Thailand already has a surplus of spoiled brats, many of whom grow up to be over-privileged public officials, corrupt bureaucrats, crooked cops, and regular folk like the merchant-thugs at Bo Bae, who think they have a God-given right to break the law and inconvenience whomever they choose. It's all part of the childish thinking process that says, "The world revolves around me".

The process starts early. Witness, for example, how tired adults kindly give up their seats on public buses and the BTS Skytrain to children. Then notice how not one of these little emperors or empresses ever says, "thank you". Nope - they just hop on as if it's their birthright, as though the world owes them everything. (To be fair, their parents never admonish them to say "thank you", so what can one expect?)

Then as the brats get older, we see the results: students who routinely cheat on exams; politicians who, when found to be corrupt, throw temper tantrums; and a shameless ex-prime minister who acted as though Thailand was created for his benefit.

All of this because they want to - so there!

Even if abolishing Children's Day wouldn't raise emotional health standards, there's another, simpler reason to do away with the holiday: we don't need it. Given the daily self-centred, childish behaviour that surrounds us, it seems that every day is Children's Day in Thailand, for children of all ages.

Paul Bradley

Bangkok

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Tour gives all would-be PMs a chance to sit in the big chair

As usual on Children's Day, Government House will be open to children to roam about. They will tour the Cabinet meeting room and the minister's offices with the highlight a visit to the prime minister's office, where the children can sit in the premier's comfy armchair.

I suggest that Democrat Party leader Abhisit Vejjajiva go to Government House on this day and try out the chair because that is the only chance he'll get to fulfil his dream.

Mr T

Bangkok

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Surayud needs to act quickly to restore public confidence

According to the latest reports, the current militarily installed government has not done a very good job. It is trying to rewrite a constitution that was mostly fine but one that did not belong to the people. It has not moved on corruption cases even though a first-year law student could have successfully prosecuted the CTX airport scanner case, and they have found out that giving concessions in the South has increased violence.

Granted, they have not had much time but there are some actions they can carry out to restore confidence. How about instead of moving officials to "inactive posts", they instead send them to jail or sack them. Those sent to these posts usually end up returning to their positions regardless of the crimes that they have committed.

Secondly, the government should stop delaying the foreign investment act and allow foreigners to retain control of companies that they have set up and invested in. Leave international finance to the professionals and stop the Revenue Department from breaking Board of Investment agreements. This will reduce the anticipated multi-billion baht deficit that is growing rapidly and will restore some investor confidence. Also, the government should ensure that the new constitution belongs to the people this time and that it can only be changed in the future by a good majority of the people of Thailand agreeing to any proposed amendments.

The administration should also close some of the most glaring corruption cases. If there are 50 toilets missing from the new airport, force the original builders to put them in at their own cost and fix all the other problems. Unless these steps are taken quickly the remaining business opportunities for Thailand will be lost to other countries in the region - a process that has already begun and will be almost impossible to reverse.

Christian Lloyd

Bangkok

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Despite his faults, Thaksin gave tangible value to poor

Re: "Can a new form of democracy emerge in Thailand?", Opinion, December 8.

The poor vote for people who promise them something and they are right to do so. Many Thai governments, including the government of Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont, only cared for Bangkok's middle class. Poor farmers would be mad to vote for them. Even if Thaksin's government was corrupt, they could see he was doing something for them. The same is not true with Surayud.

Somchai

Bangkok

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Abuses of power to blame for democracy remaining elusive

Re: "Can a new form of democracy emerge in Thailand?", Opinion, December 8.

Democracy and freedom in the 21st century can only be achieved with wealth and knowledge. If you use that yardstick to measure Thailand then you will see that it has fallen far short.

The country has been kept short of both measures all along by corruption and a weak political system that allowed the generals in.

The rural and urban divide is not just a problem unique to Thailand. In fact, Thailand has more of a chance than many countries to succeed in closing this divide because of its relatively more productive land. Perception can only go this far if wealth creation and knowledge dissemination is not addressed in those regions. And this indeed is the fault of political systems that continue to be influenced by people like Thaksin and old style generals who mostly have had a long history of fuelling a sizeable part of the Thai economy - most commonly known as the underground economy.

Hello

Bangkok

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Rights group condemns Tamil Tigers' bombings

The Australia-based Society for Peace Unity and Human Rights for Sri Lanka (SPUR) condemns the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam's (LTTE) despicable attacks on innocent civilians. The LTTE has killed close to 30 and injured more than 80 civilians in bus bombs and suicide missions carried out over the weekend in southern Sri Lanka. One of the LTTE's leaders, Seevatahnam Puleedevan, issued a statement last Thursday saying that the Sinhalese in Sri Lanka would have to face "serious consequences" if the air force continues to carry out attacks against LTTE bases in the North. His words have been transformed to deeds as demonstrated by the tragic attacks on civilian buses.

Unless the government of Sri Lanka and the international community take decisive action to isolate the LTTE terrorists, they will continue undermining democracy in Sri Lanka and driving the 99 per cent of people there who yearn for peace spiralling into an environment of despair.

We are also eagerly awaiting the views of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) and even international organisations such as the UN and Unicef. It would not surprise SPUR if these organisations default to parroting empty words such as "both parties should desist from violence and work towards protecting human rights" without naming and condemning LTTE's acts of terror.

The government of Sri Lanka must take decisive action to provide security and safeguard its people from terror. The government should consider reintroducing the banning of the LTTE in Sri Lanka. Such a ban would severely limit the freedom the LTTE enjoys currently. The government should also stop the LTTE's interactions with the international community and jam all clandestine broadcasts from LTTE-controlled areas.

SPUR urges the international community including individual countries and organisations such as the UN and EU to issue decisive warnings to the LTTE that they are under the microscope and that their human rights violations are considered crimes against humanity.

The credibility of the international community is at stake and SPUR is watching the conduct of its members with interest. The government of Sri Lanka is committed to protecting one of the oldest democracies in the world whilst the LTTE terrorists are hell bent on destroying it.

The international community and India especially must take decisive action against the LTTE and help the government of Sri Lanka to eradicate the scourge of terrorism from its land.

Dr Dasaruth Jayasuriya

President

Society for Peace Unity and Human Rights for

Sri Lanka (SPUR)

Melbourne, Australia

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Iraqi PM hypocritical in his refusal to abide criticism

Re: "Maliki warns Saddam execution critics", World, January 7.

Just who does this prime minister - who says he won't stand for office again, and actually would like to leave office now if he could - think he is. He has the barefaced cheek to wag his finger and say he will review relations with sovereign nations who criticise the Saddam execution.

Indeed, he arrogantly confuses what he grandly calls "the will" of the Iraqi people with what is only the wish of the ruling elite. A piece of misinformation we see more and more of these days from failing, and oppressive states all over the world

That Saddam was a tyrant and guilty was self-evident. What has offended so many is firstly the joke of a trial which bore scant resemblance to justice, with the supposedly independent judiciary being pressured and removed by the executive, and its general modus operandi being so highly flawed and ultimately the appalling manner in which Saddam was subsequently executed.

His little tantrum is actually highly amusing and can be likened to a bankrupt person saying he would have to review his relations with his bank. It is in fact the states he purports to reproach that should be urgently reviewing their relations with this extremely defective government.

John De Laurent

Bangkok