By John Draper |
<div>Something rather complex just happened in Thailand.
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By John Draper |
<div><em>Without an official language policy, Thailand’s many ethnolinguistic minorities cannot experience equality.</em></div>
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<div>This past Saturday marked International Mother Language Day, and while it is not particularly celebrated in Thailand, there were a couple of academic seminars in Chiang Mai and at Mahidol University in Bangkok.
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By John Draper |
<div><img alt="" src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5105/5785844398_c71867ff75.jpg" /></div>
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<div>Pheu Thai’s policies have been dismissed as ‘populism’, but elements of them can more properly be categorized as belonging to ‘Socialism of the 21<sup>st</sup> Century’, a movement embraced by Latin American leaders such as Hugo Chávez of Venezuela and one with its own Wikipedia page for those interested.</div>
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By John Draper |
<p><strong>The 'Lao Question' becomes the 'Thai Lao Question' as Thai society realizes ethnic identity matters</strong></p>
<p>Thailand has been described as a paradise by its own people, most famously in terms of the Ramkhamhaeng Inscription. It describes a land with fish in the water and rice in the fields. Thailand has also been marketed as such to foreigners: Amazing Thailand, the Land of Smiles.</p>