The white masks that give a new face to Thai protest
The recent sightings of Guy Fawkes white masks, or V masks from the "V for Vendetta" movie - which are now used as a symbol against the Thaksin regime - were not the first time they have been adopted by political campaigners in Thailand.
A group of student activists said they used the V mask for the first time in Thailand last year while protesting the government’s plan to stop subsidising state universities.
The group launched its campaign in front of Parliament on October 18 and opened a Facebook fan page, called V for Vendetta – revolution mask.
The administrator of the Facebook page, who identified himself only as Ae, said the introduction of the V mask in Thailand took place on International Student Movement day.
He said the mask had also appeared overseas as a symbol by activists who occupied Wall Street to protest the US government’s injection of money to help the stock markets.
Thai students used it as a symbol against the liberation of state universities, that would eventually terminate state subsidies.
"We chose the mask as a symbol because we felt it has strong powers. It is not only an international symbol but its use has two benefits for our student movement. It made our campaign colourful and wearing the mask allowed the students to campaign without fear their parents would recognise them, and they could hide their faces [from authorities] too," Ae said.
The activists in their masks also received a lot of attention from the media.
"The day we introduced the mask in Thailand, we had high hopes that other Thais would wear it and come out to reveal their problems in public. We wanted Thais to rise up and fight. The mask has been used internationally as a symbol against all types of dictatorship, including bureaucratic polity, military regimes or parliamentary dictatorial regimes," Ae said.
Ae said the government’s opponents had a right and the liberty to use the V mask as their Facebook profile photo.
"It’s freedom of expression and nothing is wrong with it. Those who adopt the mask as their profile photo may realise it’s a symbol against dictatorship and they may see the current political situation is a kind of dictatorial regime," Ae said.
"I think we have become successful in using the mask in Thailand," Ae added, laughingly.
The original Guy Fawkes led a movement by Catholics against English King James I in the early 17th century. After the Hollywood film "V for Vendetta" was released in 2005, the masks have been used in many major rallies around the world as symbols of the fight against injustice.
"Under this mask, there are sad eyes looking at injustice in society. So we chose the mask as a symbol to reflect social injustice," said another student activist, who is against the end of subsidies for state universities.
In January this year, the V mask was chosen for a protest against Channel 3’s self-imposed ban on its Nuamek TV drama series that was seen as a satire on the Shinawatra family. Protesters used the V mask in a demonstration against the TV channel when it cancelled the programme, and about 200 turned up wearing the mask.
It has yet to be seen whether the latest V mask campaigners will have significant influence on the Pheu Thai and its government.
