Opinion

Beyond whether you are for Israel or Palestine in the latest war, some Thai-Malay Muslims see the latest conflict in the middle east through a different prism. Soon after Hamas’ inhumane attack against Israel on Oct. 7 and Israel’s counterattack, a Thai Malay-Muslim Facebook friend said he feels as if Palestine is Pattani and Thailand is Israel.

Over the past week, the Srettha Thavisin administration repeatedly urges Thai workers in Israel to leave the country for Thailand as soon as possible, rightly citing the risks to their life.

We are seeing more of the type of diplomacy the new prime minister is engaging abroad and there is valid cause to be concerned. PM Srettha Thavisin was in Beijing a few days ago as part of the gathering of leaders from 130 nations attending China’s 10th anniversary of Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

Exactly a week after Hamas’ savage and merciless attacks against Israel, PM Srettha Thavisin made it clear that Thailand is not taking side in this war in a faraway land despite 24 Thai workers having been killed in Israel after a week and over ten taken hostage. This follows Srettha’s earlier condemnation of Hamas’ attacks.

One visible change in the aftermath of the Siam Paragon luxury shopping mall shooting by the 14-year-old gunman in Bangkok which led to two deaths and injured five, two serious, is the reintroduction of bag search for customers entering shopping malls and other semi-public venues. It is an inconvenience for sure, but will (like other things Thai) most likely be quietly phased out within months and life is then “back to normal” and it is “business as usual” (Thais just cannot let a lone gunman slow down their shopping experience).

Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin this week rightly highlighted the need to think about the poor and underprivileged people. First, it was announced on Thursday that the-real estate-billionaire-turned-PM has decided not to accept his monthly salary and donate them to different charities instead. It was a good gesture and the first of his 125,590-baht monthly salary went to the Foundation for Children, which assists needy school children.

Attention on peace is hard to sustain in a world of attention deficit, particularly when conflicts or war occur far away from home.

The new Srettha Thavisin government has declared war on influential figures and mafias following the recent killing of Pol. Maj. Sivakorn Saibua by a gunman allegedly working for a local sub-district chief (Kamnan) in Nakhon Pathom province, who is believed to be a local influential figure.

The story of the Ulmas’ martyrdom should be known worldwide.

New Defense Minister Suthin Klangsaeng from the ruling Pheu Thai Party has the unenviable job of reining in the armed forces – or keeping them happy.