Image from The Nation Thailand/ANN
BANGKOK (The Nation Thailand/ANN): Most Thais do not believe the Pheu Thai-led coalition government will be able to end political polarisation in the kingdom, a survey by the National Institute of Development Administration (Nida) found.
Nida polled 1,310 Thais at least 18 years of age nationwide by telephone from August 23 to 25. The results were released on Sunday.
The poll followed an announcement by the Pheu Thai Party that it had formed an 11-party coalition to form the next government, as well as the return of self-exiled former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra to Thailand. Thaksin is considered the patriarch of the Pheu Thai Party. Its roots can be traced back to his Thai Rak Thai Party, which sent shock waves through Thailand’s political establishment when it swept to power in 2001. (Thaksin was ousted in a coup in 2006 and later convicted of corruption-related crimes.)
The new Pheu Thai-led coalition includes former archrivals, most remarkably the Palang Pracharath and United Thai Nation parties whose PM candidates in the May 14 election – General Prawit Wongsuwan and General Prayut Chan-o-cha, respectively – led a coup in 2014 to oust the last Pheu Thai government.
Pheu Thai has called both generals, and their parties, authoritarian. However, since Thaksin’s return, it has increasingly argued that it should bring them into the “pro-democracy side” to end political polarisation in Thailand.
Asked whether they think the “special government to end polarisation” will eventually end political conflict between the red-shirt (pro-Thaksin) and yellow-shirt (anti-Thaksin) movements and supporters of the anti-Thaksin – People’s Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC) – the respondents said:
- 36.72%: Absolutely disagree
- 20.61% Absolutely agree
- 20.53% Quite disagree
- 19.85%: Quite agree
- 2.29%: No comment
When asked whether they think former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra’s return to Thailand to serve his prison sentences will end the conflicts between the opposing groups, the respondents said:
- 30.76%: Absolute disagree
- 27.02%: Absolutely agree
- 22.29%: Quite disagree
- 18.25%: Quite agree
- 1.68%: No comment
Slightly less than 70% of respondents said they did not belong to any group in the conflicts, while 19.85% said they belong to the Orange Group of young liberals, 6.64% aligned themselves with the red shirts, 2.59% with yellow shirts and 1.45% with the PDRC.
Asked whether they had attended political rallies, respondents said:
- 87.63%: Never
- 4.35%: Previously joined red-shirt rallies
- 3.13%: Previously joined yellow-shirt rallies
- 3.05%: Previously joined PDRC rallies
- 2.82%: Previously joined orange group rallies
Asked which groups they think will engage in conflict in the future, the respondents said:
- 39.39%: Orange group against the three other groups
- 24.89%: No more conflict
- 16.56%: Red shirts against orange group
- 6.72%: Yellow shirts against red shirts
- 2.44%: Red shirts against the PDRC
- 2.29%: Yellow shirts against orange group
- 1.45%: PDRC against orange group
- 0.53%: Yellow shirts against PDRC
- 10.53%: No comment
