BANGKOK — The government today unveiled a new patriotic song that junta chairman Prayuth Chan-ocha reportedly wrote himself as a “New Year present” to Thais.
Titled “Because You Are Thailand,” the ballad is the second musical achievement of the retired general, whose previous song, “Returning Happiness to the People,” has been played on a loop on state-owned media agencies since he wrote and released it in June 2014.
Gen. Prayuth, who seized power from the elected government in May 2014, provided some insights into his latest work at today’s news conference.
“I wrote it as a personal New Year present for the people,” Gen. Prayuth said at Government House, according to Prachachat. “In the lyrics, it doesn’t only mean me, but it means the media, too, because everyone is united and I have to please them. I use my every breath to help this country move forward.”
Government officials unveiled lyrics to the song for the media Tuesday, and the song itself was later uploaded to Youtube on the same day. According to the video description, the song is performed by army sergeant Pongsathorn Porchi.
Here’s the song followed by an unofficial translation from Khaosod English:
“Because You Are Thailand”
The life that I was born into, you are what I uphold
I love you and bond with you more than anything
Because you are Thailand
I will not let anyone destroy you
Life is not permanent, but the country must always live on
I want to see you recover and be bright again
As long as I still breathe, I will not be daunted by any obstacles
If there are only two hands and one soul
The power won’t be enough to make dreams come true
But if all of us join hands and souls
The day that we hope for won’t be too far for our Thailand
If there are only two hands and one soul
The power won’t be enough to make dreams come true
But if all of us join hands and souls
The day that we hope for won’t be too far for our Thailand
Stride toward a great hope
I will return happiness to all of you
It is unclear how much time the general spent writing this piece; but government officials said Prayuth wrote “Returning Happiness to the People” by himself in less than an hour.
Apart from Prayuth’s personal projects, the military government also released two other songs to promote the regime’s message of reconciliation and unity.
One of them is called “Tomorrow,” which is played at the start of the junta announcements or TV programs on state media, while the other is a musical version of “Twelve Values,” a set of teachings penned by Gen. Prayuth.
NOTE: This article was updated to include the link to the song “Because You Are Thailand” on Youtube.
