[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 26 (Monday, March 11, 2002)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1729-S1730]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          THAKSIN'S THIN SKIN

 Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, the crackdown on foreign 
reporters in Thailand is both troubling and disheartening. While I am 
pleased with the decision of Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra to allow 
reporters from the Far Eastern Economic Review to remain in Thailand, 
damage to that country's reputation as a democratic enclave in a 
neighborhood of oppressive regimes has already been done.
  The task now before the Prime Minister is to rebuild the confidence 
of the world's democracies--and in particular America--that he respects 
the rule of law and freedoms of speech and thought.
  As former chairman and now ranking member of the Foreign Operations 
Appropriations Subcommittee, I have tried to encourage a variety of 
independent media programs throughout Southeast Asia and the former 
Soviet Union. In fact, I have been proud to dedicate funding to a 
program run by Western Kentucky University's award winning school of 
journalism which provides professional training to foreign journalists. 
I would suggest that there are some Thai government officials who would 
benefit from Western's tutelage on the import of a free and open press 
in a democracy.

[[Page S1730]]

  I know not all Thai politicians and officials agree with Mr. 
Thaksin's heavy-handed approach to the media. And I know that the 
people of Thailand, while deeply concerned about the economy, do not 
want to lose the freedoms they enjoy. They are keenly aware of the 
plight of their more unfortunate neighbors in Burma, Cambodia, and 
Laos.
  This brouhaha was completely unnecessary, and was pre-empted, as an 
editorial in the Wall Street Journal earlier this week pointed out, by 
Prime Minister Thaksin's ``thin skin.'' Mr. Thaksin needs to abandon 
his efforts to control the press and concentrate instead on leading his 
country. I find it hard to believe that the Prime Minister is only 
discovering that politics is a contact sport.
  I encourage my colleagues to continue to follow events in Thailand, 
and I extend my appreciation to the Senator from North Carolina for 
speaking forcefully on this issue early this week. I add my voice to 
the growing chorus of concern.

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