I welcome the Minister to the House and congratulate him on his appointment as Minister for Foreign Affairs. Like everybody else I was delighted to see him becoming Minister.
One of the reasons I put down this motion is that some years ago I lived in Thailand for approximately nine months. I have a special regard for Thailand and its people; you could not meet nicer or more friendly people anywhere. The events over the past few days were tragic and, hopefully, the situation will not deteriorate.
Over the years a military type officer class has grown up in Thai society. There have been, approximately, 17 military coups since 1932. The aim of this military class is to get their hands on power and they do not like anything that might disturb the cosy arrangement which has been in place since, approximately, 1932. Because Thailand has changed dramatically in economic terms over the years, it is now one of the more successful countries in that part of the world. In fact, it is one of the few countries in that area that has been a huge exporter of food for many years. That has always been to its advantage because of the food shortage in so many other countries.
Because the country has grown economically, the middle class people are demanding a normal democratic system of government to try to develop the country on an economic and social basis. For example, in a recent election more than 50 per cent of the people voted, whereas normally approximately 30 per cent cast their vote. The country is changing and there is huge support for change in Thailand at present. This afternoon I spoke with some friends, one of them an Irish person, who live there and they told me there is great support from all people in Thailand, for change and especially for the former Governor of Bangkok, Mr. Scrimuang who is well respected and showed he is free of corruption which, unfortunately, has been almost a way of life for certain politicians and military officers in Thailand.
There is great concern at the indiscriminate shooting of citizens in Bangkok and other parts of Thailand. There is a TV and radio black-out at present and I gather this evening that some units of the Army are now approaching Bangkok. There is a great fear that this could lead to direct clashes between the ruling military people in Bangkok and other forces who do not go along with their policies. This could have serious consequences for the people of Bangkok.
The Government, in conjunction with the EC partners, should take a stand against the military governors in Thailand. This conflict is having a huge effect on the tourism industry in Thailand. I believe tourists are not being allowed into the country for obvious reasons and that the tourists there at present cannot leave. As part of our role in the EC, Ireland and the Minister should take a stand against what is going on and economic sanctions should be imposed against the military officers in Thailand to show them that the action they have taken in the past few days is totally unacceptable.
The people of Thailand want a democratic system and that is obvious from the numbers who have been out on the streets protesting over the past few days. We should give a lead here with our extra power in the European Community and tell the military people in Thailand that what they are doing is unacceptable and that everybody wants to see a democratic system restored once again in that country. It is bizarre that an unelected general can be elected Prime Minister but I believe that happened because people are nominated to the Senate in Thailand. They can elect a Prime Minister with the MPs.
