How do they protest in Thailand? By reading in public
By now, we know the power of literature in international politics. We鈥檝e seen books used as political weapons in China and Japan, as a propaganda tool in Soviet Russia, as a form of religious censorship in modern Russia, and as a means of empowerment throughout Africa.
And now, to demonstrate against the army coup that took place on May 22 and that has thrown Thailand under military rule, protestors in the troubled country are turning to a novel means of nonviolent protest: reading.聽
Thais are gathering in small groups in public places like sidewalks, train stations, and parks to silently read in an act of quiet defiance. Of course, the books they鈥檙e reading convey their protest: books about totalitarian states, real or fictional, like George Orwell鈥檚 鈥�1984鈥� as well as titles like "Unarmed Insurrection," ''The Politics of Despotic Paternalism," and ''The Power of Non-Violent Means."
"People are angry about this coup, but they can't express it," a human rights activist who wished to remain anonymous told the . "So we were looking for an alternative way to resist, a way that is not confrontational. And one of those ways is reading."
On May 22, the Thai military, led by General Prayuth Chan-ocha, launched a coup against the nation鈥檚 caretaker government under Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and swiftly enacted a totalitarian regime with no tolerance for dissent. As Monitor correspondent Flora Bagenal reported, 鈥淕atherings of more than five people in public have been banned; over 200 academics, journalists, and activists have been arrested and detained; and citizens have been warned they could be charged under martial law if they incite opposition to the junta on social media.鈥�
According to the , some 14 TV networks have been shut down, including CNN and BBC, as well as more than 300 web pages and nearly 3,000 unlicensed community radio stations.聽
Hundreds of journalists, academics, and activists have been summoned by the government and some detained.聽
Under General Chan-ocha鈥檚 military junta, one can be detained for holding a 鈥淧eace Please鈥� sign in the wrong part of town, according to the AP.
Which is why protestors have turned to books as an act of safe, nonviolent dissent. Protestors have been organizing book readings since late last week, holding the protests in small groups that are avoiding soldiers in order to remain non-confrontational.
A favorite is Orwell鈥檚 鈥�1984.鈥�
鈥淢y friends told me when they read '1984' for the first time they could never imagine there would be a country like that, but it鈥檚 happening now in Thailand,鈥� protestor Pimsiri Petchnamrob told the Monitor. 鈥淧eople are really watching you, your computers are being monitored鈥� and many people have been detained in undisclosed locations.鈥�
Orwell鈥檚 famous novel imagines a future in which government authorities, in Big Brother fashion, outfit homes and public spaces with cameras to watch the public and personal details of peoples鈥� lives.
鈥淲e have Big Brother watching us now,鈥� Kasama Na Nagara told the AP. 鈥淚t has become too risky to speak out. It鈥檚 sad. But it鈥檚 safer to be silent in Thailand right now.鈥�
In other words, they鈥檙e letting the books speak for them.
Husna Haq is a Monitor correspondent.
