‘Pigkaploy’ creator defends video, says no effort to ‘whitewash’ Thai military

The video, titled “For What We Have Soldiers: Episode 1”, showcased actress-cum-influencer Ploypailin “Ploy” Thangprabhaporn’s three-day experience at a remote military post in Chiang Mai’s Wiang Haeng district.

While many of her followers expressed moral support, with some suggesting that she was being victimised by “political bigots and crazy people”, some critics claimed she was allowing the video to be used in a military publicity campaign.

Addressing the critics, Ploypailin said her intention was not to “whitewash” anyone and was sorry that the video title had caused a misunderstanding.

“I wish to apologise for causing an issue that led to misunderstanding and disappointment for many people,” she said in a Facebook post on Friday.

The video depicts the difficulties junior Thai soldiers stationed in the border area experience, and many netizens claimed it had been made in line with instructions from the Army.

Ploypailin, however, insists that she had produced the video because she personally wanted to learn about the missions of Thai soldiers stationed in border areas.

When it started
 

The Pigkaploy channel, boasting 1.23 million subscribers, posted the first of a series of three episodes of the life of soldiers on Tuesday (January 16). The other two episodes were to be about soldiers posted on the northeastern border and another on the southern border.

However, the first episode disappeared from YouTube on Friday, even though it could be viewed on other channels such as TV5HD Online and Thai Press.

It remains unclear whether the two other episodes will be posted on YouTube as promised earlier.

The controversial episode was posted on YouTube again on Saturday with a new title: “Try Living as a Soldier on the Northern Border for 3 Days and 2 Nights”. As of Saturday afternoon, it had been viewed more than 600,000 times.

The video’s description also stated that reuse, modification or rebroadcasting of the episode elsewhere was not permitted.

In her Facebook post, the 26-year-old YouTuber said that after the controversy erupted, she decided to temporarily hide the episode because she did not want it to be “misused”. She said many of her followers had said that her video had been copied to be posted on the websites of many state agencies.

“Additional messages were added in a way that did not agree with my original objective and intention,” she said.

Real intention misunderstood

The young YouTuber, who usually posts videos on her travels in Thailand and overseas, also said that she believes in democracy and an elected government.

She said that after witnessing the life of soldiers on the border, she wondered if it was “time to reform the military”, adding that something had to be done to improve the well-being and welfare of junior soldiers in remote areas.

“This is my intended message for the audience. But the way the video is presented may have caused misunderstanding,” she added.

In response to Ploypailin’s latest Facebook message, several fans offered her moral support on social media, and some said this incident could serve as a lesson for her in producing future YouTube videos.

Some followers said that they were waiting for the remaining episodes in the series about the life of soldiers on the borders.

Earlier, the Royal Thai Army dismissed allegations that Ploypailin’s YouTube channel was being used in a so-called information operation.

In recent years, critics and opposition politicians have questioned the country’s military spending. This came amidst growing calls for the cancellation of compulsory military conscription.

Many critics have frequently asked, “For what do we have soldiers?”, while many claim that Thailand no longer needs a military as most countries focus on “trade wars” rather than physical combat.