"Democracy in Thailand has different definition," : former FM
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Former Foreign Minister Surin Pitsuwan said Monday that the governmentsponsored forum; "Uniting for The Future" to find solutions for reconciliation in Thailand reflected the fact that democracy in this country was differently defined.
The most important thing is how to build trust and open the discussions for participation by everyone in the country, he said.
Currently, the opposition could not work effectively in the parliament, independent organisations are not truly independent and the mass media cannot access information freely, he noted.
The problem is not a conflict between the government and the opposition as it is in many other countries but also comes from outsiders who have fuelled misunderstanding and mistrust, he said.
Surin attended as an audience member the forum where former British prime minister Tony Blair and Finland’s former leader Martti Ahtisaari were key speakers.
Many other Democrats such as former Senator Kraisak Choonhavan also attended.
Outside the meeting room, a group of some 20 Thai patriots staged a brief protest in front of Plaza Athenee hotel to protest the invitation of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair to the forum.
The group understood that the money for Blair’s expenses came from their tax money and said it was a major waste of funds to hire foreign speakers to talk about internal conflict. As long as the government listens to the Thai people, it’s useless to have foreigners speak about Thailand, they said.
