Rotten fruit

re: "Prayut focuses on 'prosperity'" (BP, July 9, 2022) 

Dear editor,

A wise man once said, "For a good tree does not bear bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. For every tree is known by its own fruit. For men do not gather figs from thorns, nor do they gather grapes from a bramble bush" (Luke, 6:43-44, KJV). These words spoken 2,000 years ago are worth bearing in mind as we yet again hear Prime Minister Prayut Chan-cha preaching of "his administration's ambitious plan to drive Thailand into the heart of the 21st century" as he yet again "urged Thais to unite as one." Both the claim and the call are contradicted by the odour of fruits never edible, now seriously beyond ripe. Thailand aspires to the soft power eminence that South Korea, whose achievements of the past four decades have made it the envy of many admiring Thais, has come to enjoy under the liberal democracy that in 1980 replaced years of tradition uniformly retarding that nation's development.

Up to 1980, Thailand and South Korea had much in common. Both were developing ever so slowly, wracked by regular, persistent political setbacks that retarded the political, social and moral foundations needed to drive economic and cultural flourishing. In 1973 and 1976, Thailand failed to grasp its South Korea moment. Thanks to the sacrifice of protestors now honoured as true patriots of the nation, South Korea, in contrast, took the opportunity to rid itself of retarding traditions in 1980. South Korea has since had no shortage of rotten politicians of remarkable corruption, as every democracy must, but in South Korea, the old ways did not use that deceitful excuse to stamp out democracy itself. Rather, democracy was permitted to meet the challenge, and South Korea grew into the modern cultural and economic powerhouse that it is today. Such are the fruits of liberal democracy. Thailand, in contrast, has continued for decade after decade, including almost a decade of PM Prayut, to suffer submission to traditions of bountiful benevolence and righteousness, as alleged by those sowing those seeds. The fruits of all that dictated prostration to allegedly sacred tradition is plain to see.  

Perhaps instead of unjustly imprisoning its internationally honoured recipients of South Korea's Gwangju Prize for human rights, Thailand should learn to respect them as the true patriots that they are. But then, that same wise man from the Bible teaches another apt lesson, as Mark recounts in his chapter 6, verse 4: "A prophet is not without honor except in his own country, among his own relatives, and in his own house.” 

 Felix Qui

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The above letter to the editor is the text as submitted by Felix Qui to the Bangkok Post.

The text as edited was published in PostBag on July 14, 2022, under the title "Rotten fruit" at https://www.bangkokpost.com/opinion/postbag/2345808/superpower-secrets