Pridi Banomyong - Former Prime Minister of Thailand

King Ananda, the elder brother of His Majesty King Phumiphol, was assassinated on 9 June 1946, at the time when Pridi was at the height of his power dominance and as the Prime Minister. Public outcry and hostility together with the no confidence parliamentary debates forced Pridi to resign, although thereafter he installed his puppet government. To make the tragic episode short, a subsequent criminal investigation led to the warrant for arresting Pridi as the chief suspect in the assassination plot. He slipped out of the country and took refuge in Communist China, with which Thailand had no diplomatic relations at that time. Pridi had never been brought to court, but three of his underlings were finally sentenced to death by the Supreme Court of Justice in the assassination plot (Supreme Court Judgement No. 1544/2497).

In February 1949, Pridi, in disguise by his grown moustache, slipped back from Communist China with a shipload of war weapons, not to defend himself in the Court of Justice, but to stage a coup with the support of his partisans and misled naval officers. The worse of it, unforgettable and unforgivable for the nation, is that he seized the Royal Grand Palace, the most significant cultural heritage of Thai people, as the bastion of his forces. The attempted coup was crushed. Several of his followers, who surrendered, were prosecuted and convicted by the Criminal Court, confirmed by the Court of Appeals as well as by the Supreme Court (Supreme Court Judgement No. 1512-1513-1514-1515/2497). Pridi managed to escape in time and again took refuge in Communist China, where he lived until the fixed statutory limitation of 20 years for criminal prosecution had elapsed. After spending 21 years in China, he went to live in France until his death in 1983. Pridi never dared returning to the country, apprehending the unshakeable loyalty and the profound love and reverence that Thai people have for their monarch.

Although Pridi's supporters ignored historical facts by claiming that he was the champion of democracy, documentary evidences demonstrate his greed for unconstrained power and his intolerance for freedom of speech, democracy and human rights at the time when he had the virtual monopoly of power. That was in 1946 when, as Prime Minister, he came under heavy criticism. A vice-admiral in the Thai Navy, one of Pridi's close associates, was made Chief of the Police Force. The state of emergency was declared and press censorship was imposed. Besides the arrests of a number of people because of their critical remarks against him and his government, there were also assassination attempts against opposition political leaders and journalists. One notorious act of violence involved the throwing of hand grenades onto a crowd gathered at an election campaign by a prominent member of the opposition Democratic Party, who, among other victims, lost his legs in the incident.

In addition to the above-mentioned episodes, there were others reflecting the despotic regime after the 1932 coup d'etat, which we need not go into; but it is beyond doubt that all these would not appear in Pridi's curriculum vitae prepared by his supporters. Pridi's notorious actions and behaviour in public life were contrary to what his supporters would claim as Pridi's achievements. Pridi's supporters have credited him as the founder of Thammasat University, but they would never mention the fact that Pridi had misused Thammasat University unscrupulously in quest of power leading to crimes and violence. Situated near the Royal Grand Place, the university had witnessed its use by Pridi as the foothold for storing war weapons and assembling his partisans before advancing to seize the Royal Grand Palace in staging the attempted coup in 1949. This is, indeed, the most unscrupulous and obnoxious manner and scheme of the use of violence to seize power through unconstitutional means in our country.

The proposed centennial anniversary of Pridi is meaningless in terms of its universal or regional significance. In fact, at the national level, whatever efforts Pridi's supporters may make out of the celebration, it can never be a national event. Undoubtedly, there will be widespread objection and public outcry. Moreover, in the year 2000, there will be a nation-wide centennial commemoration of the Princess Mother of His Majesty the King. Taking into consideration the fact that Pridi was a suspect in the plot leading to the assassination of King Ananda, the elder son of the Princess Mother, how could Thai people accept the centennial anniversary of Pridi as a national event in that same year?

Finally, we wish to say that we have never interfered with whatever activities and religious rites that Pridi's family and supporters have organised for him since the remains of his cremated body were returned to the country, tolerance being the traditional ways of life in Thai society. Be that as it may, we cannot remain in silence when Pridi's supporters are seeking a national celabreation and UNESCO's clout to set him up as a world celebrity. We cannot allow the future generations of Thai people to be misled and to take pride in an individual unworthy of any acclaim.