Prachatai English
12 hours ago
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"Because of this crisis, and also because of the rise of Anutin [Charnvirakul], the military is going to be more autonomous," said US academic Dr Paul Chambers in an interview on 3 September.
"Why would the military ever need a coup now? They don’t need a coup. This is better. You have the camouflage of civilian rule when actually, the military is doing what it wants."
In early April, Chambers was charged with royal defamation over a blurb on the ISEAS - Yusof Ishak Institute's website which he did not write. Although charges against him were later dropped, his visa had been revoked and he was dismissed from his position at Naresuan University. After 30 years in Thailand, he had to return to the US.
One night, as political parties were scrambling to form a government after the dismissal of then-Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra and before the House of Representatives appointed her replacement, we spoke to Chambers, now an ISEAS Visiting Fellow, about his life after he left Thailand, the royal defamation charge against him, and the future of military relations in Thailand under the Bhumjaithai government.
Link to fulll article
https://prachataienglish.com/node/11561
Paul Chambers: Thai military’s expanding influence and the future under a Bhumjaithai government
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