Elements of Thai-Style Multiculturalism in
Thailand 2016 Proposed Charter
Janpha Thadphoothon
This announcement has been sanctioned/authorized by the Royal Gazette. What Thais need to do now is study the draft as carefully and thoroughly as possible.
I have briefly looked into some of the articles and found that there are at least 3 Articles addressing the issues of culture and multiculturalism.
Like the previous ones, the
proposed constitution for referendum does not explicitly state the language
policy for Thailand. The first mentioning of the word ‘language’ can be found
in the following articles on rights and freedom:
Article 27 stipulates that
all Thais are to be treated equally regardless of their genders (male and
female), regions, race, language, age, political orientations, religion,
and educational background
Article 43 states that an
individual Thai and/or community has the right to conserve, revive, and promote
local wisdom, arts, traditions, cultures of their community and the country.
Article 70 stipulates that
State shall promote and protect the Thais and other ethnicities so that they
can live in their cultural society with traditions and traditional ways of life
as prefer with peace without interference, provided that such does not
contradict with the order and peace or threatening the security and order of
the State.
Reading between the lines, we can
see that the three articles deal with the languages and cultures under the cultural
umbrella.
Under the existing paradigm, teachers
in the southern part of Isan in Surin or Buriram could develop the learning materials and
curriculums to teach ethnic Khmer Thai to their students. The ‘ethnic
languages’ are adjectives describing characteristics of Thai. For example, the
Khmer spoken in the southern part of the Isan region is referred to as the
Khmer Thai (the Khmer with Thai characteristics). Another example is the
identity of the Malay language in Thailand known as Yawi or Pattani Malay or
Malay with the characteristics of Pattani, a province in the southern part of
Thailand.
As discussed, language and culture in intertwined. Economic development needs to integrate the cultural elements, to be sustainable. UNESCO, for example, believes that no development can be sustainable without a strong culture component and has called for a human-centered approach to development based on mutual respect and open dialogue among cultures can lead to lasting, inclusive and equitable results . If Thailand were to progress in suitable manners in the 21st century, it needs to plan and implement language policy prudently. In this paper, I would like to propose the middle path as seen in the 2016 proposed Charter of Thailand.
In Article 43, it is stated that an individual Thai and/or community has rights to conserve, revive, and promote their local wisdom, arts, traditions, cultures of their community and the country. Similarly, Article 70 stipulates that State shall promote and protect the Thais and other ethnicities so that they can live in their cultural society with peaceful traditions and ways of life, provided that such does not contradict with the order and peace or threatening the security and order of the State.
The two articles open space for communities and ethnic groups in Thailand to get together to revive and protect, or even promote their cultural heritages, including languages. The two articles deal with the issues of cultural diversity is a constructive way, gearing toward the middle path, the path that is not too extreme and soft or lenient.
References
1.
http://cdc.parliament.go.th/draftconstitution2/ewt_dl_link.php?nid=429&filename=index
2.
http://www.ratchakitcha.soc.go.th/DATA/PDF/2559/A/035/1.PDF
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