Translation Taksin

8/6/2019 Translation Taksin

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From Times Online

November 9, 2009

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Thaksin Shinawatra: the full transcript of his interview with The Times

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Richard Lloyd Parry, Asia Editor of The Times, spoke to the ousted Thai Prime Minister Thaksin

Shinawatra at his home in Dubai

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(Charney Magri/The Times)

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Ousted Thai leader Thaksin Shinawatra

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2/27

Richard Lloyd Parry in Dubai

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I was told by some of my people that the media would start to attack me because the opposition is so

weak so the media would become the opposition. I didn't believe that at that time. And finally I saw the

media attack me with unreasonable things. One day I came across the son of the owner of a daily

newspaper. I asked him: Ask your dad, why does your newspaper attack me unreasonably?' He said,

'Uncle [a general term of respect], there's nothing I can do because my father has been lobbied by two

Privy Councillors. They came to have dinner with my father and they said the King doesn't want you

anymore. I said I don't believe that His Majesty never wants to become involved in politics. Maybe it's

because of their own prejudice against me.

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3/27

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4/27

me. Even when they are in power, they still allege that I want to be president. This is a very sensitive

issue for Thai people because Thais love His Majesty, and Thais will not allow anyone who dare to topple

the monarchy?

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5/27

Most privy councillors are retired government officials? they have their subordinates so they want to have

some kind of influence. Let's say like General Prem [Tinsulanonda, president of the Privy Council] he

wants someone to be army commander-in-chief. But if you appoint someone else he may not be happy.

That is the exercise of power without the intention or anything of the monarch. It's the palace circle who

are playing the games.

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The Privy Councillors are. Not only Prem but others like ladies-in-waiting, and whatever, of the Queen.

Thai society looks big, but it is very narrow in terms of the elite in Bangkok. So the influence, the network

is there. That's what makes politics complicated. It's not like the UK or Japan, where people are not

allowed to influence things.

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Yes, yes.


6/27

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What kind of reform?

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The constitutional monarchy must be strictly abided by. All the institutions must function according to the

rule of law and the political rules, but sometimes they've been influenced. The justice system can be

intervened in by the palace circle.

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JD(4+IQ+47#>?,1#+4#"37&M(IF2H4"IQ3+NIJD(4+IQ+47G*H")+N)EC#(.%@.


7/27

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The government is engaged in a conflict with my supporters. We are rivals, so the government is not in a

position to solve the problems. The government is not in a position to be trusted because they steal the

power, they rob the power from the people.

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8/27

What would you say to the King?

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I would say, Your Majesty, it's time for Your Majesty to be kind to the Thai citizens, by giving them peace.

Let them stay together peacefully through the blanket amnesty and pardons. So let everyone go back to

their normal life and draft the new constitution.

?

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9/27

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I think His Majesty maybe now feels unwell because he's been in and out of hospital. I hope after His

Majesty gets stronger he will find a way for the country to be back to unity. We cannot let the country go

on like this. We will be getting worse and worse and the division will be getting deeper and stronger.

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The King seems to be recovering from his latest illness now. But there will eventually be a change of

monarch. What will that mean for Thai politics and Thai society?

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10/27

Thailand's been governed by? this dynasty more than 200 years. There's going to be a smooth transition

but Thais need to reconcile their differences first, before the reign change. The reign change will be

smooth.

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One day the Crown Prince will become King. How will his style be different from that of the current King?

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It may be different, but I think it will go smoothly because he's a constitutional monarch. The people

around the Crown Prince will be new, and the palace circle will not be that big because he will be new.

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11/27

What does he want to achieve?

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He's not the King yet, he may not be shining. But after he becomes the King I'm confident he can be

shining to perform Kingship, because he has observed His Majesty, his father, for many years. He learns

a lot from His Majesty. It's not his time yet. But when the time comes I think he will be able to perform.

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12/27

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Now I consider myself as ex-prime minister of Thailand and in exile. I was asked to lead a government in

exile. I didn't do that because I don't want to hurt the monarchy. So after the King signed the decree

accepting the coup, I said then I am finished.

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13/27

She's under house arrest, I've been kicked out of the country. They know that if I am in the country it'll be

worse [for them] than Aung San Suu Kyi.

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No, I can work online. I can work through email, but I want to thank Hun Sen in person.

After he announced the royal decree I rang him to thank him and he invited me to go to Cambodia.

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This government's trying to protect its power by every means. They're afraid that if I were staying there it

might be too close. I'm not going to stay, anyway, but I have to travel there.

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The whole government is just in a panic about me and doing nothing for the country. They over-protect

their power. They don't have power easily, so when they managed to gain power with the help of the

military and the president of the privy council they have to protect it very well like the cobra protects the

eggs.


14/27

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They are very childish. They're afraid if I were there my supporters would be more upbeat, because I stay

close. I'm not going to stay, I know it's too close, but I will visit from time to time.

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15/27

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16/27


17/27

No, they have never contacted me. They claim that they called me, but they never did. They never want

to settle, otherwise they cannot hold power. They are obsessed with power. If the country is not in a mess

and there is no one helping them to get the power they will not be able to hold on to power.

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18/27

peacefully. I want to form a new party called 'Enjoy Life Party'. [Laughs.] You know I have no time to

enjoy my life. I have been working hard since I grew up. After I became a successful businessman,

instead of living my life happily, I volunteered to work for the country. Normally politics is not for rich

people to go into. Seldom people who are rich want to go in politics. But I love the people. I love my

country, I want to do good things for them. ? I could walk away. I'm really fed up of Thai style politics. But

if the people make me go back, I owe them.

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19/27

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20/27

Outside Thailand it's only a hundred million, or couple of hundred million US dollars. A hundred million

US dollars, actually.

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A couple of hundred or a hundred?

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It used to be a couple but I spent some on my house, this and that. I have about a hundred left.

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How long will that last?

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21/27

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22/27

On November 14 there will be a fundraising concert. I'm going to sing [a Thai song entitled] 'Thanks for

beating me up again!', because they keep beating me. The song is saying, Thanks for repeatedly

beating me, and you beat me in the same place where it really hurts! That's a song about love.

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Why? If it's not solved, what's going to happen?

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23/27

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%>?(.)T8)>7[>,

Some people in Thailand seem to have worse fears than just economic and diplomatic stagnation. You

hear people talking about some kind of economic collapse, civil war. Is that possible?

08D869:)!S$!A?#-H3'8


24/27

What about the sale of Shin Corp [Mr Thaksins family telecommunications company which was sold to

the Singaporean government for 77.3 billion bath (1.14 billion) without paying tax, a cause of intense

criticism of MrThaksin when he was prime minister]. You didn't pay tax. Putting aside the legal rights

and wrongs, was that a misjudgement, politically?

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25/27

be free and clear from being criticised for conflict of interest. So they thought they'd better sell [the

company].

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26/27

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27/27

My wife understands that I have a lot of supporters. I cannot avoid going back to politics because of the

supporters who pinned hopes on me. And she really was not supporting me from the beginning to enter

politics, because she comes from a very low profile family. She seldom went out with me, especially

abroad, she never followed me. She wanted to be low profile, she doesn't like politics at all, but she

understands that I have to go back to politics. So she said: 'I cannot be against you in politics anymore

because I sympathise with those who are supporting you. But you have to sympathise with me. I cannot

bear it anymore, it's too much on my life, so we'd better divorce'. So we divorced with understanding. We

help one another to take care of children but with politics she said, 'Please - I don't want to be involved

anymore'. She lives in Thailand and since we divorced we never see each other.

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