Rubber ainтАЩt rice (or is it?)
January 14, 2016
This is a tale of two commodities that have political connotations.
Rice, long a staple of the Thai diet and defining of basics like what food is and how it is eaten, has been associated with the political parties of Thaksin and Yingluck Shinawatra, their political bases in the north, northeast and central regions. Rice farmers were once consider the backbone of the nation. They have long been exploited and whatever way you look at it, poverty data show that being a smallholder or tenant rice farmer in the regions mentioned is not a bad indicator of the likelihood of a family living in poverty.
Rubber has long been associated with the farmers of the mid-south. On average, the poverty data shows that farming in this region has produced higher than average incomes. The Democrat Party has, in recent years, dominated the region, aided by organizers like the godfather figures like Suthep Thaugsuban. People from the region were the backbone (and muscle) of SuthepтАЩs PeopleтАЩs Democratic Reform Committee.
General Prayuth Chan-ocha led his 2014 military coup in part based on a setiment that the the Puea Thai Party governmentтАЩs rice subsidy scheme was тАЬcorrupt.тАЭ Indeed, the courts are still dealing with a case that could see Yingluck jailed and fined a huge amount of money.
Now that rubber prices have plummeted and southerners are becoming agitated, how does The Dictator respond?..... (read more)....https://thaipoliticalprisoners.wordpres ... -or-is-it/