Walking in an ever-diminishing vicious circle

Anyone watching the latest parliamentary debates on the amnesty, budget and charter-amendment bills might have lost faith in the legislature. Admittedly that’s a sensitive, if not dangerous, thing to say. It has to be emphasised, therefore, that deploring what has gone on in Parliament and rejecting democracy are never the same thing. In fact, for democracy to prosper in a difficult political environment like ours, we need a strong and accountable Parliament that can make a badly divided people agree to disagree. That doesn’t seem to be the case at the moment.

Everyone is to blame – the Democrats for their strategy of “rocking the boat”, the ruling Pheu Thai Party for initiating bills that defy legislative principles or ignore political realities, the news media for being drawn to emotion and not substance, and the general public for its unbending political stances. Parliament, however, has the most delicate responsibility. Parliamen-tarians must strive to maintain unity, not break it.

Which brings us to the question of why amnesty and charter changes are matters of such urgency in the ruling party’s eyes. Both issues have caused parliamentary turmoil that was completely avoidable. Pheu Thai has had its way on other parliamentary matters, but it’s been pushing its luck with its so-called democratic mandate. Why does the ruling party seem willing to throw it all away?

If the answer is “Thaksin Shinawatra”, the Pheu Thai Party cannot blame the Democrats without looking in the mirror. The latter have made a mockery of parliamentary proceedings, but, as senior Democrat Terdpong Jayanam pointed out, voters can’t condemn the effects without checking the causes. A lot of things went wrong in Thailand before the current parliamentary turmoil, and how the “democratic mandate” has been exercised in recent years has been dubious to say the least.

Our parliamentarians can condemn Thailand to this vicious circle forever or they can at least attempt to help us break free. Currently, Parliament is little more than a farce, and could be a lure for opportunists with ill intent toward democracy. 

If the Democrats try to block the government’s legitimate control of budget planning and spending, or the appointment of people the administration wants to work with, they should be condemned for obstructing democratic principles. If the opposition bloc resists any controversial use of the electoral mandate, it needs to be heeded.

Parliament has the responsibility to douse the fire. What has happened over the past few days is having the opposite effect. Anti-government Thais have found the Democrats’ tactics acceptable, while the other side has denounced what it sees as contempt for democratic principles. Who is right and who is wrong is an exhausting question, but the situation has prevented Thailand from doing what it is supposed to be doing – focusing efforts to tackle the insurgency in the deep South and raising the level of education.

Everyone is calling for someone else to show responsibility so that the country can move forward. “We are being watched by the entire nation” and “Let’s do this together in Parliament because there’s no other way” are statements heard often that simply mean nothing.

Unless Thai parliamentarians walk the talk, they and much of Thailand will continue walking in a vicious circle.