How elusive true democracy is. Even the super-massive protesting turnout on the Rajadamnoen Avenue 50 years ago cannot really establish a good political system immune to military intervention, bloodshed, corruption, cover-ups and thought manipulations.
October 14, 1973 is a watershed, though, as it showcased the power of the new generation clamouring for changes for the better. Only the forces it created have collided many times ever since and unfortunately diluted their preciousness in the process.
Three years later there was the October 6 massacre. Consequences set the clock back and ushered in a long period of what many described as “half-baked democracy”. When late Chatichai Choonhavan became prime minister in 1988, ending over a decade of non-elected premiership, fresh democratic euphoria presented itself, only for cautious optimism to largely dissipate rather quickly due…
