Sending Thai troops abroad affords a chance to learn

We welcome the announcement that units of the Thai military will be joining United Nations peacekeeping forces for assignments overseas. Dispatching officers and troops from engineering and development units signals Thailand’s readiness to assume broader responsibility in international affairs and should also help improve professionalism among the armed forces.

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha pledged Thai help during his visit to New York for the UN General Assembly session this week.

As UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon pointed out, “The demand for peacekeeping has never been greater.” More than 120 countries currently have military and other personnel stationed in hot spots around the globe, disarming, demobilising and reintegrating combatants, strengthening the rule of law, enhancing security and promoting human rights.

This is not the first time Thailand has participated in UN peacekeeping operations, Prayut told the General Assembly. Since 1946, when it joined the newly formed United Nations, Thailand has sent more than 20,000 police and military personnel to assist in peacekeeping under the UN flag – on the Korean Peninsula, in Timor Leste and South Sudan, and in other troubled areas.

“Conflict prevention, peacekeeping, peace-building and development are connected together as fundamentals of lasting peace,” said Prayut. He also urged the international community to comprehensively review such operations, as the nature of conflict has evolved since the UN first set out working parameters for its delegations. Prayut warrants further praise for encouraging women to take more active roles in maintaining peace.

Thailand is making this fresh commitment at a time when peace-building missions have reached new heights in terms of scale and scope. At present there are 125,000 troops, police officers and civilian officials engaged in 16 UN operations spanning four continents. In the US, President Barack Obama has ordered the first extension of American support for UN peace operations in more than 20 years. The work is crucial in protecting civilians and must be reformed and modernised to better suit that purpose, he said.

Having lauded the Thai government for vowing to help safeguard people in conflict areas abroad, we must also recall the adage that “foreign policy begins at home”. We need to look within and ask whether Thailand practises what it preaches.

Regrettably, our military has never embraced the notion of civilian self-rule. Time and again it has become entangled in politics rather than allowing the democratic system to work out its own problems. The glaring flaws of democracy and the freedoms it embodies must be left to run their course, no matter how slowly or temporarily painful. The military must learn to respect the “people’s mandate”.

As an essential institution, our military has to alter its mindset and become what it’s supposed to be, the protector of national interests against foreign enemies. It cannot on its own identify and act against domestic threats. That’s the job of elected representatives and the reason for civilian oversight in military affairs.

If our elected representatives are not up to the task, voters have only themselves to blame. A seat in Parliament shouldn’t constitute a carte blanche to venture beyond national interest and ignore the rule of law. Violating the ground rules brings disastrous consequences in the form of insurrections and coups.

So, as we commit ourselves to international obligations, some serious soul-searching is in order at home: What kind of country do we want to be, and what role should our armed forces play?