Is it ever right to do the wrong thing?

Indeed, one supporter has even stated very recently in these pages that Thaksin Shinawatra had his money “stolen” from him by the State and therefore, as a “victim” has every right to reclaim it. Those who support this view are particularly incensed by the cases that followed the 2006 Coup, asserting that because Thaksin was elected by a majority of the people nobody but the people have the right to take his money away from him – and don’t even think about sending him to jail!

Which was precisely the dilemma that faced the Constitution Court in 2001 while deliberating the “hidden assets” case. The evidence was so clear in the case, and both the sums and the places where the money was hidden so staggering, there was simply no defence – just the argument that Thaksin had made an “honest mistake” and as he was so loved by the people and wanted so much to serve them, he promised, he should be given a chance.

And it all followed on from there, of course – that was the “root cause of the conflict,” says the Kanit na Nakhon Commission in the TRCT Report. Indeed, that’s the topic that needs to be openly discussed in Thailand before reconciliation can ever be accomplished. Should a leader be allowed to break the law because he’s popular? Should the number of votes he gets be allowed to trump the restraints of the law?  

The divide in Thailand lies right there, between those who find Thaksin’s ethics unacceptable and those who say his ethics don’t matter because he gets so much done. 

Human beings can answer such questions easily when it comes to priests, saints and kings but can get horribly confused when it comes to the promises of some of history’s most ambitious leaders.

Human beings also tend to get what they want, as history has shown so devastatingly and so often. The good thing is that in Thailand at least half the people don’t want what Thaksin is promising at all, and for once a nation might just be spared all that suffering.

For the troubles are nothing now compared to what most such leaders tend to leave behind in the wreckage.

Lung Kip

Chiang Mai