March 5th, 2007, 10:08
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v27/wowpow/sonthi.jpg
Thai General Sonthi Boonyaratglin, photographed in Bangkok on February 27, 2007
HELEN KUDRICH FOR TIME
By HANNAH BEECH
For a general who led Thailand's first coup in 15 years, Sonthi Boonyaratglin is projecting a deliberately civilian image. Dressed in a dapper dark suit and yellow tie, Sonthi eschewed his usual army uniform for his Feb. 27 meeting with TIME's Hannah Beech and Robert Horn. But a suit, no matter how handsome, cannot suspend the reality that a military junta, called the Council for National Security (CNS), now runs the country. The CNS ousted elected Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra last Sept. 19. At first, the overthrow of the billionaire P.M. was greeted with much public acclaim. Today, however, the CNS is increasingly under fire for a lack of vision and high-profile policy missteps. Although the junta promised to restore stability to Thailand after months of anti-Thaksin street protests, bombs erupted in the capital on New Year's Eve, and violence in the country's largely Muslim south has escalated. The CNS-appointed government spooked investors by briefly unveiling capital controls and proposing limits on foreign businesses in Thailand. At the same time, it has been promoting a poorly understood economic model called the "sufficiency theory." (Last week, Finance Minister Pridiyathorn Devakula quit his post, citing divisions within the government on economic policy.) Nor has any firm date been set for Thailand's next elections, an indication of whether democracy will return to the country. And though alleged corruption by Thaksin was one of the reasons the junta gave for moving tanks onto the streets, the process of bringing charges against the former P.M. through an investigation by the Assets Scrutiny CommitteeтАФa team handpicked by the coup leadersтАФhas been slow. Despite the criticisms of the CNS, Sonthi, 60, still commands support from many Thais, not least because of his reputation as an incorruptible soldier in a country where both politicians and military brass have been accused of illegally profiting from their positions. In his conversation with TIME, the general defended the coup as the only way to stabilize Thailand, and vowed that, unlike previous Thai military leaders, he does not see politics as a long-term career. Excerpts:
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/artic ... 96,00.html (http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1594996,00.html)
Thai General Sonthi Boonyaratglin, photographed in Bangkok on February 27, 2007
HELEN KUDRICH FOR TIME
By HANNAH BEECH
For a general who led Thailand's first coup in 15 years, Sonthi Boonyaratglin is projecting a deliberately civilian image. Dressed in a dapper dark suit and yellow tie, Sonthi eschewed his usual army uniform for his Feb. 27 meeting with TIME's Hannah Beech and Robert Horn. But a suit, no matter how handsome, cannot suspend the reality that a military junta, called the Council for National Security (CNS), now runs the country. The CNS ousted elected Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra last Sept. 19. At first, the overthrow of the billionaire P.M. was greeted with much public acclaim. Today, however, the CNS is increasingly under fire for a lack of vision and high-profile policy missteps. Although the junta promised to restore stability to Thailand after months of anti-Thaksin street protests, bombs erupted in the capital on New Year's Eve, and violence in the country's largely Muslim south has escalated. The CNS-appointed government spooked investors by briefly unveiling capital controls and proposing limits on foreign businesses in Thailand. At the same time, it has been promoting a poorly understood economic model called the "sufficiency theory." (Last week, Finance Minister Pridiyathorn Devakula quit his post, citing divisions within the government on economic policy.) Nor has any firm date been set for Thailand's next elections, an indication of whether democracy will return to the country. And though alleged corruption by Thaksin was one of the reasons the junta gave for moving tanks onto the streets, the process of bringing charges against the former P.M. through an investigation by the Assets Scrutiny CommitteeтАФa team handpicked by the coup leadersтАФhas been slow. Despite the criticisms of the CNS, Sonthi, 60, still commands support from many Thais, not least because of his reputation as an incorruptible soldier in a country where both politicians and military brass have been accused of illegally profiting from their positions. In his conversation with TIME, the general defended the coup as the only way to stabilize Thailand, and vowed that, unlike previous Thai military leaders, he does not see politics as a long-term career. Excerpts:
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/artic ... 96,00.html (http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1594996,00.html)