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