Soap Opera Stirs the Political Plot in Thailand
By James Hookway
January 8, 2013, 12:11 PM
For some Thais, the country’s latest hit soap opera seemed strangely familiar. The prime-time drama “Above the Clouds” revolves around black magic and a corrupt politician aiming to bag a lucrative satellite project, and appeared to some viewers to echo a few aspects of the life of one of the country’s most controversial leaders, ousted premier Thaksin Shinawatra.
An ambitious telecommunications tycoon who often refers to fortune tellers, Mr. Thaksin was driven from office in a military coup six years ago and was later convicted on a corruption charge which he says was trumped up to discredit him.
But if all that wasn’t enough to get tongues wagging, broadcaster BEC TERO Entertainment PCL unexpectedly pulled the final episode from its market-leading Channel-3 network on Friday, sparking a firestorm of speculation that the government of Mr. Thaksin’s sister, Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, is trying to set the networks’s TV schedules.
National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission commissioner Supinya Klangnarong Saturday said she wondered whether the country’s politicians had pressured BEC TERO to pull the plug on the show in order to protect its concession to run Channel 3, while the opposition Democrat Party is urging Thailand’s independent Ombudsman to investigate why Channel 3 suddenly dropped the drama. In a meeting Monday, the broadcasting commission decided to gather more information before deciding whether to call in Channel 3 executives for an explanation.
Network officials aren’t commenting on the decision to cancel the show. In a televised advisory to viewers who tuned in to watch Friday’s installment, Channel 3 said that the network considered the content of “Above the Clouds” to be inappropriate, without elaborating.
Varathep Rattanakorn, who supervises television broadcasters as part of his job as a minister in Ms. Yingluck’s office, denied that the government is directing events at Channel 3. A deputy spokeswoman for the ruling Puea Thai Party dismissed suggestions that Mr. Thaksin himself had ordered show’s run to end from his base in Dubai.
Either way, the controversy shows the pull which Mr. Thaksin continues to exert over Thailand despite in Dubai to avoid imprisonment on his corruption conviction.
His sister’s government is looking for a way to bring him back to the country a free man. It is considering an amnesty bill that would exonerate persons accused of political crimes, and which would enable Mr. Thaksin’s return. But Mr. Thaksin – the only Thai leader to be re-elected – is considered as toxic among the highest ranks of the country’s military and civil service. His brash, almost presidential style of government grates in a country where traditionalists insist on lavish displays of subservience to its constitutional monarchy. The prospect of his return to the political scene already is raising temperatures, and last year triggered violent scuffles in Thailand’s Parliament as Mr. Thaksin’s opponents attempted to derail discussions on the proposed amnesty.
Now, the axing of “Above the Clouds” is adding to the sense of unease that a larger conflict is looming.
Dialogue from previous episodes offered a sometimes biting commentary on the acrimonious state of Thai politics. In one scene a corrupt politician, a deputy prime minister, justifies feathering his nest by saying that “it’s totally stupid for a person with power to fail to use his power.” His nemesis, a do-gooding prime minister, retorts by saying “People who cheat the county don’t deserve any honor.”
The denouement, though, might come from not from Thailand’s politicians, but its soap viewers.
Thailand’s Constitutional Protection Association says the move to axe “Above the Clouds” violates consumers’ rights. The association’s secretary-general, Srisuwan Janya, said the group will petition Thai courts and the Consumers Protection Board to instruct Channel 3 to broadcast the remaining episodes, while a late-night TV sex therapist quit his show in protest at the axing of “Above the Clouds”. Kampanart Tansithabudhkun, host of “Spice Up Your Love, Spice Up Your Gratification”, described the canceling of the show as “a disgrace” on his Facebook page.
Parliamentary opposition leader Abhisit Vejjajiva, meanwhile, took to the Twitter social media urge the broadcaster to reconsider.
“I am not a drama viewer, but (axing the series) is tantamount to infringing on people’s rights and liberties,” Mr. Abhsisit, a former prime minister, said.
So far, though, there is no sign just yet of viewers getting the sense of closure many seem to be craving, just like in Thailand’s never-ending real-life political battles. This drama could be set to run a while longer.
