PM the brunt of some mild mockery at varsity meet
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PRIME MINISTER General Prayut Chan-o-cha was at the centre of mockery during a political-satire parade at yesterday's 70th instalment of the annual football match between Chulalongkorn and Thammasat universities.
The parade, a highlight of the inter-university event, went ahead despite the junta telling the organisers to be “cautious” about their satire’s content.
Both universities had to report their theme and content to police before the parade started.
The Chulalongkorn parade moved into Supachalasai National Stadium – venue for the match – without any problem thanks solely to its non-political theme.
But security officials barred the Thammasat parade from coming in until its members decided to |give up banners with political messages.
Despite the warning and checks, the mockery was surprisingly |bold and explicit, especially Thammasat’s floats displaying large caricatures of political figures.
The parade received a vibrant reception from the crowd, which occupied most parts of the stadium.
Thammasat’s parade included a figure that looked like Prayut in military uniform. It was placed in front of a large grey pot containing human figures in multi-coloured shirts including red and yellow. It appeared the PM figure was trying to bleach the colour out of the shirts.
The Thammasat parade also featured a giant male figure with an open head containing letters. It was positioned in front of the stage.
When Prayut spoke, the background graphic was changed from a formal setting into an image of the premier surrounded by Teletubbies (a famous children’s TV programme).
The organisers appeared to |be mocking him over accusa-|tions he uses the media excessively in an attempt to “brainwash” people.
The Teletubbies reference stems from social media pranks on the premier after he asked the public to help him design the background of his television programme.
The parade entered the stadium at about 2pm, and the day overall had a lively atmosphere, with students in a cheerful and friendly mood. They began gathering around the stadium shortly before noon in waves of yellow-red and pink.
There had been speculation that the National Council for Peace and Order had contacted the universities and requested that they refrain from political satire during the parade, according to a source from Thammasat’s Student Union.
However, NCPO spokesman Colonel Winthai Suvari insisted that the junta had not ordered a ban on political satire but just asked organisers to be “cautious” about the matter for fear it could lead to political disputes.
Last year, Thailand’s oldest |traditional inter-university football match had to be cancelled due to concerns over student safety as the location of the stadium was close to a major People’s Democratic Reform Committee protest site.
