33.7 C
Bangkok
Friday, March 29, 2024

Thailand’s global reputation for pandemic management goes down the pan

Oh, how the tables have turned… This time last year, Thailand was in strict lockdown to combat a pandemic that was starting its march around the globe, while countries such as the US and UK dithered over how to handle the crisis.

The upshot was both western countries ended up with 2 of the world’s highest infection rates and preventable deaths. As we watched with horror, probably believing that the reverse situation would have been the case, Thailand’s lockdown had a significant impact on the economy, particularly in the tourism sector. Still, the government’s tough action then meant the country was able to curb the spread and get back to semi-normal for most of the rest of 2020.

But Covid-19 was simply biding its time, as viruses do, opportunistically awaiting a slip in the defences. All it took was an overly-confident (some might say arrogant) government and a complacent…

Read more…

Latest Articles