Opinion pieces and commentary on Thailand's current affairs, in English, from Thai PBS World contributors.
“Do you have a boyfriend?” “When are you getting married?” “When will you come down off the ‘kaan’?” These are the most common sayings heard in daily conversation among Thais, particularly during family gatherings. This reflects how Thai culture is still attached to long-standing cultural norms, expecting women to find a husband, as getting married
Irritated by the fact that local history in Thailand’s Malay-speaking South embraces a very different version from that of the Thai State, the Fourth Army Area commander, Lt. General Santi Sakuntanark, thinks they have the solution to the problem. A 22-member committee of senior military and police officers has been set up to investigate efforts
If you think hard work won’t kill you, think again. The story of a senior employee of a television news channel in Thailand, who suddenly died at his desk, recently went viral on social media. A Facebook post described how this 44-year-old male employee was overworked by his employer. He regularly worked overtime, seven days
Despite the ambitious goal of freeing Thailand from HIV/Aids by 2030, the authorities have suddenly rationed the distribution of so-called before and after pills that keep infection at bay. “If you want to stop Aids from spreading, you must make preventive tools and resources easily available to people,” said Surang Janyam, founder of the medical
Newly appointed facilitator for the Patani peace talks, Gen. Zulkifli Zainal Abidin, will arrived in Thailand on February 1stfor a two-day visit to introduce himself to Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan and Gen. Wanlop Rugsanaoh, Thailand’s chief negotiator. Zulkifli, a retired Army chief, is said to be a counter terrorism expert. He is expected to
At the very beginning, it must be stressed that Thailand and Türkiye share a common national identity – neither has ever been colonised by the Western powers. They are also major players in their respective regions. Therefore, it is not surprising that these two countries have independent thoughts and diplomacy, especially in their external relations
It may be that the Thai negotiators sitting across the table from the Barisan Revolusi Nasional (BRN) see them as easy pickings, but this low-hanging fruit – the Cessation of Hostility Agreement (COHA) — should be a cause of concern for the Malays of Patani, as it could legitimise more cheap ploys by the government,
Education Minister Treenuch Thienthong has scrapped her ministry’s rule on student hairstyles – a rule that youngsters have long complained about. However, her decision has been panned instead of praised by many students, who believe it will land them in even bigger disciplinary trouble. “She has let all hell break loose on children’s heads,” a
Many were surprised to see master powerbroker Thammanat Prompow kneeling on stage to present a garland to Palang Pracharath leader General Prawit Wongsuwan, in a symbolic apology and show of remorse. But analysts say it was just a political show aimed at legitimizing his imminent return to the ruling party. The January 16 event in
Along with reducing pressure of raising a child, innovative policies such as allowing freezing of eggs and attracting workers from other countries should be considered if Asian countries want to reverse a decline in population growth, an expert said. Asian countries had already rolled out measures to encourage people to have more babies, including through
When a student cheats in an exam, the penalty is usually at least a failing grade. So when the Thai public recently learned that many university professors had likely bought their research papers, it was eager to see what punishment would result. The Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation Ministry has instructed all universities to
Expressing one’s identity and historical-cultural narrative, regardless if it is different from the state-constructed one, should not be a crime in this day and age. But when you have a bunch of dinosaurs running the country — or million-year-old turtles, as Thai people like to say — one has to work a little harder and
