Former army chief and leader of the Sept 19, 2006 coup Gen Sonthi Boonyaratkalin confirmed on Thursday morning that he is interested in getting involved in politics.

…

The former chairman of the coup-makers’ Council for National Security said he would not set up his own political party but would join a political camp that has policies and political ideology he agrees with.

“The country is now facing the problem of social division and thus I want to join a political party that is impartial. It must be a party that the people can rely on,” Gen Sonthi said. One of his major aims was national reconciliation.

Should I laugh or should I cry?

I wonder if the 2006 coup leader realises at all that the coup he staged is one of the major causes, if not THE very cause, of Thailand’s “problem of social division” he is apparently so determined to rectify. Does he even know what he is on about here?

Although Thaksin was no champion of democracy when in power, Gen Sonthi’s coup was in every aspect a “giant step backward” as far as the country’s democratic development is concerned, as Thitinan Pongsudhirak put it (“Thailand since the coup” Journal of Democracy, Vol. 19, No.4, pp.140 – 153.) It is simply extraordinary for someone who killed democracy to come back and beg for a chance to be chosen by the electorate who saw their democratic rights taken away on that fateful night three years ago.

Having said that, I do not deny the possibility of someone who used to be involved in illiberal or dictatorial regimes redeeming him/herself and becoming an advocate of electoral democracy. Indonesia’s President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is a good example. Having previously served under the authoritarian Suharto, he has contributed a great deal to the country’s remarkable journey toward liberal democracy since becoming President for the first time in 2004 (see The Economist for more stories on post-Suharto Indonesia).

If Gen Sonthi wants to be the next Yudhoyono (however implausible that may sound), he will have to do a number of things. For a start, he could follow the example of media freedom campaigner Supinya Klangnarong (see AbsolutelyBangkok for an excellent interview with her) and denounce his role in the coup. Admitting his past failures seems to be the only way for him to even stand a chance.

Related posts (automatically generated):

1. Old Soldiers Should Just Fade Away
2. Petition to Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats, Regarding the Violence in Thailand
3. Thailand’s Continued Unrest: Implications on the Region