Mother of all Thai coups!

This refers to the report, “Court issues warrant for anti-coup spokesman” (July 1). There is a new trend of abuse of courts by the military in coups in nations like Egypt and Thailand. Dissenters are harassed in the guise of “anti-corruption” and “moral cleansing”.
The current coup in Thailand can be called the mother of all coups as it is different from the earlier coups; the nation has witnessed nine coups since 1932. The old and frail king in his 80s has endorsed the coup and has failed to strike a compromise between the military and the opposition, although the king is revered all over Thailand. Even though the ousted prime ministers (the brother-sister duo of Thaksin Shinawatra and Yingluck Shinawatra) are billionaires, they enjoy support among the rural and poor voters. The king has been unable to play the role of a mediator in the latest coup (May 2014) as he did in earlier coups. The king is from Chaksi dynasty and there is the old prophecy that this dynasty will not last nine generations and the current king is the ninth king. His heir-apparent son is unpopular.
Thailand's economy is facing a downturn with declining manufacturing output, exports and doubling of trade deficit at nearly $1.5 billion. The future of both monarchy and democracy is uncertain in Thailand. The future is uncertain for Thailand's nearly 70 million people.   
Deendayal M. Lulla
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