With Thailand’s long history of military coups, the country’s generals are well versed in the ways of post-putsch propaganda.
While the efforts of the National Council for Peace and Order have been perhaps more subtle than during the height of Cold War anti-communism efforts, and its control of information less restrictive than previous juntas, it is still employing familiar methods to stabilise and control the post-coup political environment.
“In order to control the state, authorities must have hegemony which contains two aspects — the first is force for controlling the people, which has evolved into things like law enforcement, and the other is political socialisation,” said assistant professor Pijitra Suppasawatgul from Chulalongkorn University’s Faculty of Communication Arts.
“For socialisation, authorities need to use information and media, where propaganda will be inset.”
She explained that controlling the media is important for the NCPO, as it helps them maintain political stability and win support from the public.
“The NCPO is trying to use many methods, such as broadcasting its announcements on prime time television to provide updates on the progress of its work.”
The assistant professor said propaganda has been employed effectively throughout much of Thailand’s modern history, and perhaps none more visibly so than during the rule of Plaek Phibulsonggram.
“Looking back to the age of Field Marshal Plaek, propaganda was very obvious,” she said. “He launched policies that were intensely nationalistic. The policies ordered people to behave a certain way to make the nation become civilised, and spread his message primarily through posters and radio programmes.”
During 1938-1944 and 1948-1957 under Plaek's dictatorship, Thailand underwent a great deal of change as nationalist propaganda was stitched into the State Convention Code and harsh new rules introduced that people were required to follow.
Cultural upheaval formed a major part of this change — even the name of the country was changed from Siam to Thailand. Long-established cultural behaviours such as chewing betel nut, wearing traditional loincloths or playing traditional music instruments and dancing were prohibited as Plaek pushed Westernisation. Much of this played out against the perceived threat of a communist takeover, an idea which featured prominently in the nationalistic propaganda of the time.
“Propaganda slogans like ‘Believe in the leader, Thailand will be safe’ and ‘Wherever the leader goes, I will be there’ were created to support the government of Field Marshal Plaek, with posters displaying these slogans spread everywhere. He was an incredibly powerful dictator who changed a lot of things in the country,” Ms Pijitra said.
Though Plaek presided over what was in effect an absolute military dictatorship, his propaganda campaign apparently worked, and Ms Pijitra said most people at that time were accepting of the long-standing military government.
“In the age of Field Marshal Plaek, I cannot say that people were not welcoming of the military government. The nationalism instilled in the State Convention Code was accepted by people quite well,” she said.
“There were very few media outlets. Propaganda from the military rulers worked very well and they were able to control people strictly and make them conform to a standard pattern of behaviour.”
As times changed, however, the military’s monopoly on information outlets was broken, and people gained access to far more forms of media.
This was seen in the "Black May" massacre of 1992 when Thailand was led by Gen Suchinda Kraprayoon, who was installed by a military council after the 1991 coup. Ms Pijitra said at that time, the military struggled to cope with a public that had access to new media tools and who could easily bypass state propaganda efforts.
“There was surely propaganda and media control from the military government at that time,” she said. “But the military could control only local media, while international media was unfettered. People could receive news and information through cable television, and mobile phones were becoming increasingly popular.”
In the wake of the most recent coup on May 22, the junta’s propaganda campaign has been far more subtle. However, it has found itself confronted by a new age of online communication. While still continuing with old-style nationalist rhetoric, the NCPO has been better equipped on the digital front, blocking access to foreign media outlets both online and on television. They are also believed to have temporarily shut down Facebook, a claim denied by the junta but confirmed by the parent company of one of Thailand’s largest mobile operators.
The more visible forms of propaganda at the moment are the song Bring the happiness back, reportedly written personally by junta chief Prayuth Chan-ocha, as well as the TV and radio programme Prayuth Talks With the People, broadcast every Friday night. “Reconciliation” concerts are also being staged in many areas, particularly in places where opposition to the coup has been strongest.
“The hard part for the NCPO is that there are plenty of media and entertainment outlets available this time. Even though they put out announcements on prime time television on all channels, people can simply switch it off and use the internet instead,” Ms Pijitra said.
However, she said the military has seemingly learned a lot from its past efforts. Compared to Black May, the NCPO has been far more successful in controlling news and information.
“In this age, the NCPO understands more about the media and taking control of it. The junta can control both local and international media by sending agents to work in the Office of National Broadcasting and Telecommunication Commission. They can even control cable television and broadcast only the content they want to be showed,” Ms Pijitra said.
“Though there are a lot more media options in this modern time, the military has been able to read the situation. Still, this means we are moving backward to the old-fashioned days when the military could control everything.”
One of the junta’s more traditional propaganda efforts has been to provide free screenings of the highly nationalistic film The Legend of King Naresuan 5. Ms Pijitra see this as “white propaganda”, which has a constructive purpose.
“White propaganda is like public relations that informs people only of the good side of a story,” she said. “I agree that it can be beneficial if we think about maintaining political stability and avoiding possible violence. But whenever propaganda is created to divert people’s attention from possible corruption, it is unacceptable.
“For the movie, the Legend of King Naresuan 5, I think it is propaganda that has a positive purpose, that is to make Thais love the nation, the royal institution and encourage reconciliation,” Ms Pijitra added.
Though the junta has adapted to the modern age by using television and internet as media for its propaganda, other more traditional styles are still at work. “In the countryside, the NCPO is still using the same strategy, social psychology, to control people, running activities that are mainly about reconciliation and reducing political conflict, and running a campaign to persuade people to love the nation,” Ms Pijitra said.
For its part, the military is reluctant to label its efforts as propaganda. Junta spokesman Col Winthai Suwaree — who is also one of the stars of King Naresuan 5 — told Spectrum that campaigns and activities the NCPO has organised across the country are all designed purely for people’s happiness and social harmony.
“We are focusing mainly on governance and policy. The most urgent agenda is next year’s budget,” he said.
“For ‘Bring happiness back to Thailand’ and the reconciliation campaign, we let the local units operate by themselves. It is not an order and we do not force people to follow the campaigns, but only ask for their cooperation.”
Col Winthai explained that providing World Cup coverage on free-to-air TV and handing out free film tickets was simply the NCPO showing its good intentions in wanting people to be happy.
Ms Pijitra agrees that, when comparing the current junta to previous ones, the NCPO is far less strict in its approach to social control. The rules it has issued have been mainly to maintain peace, and have not intervened much in people’s daily lives, unlike those of Plaek.
“The positive side of this control is that the false rumours that were being spread during the political rallies before have all gone.”
She said propaganda has and will always go hand-in-hand with military governments. However, people can protect themselves by analysing information critically and with careful consideration.
“People should consider where they are getting their news and information from. There are many available outlets, but it is important to receive the information that is based on fact and avoid that which carries a particular bias or is deliberately inflaming the situation,” she said.
“There is surely propaganda in the media at this time, but people should receive it reasonably and not emotionally. Loving the nation can develop into fanaticism.”
