Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
07CHIANGMAI34
2007-02-15 03:21:00
UNCLASSIFIED
Consulate Chiang Mai
Cable title:  

HORTICULTURAL HIT TRANSCENDS POLITICS, FOR A TIME

Tags:  SENV EAGR TH PGOV 
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VZCZCXRO8207
PP RUEHDT RUEHHM
DE RUEHCHI #0034 0460321
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 150321Z FEB 07
FM AMCONSUL CHIANG MAI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 0405
INFO RUEHZS/ASSOCIATION OF SOUTHEAST ASIAN NATIONS
RUEHBK/AMEMBASSY BANGKOK PRIORITY 0662
RUEHCHI/AMCONSUL CHIANG MAI PRIORITY 0447
UNCLAS CHIANG MAI 000034 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: GOV SENV EAGR TH
SUBJECT: HORTICULTURAL HIT TRANSCENDS POLITICS, FOR A TIME

REF: A. (06) CHIANG MAI 19 (NIGHT SAFARI QUESTIONS TRAIL THAKSIN )

B. (05) CHIANG MAI 233 (THANKS BUT. CHIANG MAI STRUGGLES WITH DEVELOPMENT DESIGNED IN BANGKOK )

UNCLAS CHIANG MAI 000034

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: GOV SENV EAGR TH
SUBJECT: HORTICULTURAL HIT TRANSCENDS POLITICS, FOR A TIME

REF: A. (06) CHIANG MAI 19 (NIGHT SAFARI QUESTIONS TRAIL THAKSIN )

B. (05) CHIANG MAI 233 (THANKS BUT. CHIANG MAI STRUGGLES WITH DEVELOPMENT DESIGNED IN BANGKOK )


1. Summary. The three-month-long Royal Flora Ratchaphruek
International Horticultural Exposition in Chiang Mai that closed
Jan. 31 scored a big hit with the Thai public, drawing
attendance beyond anyone's expectations. While the event
managed to rise above politics thanks to its association with
the King, former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra's role in
staging the expo in his home town shades the aftermath. End
summary.


2. Pushed under Thaksin's leadership and opened on Nov. 1 after
his ouster, the Royal Flora expo initially drew media fire for
low attendance, expensive food and smelly toilets - criticism
likely augmented by the post-coup inclination to paint all
Thaksin projects in dark hues. By December, however, Thais
from all over the country flocked to Chiang Mai to catch the
experience, even as foreign tourists mostly stayed away. Total
attendance for the three months was reported at 3.7 million.


3. Despite the fact that decisions on the future of the
188-acre site remain to be made and even though the true
environmental and financial costs of Ratchaphruek may never be
clear, most Thais perceived the hugely popular event as a worthy
way to mark HM the King's 60th year on the throne and usher in a
year of celebrations surrounding his 80th birthday.


4. The must-see popularity of the Royal Flora expo also boosted
the adjoining Night Safari, another Thaksin "gift" to his home
town built against the opposition of environmentalists on
national park land at the foot of Doi Suthep (reftels).
Explanations for the Royal Flora's triumph included its
celebration of the King and his sufficiency policy and a dose of
related social pressure to be part of the royal salute. Nor did
it hurt that the event was wildly hyped. Even as the expo was
turning visitors away a week before the end, newspapers carried
expensive ads touting the "miracle" of Rathchapruek.

---Educational enrichment via tour bus---


5. Politicians of all stripes saw the floral fest as a chance
to garner support. A former TRT MP from Chiang Rai reported
that many groups of villagers enjoyed organized free trips to
the horticultural show courtesy of politicians and government
units at the municipal, district, and provincial levels. Trip
sponsors included both supporters and foes of the post-coup
Council for National Security (CNS),suggesting that flower
power can sometimes trump politics. Government employees also
took advantage of "study trips" to visit the expo on official
funds; Chiang Mai Rajabhat University reported bus loads of
teachers stopping briefly at the campus to justify an official
trip before heading out to see the show.


6. Even the Thai military tried to cash in by offering Burmese
counterparts from the Township Border Committee (TBC) at Mae
Sai-Tachilek a trip to the expo, along with their families.
One such trip reportedly backfired when a police checkpoint
discovered and removed illegal travelers on the bus.

---Picking apart the party---


7. Now that the popular expo is over, critics have started to
reemerge. Operating costs reportedly had to be supplemented by
additional government funds as well as an assessment on local
administrative organizations. Villagers living near the expo
site complained that organizers failed to honor promises to hire
local residents and protested over poor garbage handling and
excessive noise. Bangkok's "Nation" newspaper trumpeted "Floral
expo ends with meager profit" and concluded that the expo failed
in its horticultural objectives while succeeding in celebrating
the King's reign and promoting Lanna culture. A local NGO
filed charges against the Thaksin administration for failing to
obtain permission to use the national park land and for
irregularities in contract bids; the cases are now pending
investigations by the Agriculture Ministry and the National
Counter-Corruption Commission.


8. Comment: Despite initial wariness about Royal Flora
Ratchapruek as yet another wasteful project of the Thaksin
government, most Thais took it to their hearts. Chiang Mai
businesses, hotels and restaurants profited financially from the
three-month tourist magnet, even though residents were unhappy
with the traffic jams and tour buses that jammed their city
during the November-January period. In the aftermath, the
former Prime Minister's opponents are calling attention to
budget irregularities and environmental encroachment while
others believe that the expo further strengthened Thaksin's
image and base among local business beneficiaries. The final
reckoning may depend, like much else, on Thaksin's lot.

CAMP