IS THIS THE WORLD WE CREATED?

So my wife and I we are planning another visit to Switzerland.
To avoid last year’s experience when we’ve been stuck there without being allowed to leave the country since no embassy or consulate would give us a visa to go to Italy even for a capuccino or France to visit my brother we thought about asking for a “preventive” visa.

What is wrong with that?
Countries they are launching “preventive wars” why a normal, quiet middle aged couple can not ask for a “preventive visa”?

Impossible it is. Without presenting flight reservations, hotel bookings nobody would grant us a visa, this means that even if we would like to spend a weekend in Italy (for example) we could not.

This left me wondering… is this the world we have created? Is this the world of freedom all politicians are blabbing about?
Surely not, if you ask my very humble opinion.

It looks more and more like those nightmarish Sci-Fi movies where to build a perfect world, freedom was neglected, a thing of the past.
It is increasingly looking like that Spielberg movie “Minority Report”, where the world was dominated by some “prevention police”, where the government to prevent crime abolished freedom.
Is this the world we want?
Not me.

Someone may object that all this is for our own safety, part of the post 9/11 scenario.
Nah, try to speak about safety and security to the kids in Baghdad, though!

Or maybe isn’t that the rich European countries are so much afraid about illegal immigration, they are afraid about the flow of people who come from the III, IV, V, VI world in search of job, fortune and money?
Shouldn’t they instead have a look at how resources are NOT shared in the world, at how wealth is only a privilege for the few chosen ones instead of being shared among everyone?
Too much for a small number of people, nothing for the multitudes!

In any case I sincerely doubt that terrorists and dangerous criminals when they travel they go through embassies’ channels. Surely they have their own “travel agents” and do not need to bother asking for a visa.
Is my wife a potential threat to European countries?
Maybe she leads a double life I am not aware of!
But I can assure she will never look for a job in Europe, of this I am sure!

And about dangerous terrorists, I know for sure that one is always traveling in first class, on the “Air Force One”!

Planet Earth, March 31st , 2549

© - copyright Claudio Romano

TIME TO GO

Yesterday while driving from Korat to Surin, I could not help but notice the big TRT boards saying to vote for party Nr. 2, the only one anyway people could vote if these mock elections will ever take place.
I just felt bad for all Thais, they have such a shameless PM.
He is supposed to be a leader of the country, so how can he divide the country in such a way?
Is he not able to see what is happening? Students, intellectuals, Monks vs. farmers, Urban people vs. farmers, South vs. North, West vs. Northeast?
A good and honest leader will realize it is time to go, for the sake of the country.
But he is not!
I admire Thai people for how much peaceful they are, I admire the way the protest have been held but the more it goes on the more dangerous the situation may become.
Is this what Takshin is waiting for? So that he can declare the State of emergency? So he can have THE DEFINITIVE ABSOLUTE POWER?

What about the situation in the South? It is all forgotten now?
What did he do to solve the problems over there, another State of Emergency but did something change?
Maybe Southern people could not easily be bought with 500 or 1.000 bahts notes like my fellow “Prachachon Issarn”?
Why didn’t he do his “unbelievable” reality show in Yala or Pattani instead of Roi Et?

Why is he not going and allow the country to move forward?

I know I am a falang so maybe I shall shut up since I am a guest of this land and I have no Thai passport but I love this country more than my own for sure, I wish I could vote here instead doing by correspondence to my own land.
My daily life is here, my friends are here and I care for them, that’s why I can not watch in silence.
When you see a friend in trouble, whatever the color of his passport is, don’t you worry for him? Won’t you try to help him? Won’t you hope he can overcome the bad times?
This will be possible here, only when Takshin will pack his bags and go somewhere to enjoy all the wealth he has amassed during the latest years as PM.
Now he has the chance to relax and enjoy life, why can’t he just do that?

It is not a matter of party color, not about being right wing or left wing is just about a man who with his stubbornness is bringing the country on the brink of disaster. He shall go not TRT be banned, then let’s have the elections.

Of course if one day this will happen, there would be the “not so little matter” who will be the one to replace him, are we sure this person will be better than him?
No, but I doubt he can be any worse.

Love and Peace

BAN NAUDOM, March 16th, 2549

C – COPYRIGHT / CLAUDIO ROMANO

THERE IS ONLY ONE JIMMY JOHNSTONE

Yesterday, Monday March 13, Jimmy Johnstone passed away. He was probably the best ever player to grace the hooped Celtic strip. This is a short excerpt of chapter 3 of “Boh”, the book I am writing. It is obviously dedicated to this little big player and man.
LONG LIVE JIMMY JOHNSTONE.

One of my childhood’s most important moments has been the Champions Cup semi-finals match between Celtic and Inter Milan (at that time it was not yet called Champions Business League).
I don't exactly remember what year it was (for this is enough to check this competition’s yearbooks), the game was in Glasgow, it was pouring rain and in the Celtic team, a team that was wearing a strange shirt with white and green stripes, a small but incredibly gifted player was playing, he was having red hair and the number 7 on his shorts.
Celtic lost the penalty shoot-out, but that night was the night when my love affair with Celtic started. The most lasting love story of my life, a love affair without betrayals, really and literally through good and bad times and that will last until the day I will be lying in my coffin, dressed in that famous green and white shirt, now unfortunately polluted by a sponsor’s logo, in the name of “God money” which rules everything on earth.
For me "carrot head" or "rusty head" as I was called by my friends, it was a revenge, I had finally found my role model in this small but really exciting and wonderful right winger who was wearing that strange but surely unique shirt.
From that moment my destiny was fulfilled, from that day have become a Bhoy!
Even today, more than ever, the first thing that I check when I connect to internet (wherever I may be) are Celtic’s news, new possible players, injuries, team plans or just "gossip": Celtic may well be the only constant thing of my life.
All of this thanks to Jinky? Or it is a Karmic matter? Or just Celtic is more than a simple football team, is a reason of life?
Was it also the first skirmish of my strangeness? At that time everyone I knew was supporting Inter Milan, A.C. Milan or Juventus, instead I was supporting a team nobody where I was living even knew about..

Of those years I also remember another very painful setback, the one at St. Siro Stadium. It was the Champions Cup final, against the Feyenoord. Still black and white TV images that that brought that child the first suffering caused for the love of his team.
I didn’t even know it was an end of a wonderful era, the end of the "Lisbon Lions!"
And strangely enough I have no memories of this wonderful team’s greatest triumph, if just being so happy because… my brother was an Inter fan!

And even today when I have some free time I put on my computer and start to play with some football manager game, I always choose to be the Celtic manager. Sometimes I would like to change, to try another team, but it does really not make any sense to me. Celtic or nothing!
I find a great satisfaction to create my own Celtic team, a team that wins championships and Cups. For a middle aged man it may not be really such a great achievement but at least it helps to keep alive the kid that still is living in me.

Thanks Jimmy, thanks for making me fall in love with our Celtic.
Long live Jinky, forever. Hail Hail.

BAN NAUDOM, North Eastern Thailand, March 14th, 2549

© – Copyright CLAUDIO ROMANO

PONGSIT KUMPHEE @ TAWAN DAENG, SURIN

Surin, Saturday March 11th, 9.30 p.m.

I am sitting inside “Tawan Daeng” a Bar/Restaurant where soon Pongsit Kumphee will be playing live.
I like this place a lot, its walls are all painted in red, its lights are red and there are huge paintings of Che Guevara, Karl Marx and many other communists leaders. I feel home, is good to know that some corner of the world are still… red!

At ten o’clock sharp the notes of “Kid Tueng” start to fill the air, Pongsit really seems to be in good shape and so his group. Few acoustic tunes and then the sound of the electric guitars are literally calling the fans to dance close to the stage.
Not much talking, some jokes, sometimes Poo takes the time to sign some autographs (he did even sign my “Takshin get out” cap), to shake some hands and after that he would leave his music do the talking again.

He sings some of his classics, I really like “Sood jai” and “Yoo khon deaw”, wonderful music which reaches the climax with a thundering version of “Yod Chai”, rock music at his best.
Sadly after two hours of great songs an acoustic, nearly a-cappella rendition of “Tah laud way lah”, sung by the whole public marks the end of the show.
I wish for more, many of my favorites such as “Tueng Puen”, “Wung”, “Kuern Pliew” or “Luh Issarn” were missing from the set but I really did enjoy every minute of this show.

A concert played by a man who surely loves his music, a man who surely loves his fans, not an overpaid superstar but a regular and honest guy who clearly enjoyed to be among us.
No merchandising, nothing else than music and real, good “Sanook”, the joy to be together and to share the same passion and a wonderful night.
I was the only “falang” in the attendance but I really felt part of it, no differences, all people where there for this man and his music, no divisions of passport or color.

During the show I often did look around me and I could only see happy people around me, people peacefully enjoying themselves and this made me feel happy inside, I like so much the sight of happy people around me, and this was one of those magic moments where you can forget for an hour or two all struggles and enjoy yourself with your fellow human beings.

Thanks Pongsit and thanks “Tawan Daeng” for making it possible.
Please come back to Surin, soon.

BAN NAUDOM, March 12th 2549

© – Copyright CLAUDIO ROMANO

MAY THE FARCE BE WITH YOU

Not so long ago I did read that soon Laos will have free elections, there will be just a very, very small peculiarity: only one party will be allowed to contest, obviously the one in power, no opposition allowed. Fair elections, indeed.
I then thought: ”it is Laos, look at the bright side, it may be the first step towards democracy”.
I could never imagine that same thing would be happening here in Thailand. Our beloved PM called new elections in a hurry, leaving the opposition unprepared and, in this way, making sure of his win.
Then the opposition rightly did decide to boycott the vote, maybe hoping that some dignity will somewhere surface and the whole farcical elections would be called off.
Nope, the greed of power is too strong and on April 2nd, Thailand will witness the most farcical election ever seen (pity it is not April 1st, that would have made more sense).

I always thought of politicians as the big business and financial power’s puppets. The real power is never in their, tied, hands but in those who “remote control” them (see Bush/Cheney/Halliburton). In Thailand we went a step further, the business grasped power, the financial power came out of the shadow and took over, not needing a puppet anymore, now its POWER is total, either financial and political.

Call it democracy?
Someone may object that nearly all Issarn (for example) did vote TRT. True, but with all respect due, I do live among these people. They are truly nice and good hearted people but with absolute no awareness about politics. They are ready to take a 500 baht note from anyone, a box of Mekhong wiskhey and cast the vote for the “benefactor”.
Why? Maybe they have been neglected, subdued for so long that, with their typical “Mai pen Rai attitude”, they know that whoever they may vote nothing will change and nothing will improve for them, so better take some immediate profit.
Maybe they are wiser than myself who I still believe in justice, I still get angry when I am witness of abuse of power, of the exploitation of the poor and when I see absolute no concerns for Human Rights.

Call it democracy? What is the alternative?
Absolute Monarchy? Maybe in Thailand it would be working, I sincerely think His Majesty the King would be a great leader for this country, people really love him and He is really genuinely concerned about them.
Impossible I fear. I wish, at least, that someone like Him will come up from the political ranks.
But then I look a bit further north, in the Kingdom of Nepal whose crown is still red with blood, where the present King had no hesitation to kill his own brother (the previous King) and his family to get power, thus igniting a cruel civil war in the country.

Dictatorship? Left or right? No difference, it scare me just to look across the Cambodian border and think what did happened not so long ago, with the world watching .. but of course there was no oil in Cambodia.

Anarchy? A dream, but clearly an utopia. A world where men would not need any government where human being could live in peace and harmony with self-governance, where there would be no rich and no poor… but better I stop dreaming, without awareness this will never happen.
And who shall give awareness to the masses? The ones in power who, in any case, only are attempting to become more powerful and the shortcut to achieve that is:
keep down the masses, never give awareness to the them. So?

Back at the starting point and I begin to wonder if those poor unaware Issarn farmers have understood things much better and faster than me… nothing will ever change… so take some money and enjoy some “Sanook”… and “Mai pen rai”.
I don’t know if I ever will be able to do that but it may really be the only option left.

Sad isn’t it?

BAN NAUDOM, 11 of March 2549

© – Copyright CLAUDIO ROMANO

SUNSHINE

It is now more than 15 years since I started traveling around Asia because of the custom made "job" that has become my life.
I do not like to call it a “work”, but it is always much better than any other pompous and, perhaps, cheap terms I have been hearing in this span of time. Contrary to someone’s behavior we are absolutely not world savers guys, just people lucky enough to work with and for others and to have the chance to enrich ourselves with so many wonderful experiences and emotions.
During this period of time I have seen so many tears, so many tragedies, a lot of suffering, desperation and resignation: last among many the Tsunami.
I daily read in the newspapers stories of wars, tortures, oppressions of hundreds of innocent people, killers in the name of God, millions of starving children while a few "chosen ones" they become wealthy on their skin and skulls and I wonder... in what kind of world are we living.
But one fine day I am asked to help to re-establish a contact between two people that for a very long time, a lot of time were lost in the different waves of life.
In fact, I had the privilege to help a child (I will call her Melody, as her friends do) to get back in contact with her mother again. The lady, when she was 17 years old, left the baby shortly after her birth in an institute for adoptions, she has been left by the father and this was her only chance left.
Surely nothing special in these parts of the world, in fact the girl that lives next to me in Ban Naudom endured the same fate, the only difference is that her grandmother is now taking care of the baby and saving her from giving him up to some institution.
But it is not this story that struck my heart but the words of the letter that Melody wrote her mother, every single word dipped in the ink of love for a woman that she never met but once few months ago.
Reading the words of this 13 years old really opened my heart and made me look at the power of love, a power that enable us to overcome every trauma and every obstacle in our life.
I don't personally know Melody but it doesn't matter, I think of her as an extraordinary young woman I hope only that the world and life will not take away from her the immense gift she has: the power of unconditional love.
I don't even know her adoptive parents, but no doubt they are wonderful people because they have tried everything to enable their daughter to find her biological mother.
I know that in many of such cases there is lot of jealousy, the fear of losing the child’s affection and love but it did not happened in this case.
For this I admire them a lot, I totally admire this family that has allowed me to acknowledge that love is still among people even though in a world pervaded with hatred.
Melody’s words have been for me like rays of sunshine piercing the black clouds that overhang our planet and our own existence.

Love is still there!


Ban Naudom, March 6th 2549

© - COPYRIGHT / CLAUDIO ROMANO

POWER TO THE PEOPLE

I HAVE WRITTEN THIS PIECE AT MY ARRIVAL IN BANGKOK, AND BEFORE THE DEPARTURE FOR MY USUAL VISIT OUR INDIANS’ PROJECTS.
THEN TONIGHT, WHILE I WAS PREPARING MY BAG FOR THE LAST PART OF THE TOUR, MY WIFE ON THE PHONE TOLD ME THAT, FINALLY, TAKSHIN DID RESIGN AND NEW ELECTIONS WILL TAKE PLACE IN APRIL.
THIS REALLY MAKES ME EXTREMELY HAPPY, I HOPE ONLY THAT THAI PEOPLE WHEN THE MOMENT TO VOTE WILL COME WILL NOT FALL AGAIN IN THE TRAP OF HIS FAKE PROMISES AND WILL REJECT TO BE OFFERED MONEY IN EXCHANGE OF A VOTE AS THE “MAGICIAN” HAS ALREADY STARTED TO DO.
IN EVERY CASE I AM HAPPY, IS A PEOPLE’S VICTORY AGAINST POWER... I AM GLAD AND I AM PROUD THAT THIS HAS HAPPENED IN THAILAND, MY ADOPTIVE COUNTRY. I AM HAPPY TO HAVE WITNESSED THE RISE OF THE PEOPLE POWER IN A PEACEFUL WAY AND TO HAVE FELT SUCH A POSITIVE ENERGY.
IF ONLY THE AMERICANS WOULD DO THE SAME…!
Sambalpur Express, Train Calcutta-Rourkela, February 25th, 2006

A trip of about 30 minutes on a scooter-taxi separates me from the terminal of the BTS of On Nut to Morawan.
However in this short time it seems to me to fly in India, in the worse nightmares of the slums of Calcutta or Mumbai.
Once I reach the slum I can’t believe my eyes. In this place about 2000 human being are trying to live and to survive, some of them in miserable huts others in rotten houses standing on stagnant dirty water where many rats, the size of a cat, live and prosper and where dead fishes float.
Here is assembled the worst of the human existence.
I see old people, handicapped children, girls holding babies and I don't understand if they are their mothers or sisters (but I fear the first option being the most probable), AIDS is flourishing, as many more sicknesses.
Unemployment, prostitution are reigning unchallenged and I believe that in this rotten microcosm we can find the whole catalogue of human miseries.
This in the South East outskirts in Bangkok, the glimmering city that the rich Thai Prime Minister is trying to promote to the business and tourist world communities as the principal centre of South East Asia. The same man that in one of his many electoral tricks has promised to eradicate poverty from Thailand in 3 years.
In this slum there would be an enormous amount of things to do, a whole slum to be restored, a generation lost to recover and another to be saved before it follows the same path of the former one.
Unfortunately we can not do much, except to try to help the youngest ones, to help them in their studies and help them to regularly school. This is the only alternative to a life of degrade in the slum, a goalless life.
I admit that in the three years since I have lived in Thailand I have never fully understood the phenomenon of the prostitution, why so many girls choose this work. Besides a cultural factor (totally stranger to western mentality) the clearest answer I ever had was given to me in this slum, if selling our own body is the only possibility to get out of this hell... I swear that I would do the same
(the only problem would be to find a buyer for my old and fat body, I fear).
This said without any hypocrisy.


Bangkok, a city that sparks so many different feelings in me.
On one side it fascinates me and I even like it (even if only for the limited period to my brief visits) while on the other hand it seems to me that it has become a city symbolising the sick politics that are, according to my very modest opinion, bringing the nation towards disaster.
Bangkok is a city that is sucking the rest of the Kingdom’s “blood”.
Nearly all investments are made in the capital, all the young and active working forces are leaving the countryside to search there fortune and wealth.
A city that sees the proliferation of luxury malls, (Siam Paragon, Platinium Fashion Mall to name the latest) to attract rich tourists and their absurd shopping mania but build by poor Issarn’s masons, without a working contract and paid with very low daily wages.
A city that is drying up the countryside which is the pulsating heart of the nation which is now populated only by old people, children and old “falangs” like me.
One more example of non-development where a few selected ones become wealthier and the masses poorer.
Bangkok is becoming the extension of the megalomaniac ego of Thai Prime Minister.
Richest man of the country, owner of a media empire that has practically bought his power.
Its misdoings are sadly well known at these latitudes.
How to forget when he had the bright idea to buy 30% of Liverpool F.C. shares, and this with public money?He was planning to finance the operation with a new state lottery, like there would be need of more gambling in this country.
Then “the funny man” did organize his own reality show at Roi Et, one of the poorest provinces of the country.
So for 5 days with the television cameras after him, broadcasting live 24 / 24, he did began his crusade against poverty.
Result? Obviously the poverty will surely remain a daily problem for many Thais and, unfortunately, Takshin will perhaps have conquered more votes from those poor country people as he personally distributed 1.000 bahts notes to them, always with camera behind his back.
Is this his recipe to defeat poverty?
His latest misdoing?
He recently sold one of his companies, obviously it was on his kids and relatives’ names to a Singaporean government company.
This, of course, brought more money to his already huge coffers.
Not happy with it, he did find a way not to pay any taxes on the transaction, as he cunningly prepared the ground for such operation in changing some laws in his favour.
Fortunately it seems that Thai people are waking up now and part of the population, driven by some monks, intellectuals and students are asking the PM to resign.
Will they succeed?
I doubt it, but however it is good that people are rebelling against him and are not keen to stand anymore such power games.
I hope only that this popular and peaceful insurrection can continue until it will achieve his goal.
It is indeed comforting to know that people still can succeed in democratic protest and to revolt against the greed of those in power and their exploitation of the masses.
This may give hope and an example to many other subdued people of this world
Udon Thani is 500 km away from Bangkok but the two places are ideally linked by an invisible thread considering that the most part of the inhabitants of the previous slum are coming from Issarn.
They leave their rural villages to live in the slum, to pursue their dreams sold by the unbridled capitalism that has taken possession of our world and existence. The same story than could be told by those who dwell the slums of Calcutta, Rio, Mumbai and every other world metropolis.
In Udon I have been witness of situation of poverty and desperation that I had not even seen in India.
What to do to solve this problem? If I had the answer I would be up for the Nobel prize, but I don't have any answer except to humbly work for some of these children
Helping them to school I am convinced is the only possible solution, to give them education, to try to interrupt the indiscriminate flow of people that from the countryside move to Bangkok chasing an unreachable dream.
At least if and when they will do it, they will carry with them a baggage of education that can allow them to find a decent job in a decent environment and enough awareness not to be wildly exploited.
It is evident and obvious that to help 100 children to Udon Thani won't surely change the geography Bangkok’s slums, but it is a beginning and is what we can do in our small and humble way but it may be even more that Mr. Takshin will ever do, as he is too much busy to protect his own interest, his power and to make richer his already rich friends to worry about the suffering masses.
And thanks God it seems I am not the only one thinking this way in this beautiful country which I love so much.

Bangkok, February 22nd, 2549

C / Copyright – CLAUDIO ROMANO