one should not miss while visiting Bangkok, and the Thai people should be very proud of such an accomplishment.

Re: "Egat seeks to regain 50% market share, revises plan", (BP, July 1).

Will someone, anyone, please inform officials at the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand that electricity may be produced efficiently by the sun as well as by burning coal, while the latter kills living things and destroys the environment, the former does not. The only reason, (and there is no doubt whatsoever about it), to choose to burn coal in Thailand is if one is getting paid to make such a choice.

Re: "Navy submits B36bn plan to buy subs", (BP, July 1).

If Thailand really wants something underwater to protect its citizens, may I respectfully suggest the proposed budget of 36 billion baht is used to replace Bangkok's inadequate and aged drainage system. If it's not replaced soon the city will be inundated and subs will then be the only method of transport.

Martin R

Re: "Central bank laments lack of private investment", (BP, July 1).

The Bank of Thailand (BoT) is pointing to external risk factors and global economic weakness as reasons for poor local investment performance.

We also note that the lower expenditure of the three state-owned enterprises; Thai Airways International, PTT Plc, and TOT Plc, all public sector businesses adorned with insurmountable competitive advantages versus the private sector, contributed to increase the public sector deficit by 46.4% year on year.

The nation's rulers, (from among many items on their agenda), want to buy useless submarines and build five coal-fired power plants. Investment sentiment and the world are to blame? Has it not occurred to the Bank of Thailand that things are being managed poorly within the nation's borders significantly contributing to current economic declines?

A week on from the shock Brexit vote the world now has a taste of the fallout; pound collapsing, markets tumbling, the UK's political landscape in crisis, and an unthinkable de-coupling headache that will leave the country in a trading limbo for years while new complex deals are done. Was it worth it? Sometimes extracting yourself from a union is so cumbersome and costly (time and money) that you need to be certain that it's worth the apparent "freedom", and I don't think the people of Britain really considered this enough.

It's easy enough to say "less immigration" or "more sovereignty" but the reality is that neither of these ideals are going to be meaningfully achieved in the Global Village. No nation is an island these days. Much that the EU has become a behemoth that needs reform and dilution, leaving it is so complicated and economically debilitating in the mid term that a second referendum in a year might well produce an emphatic remain. But its too late for that. The EU is too big to fail, the world is too small to let your memberships lapse. To make such a huge decision based on a knife-edge result, rather than a super majority as is usually the case in major constitutional change, was indeed a folly that will go down in the annals of stupid historic milestones.

Re: "Brexit was a questionable exercise in democracy", (Opinion, June 28).

Following on from Tony Ash's comments on the above article, I would like to counter the misconception that 70% voter turnout is somehow too low. A 70% voter turnout is actually very good. In the referendum held in 1975 to gauge support for continued membership of the EU (then called the European Community) the voter turnout was 65%. At that time the public voted 67% to stay in -- a clear majority. Should the result have been annulled because there "was only" 65% turnout? People have a democratic right to vote, if they choose not to exercise it there is little one can do. I suspect that many people who did not vote did so because they could not decide because the issues were too complex, which is of course one reason why this referendum should never have taken place in the first place.

The Phra Dhammajayo saga is beginning to play like a boring soap opera. It drags on and on and on and …

The police can break into homes with impunity, have shoot-outs with drug dealers, chase suspected drug dealer vehicles, arrest those in the Tiger Temple debacle and rescue tigers, but they cannot seem to arrest a 72-year-old monk.

The police should take a page out of the Roman histories of Alexander of Macedon. Send in an arrow-shaped wedge of police with shields, line the sides of the cleared corridor with more police, then just march in and pick up that abbot. The fuss, the press, the drama, the saga, it is all quite awesome.

Perhaps some ambitious Thai film director will undertake making a movie of it. Cameo roll appearances could be assigned to Yantra and the "flying monk", who after embezzling millions, fled to the US, (like Yantra), to live in luxury and splendour.

Re: "Plan for the ageing", (Editorial, June 29).

I agree with your editorial that the Finance Ministry's plan to take back old-age allowances from the elderly is against all common sense.

First, the amount of the take-back represents only 10 billion baht a year. It is unwise to think that this money will help "relieve the state's burden" much -- since it is less than 1% of the government's annual expenditures. A wise government will save much more simply by taking a closer look at how its expenditures on military supplies are being done.

Second, the country's elderly, regardless of their economic status, deserve to be looked after equally by the government. I, for example, am glad to receive my miniscule allowance for the reason that I have been contributing to the government by paying my due taxes for past 45 years.

The amount I have been receiving is less than 1% of the interest on the total amount of my tax money -- if I had put it in the bank instead.

I am grateful for this allowance because it makes me think the government still cares for me.

Re: "Disillusioned", (PostBag, July 1).

Guy Baker cites an old cartoon with the caption, "Where are the people? I am their leader and I must catch up to get in front of them" (a variation of Mahatma Gandhi).

I have no knowledge of the old cartoon to which Guy refers.

But the quotation was not originally Gandhi's. It was uttered by Alexandre Auguste Ledru-Rollin (1807-1874) and translated into English from French.

It reads: "Let me pass. I have to follow them. I am their leader."

Re: "Misplaced optimism", "Disillusioned", (PostBag, July 1).

CY Gold in his July 1 letter, "Misplaced optimism" cites a surprise about Thailand believing it had a chance to win a seat in its UNSC bid.

It didn't have a chance from square one. But just like so many other things, as Thainess usually demands, just throw the hook into the water -- with no bait or legitimate expectation -- and hope for the best. This is how most Thai small business owners invest! And it reflects principles of domestic governance.

Guy Baker's "Disillusioned" refers to his own "stand and wait" policies. For what? Hubert H Humphrey, whom I met briefly in Bangkok so many years ago, said, "If you think politics is dirty, get in there with a bar of soap and clean it up." It ain't easy but democracy and freedom are more difficult to achieve if you do not participate and contribute.

This means advocating, running for office, losing, learning and eventually winning. It means calling, visiting, testifying before local councils, attending local board meetings and much more.

And to all Brexit writers, Britain voted to leave. As I see it, the move was wise and while nationalism per se has significant influence in the decision, so does the practical desire to safeguard one's own country, culture and economy. The EU could have been designed much better if we rest only on the principles of idealism and fraternity, notably by ensuring that each member retains its autonomy. Autonomy and self-empowerment are under global attack.

I'm just wondering why didn't the junta invite Bill Gates (ThaiPulse, June 28) for "attitude adjustment" after posting that unsightly overhead wires image of Bangkok on his Facebook for all to see. After all, that is bad for Thai tourism.

Re: "Prayut urges end to eating exotic animals", (BP, June 30).

This is a most encouraging statement from our prime minister, and I hope we can soon see an end to the nonsense of endangered species restaurants in Kaeng Krachan National Park and elsewhere.

It would be even more encouraging if he would follow up with some concrete measures, well within his power, to save the habitat of Thailand's exotic animals.

Like cancelling the Pak Bara deep-sea port plan, cancelling the proposed Kaeng Sua Ten and other dams, and sorting out the tangled web of conflicting responsibilities and interests among the National Parks Department, Department of Lands and the Agricultural Land Reform Office over what tracts of forest can and cannot be used for resorts and farming.

Saving exotic animals from the cooking pot is one thing -- giving them somewhere to live free of human interference is another.

It would require a never-ending series of diagrams to depict the diabolical manoeuvres and stunts perpetrated by drivers in this country day-in, day-out, ad infinitum. Words will never suffice.

No surprise if Thailand soon surpasses Libya as No.1 in the world in per capita road fatalities.

Shouldn't a country's top priority be to improve the quality of life of its citizens? Protect and serve? Not in Thailand. Where is the concern about the massive loss of life due to a lack of education, laughable enforcement of driving regulations, and lack of a truly mobile police force?

At least have some guts, pull 'em over and impound their car or motorbike, or at least fine them.