Fear of the outside world
There was a bizarre story in the Bangkok Post today about why Thailand has rejected the idea of making English the official second language of the nation.
The Education Ministry has scrapped a plan to make English the country's second language, saying it could lead to misunderstandings that Thailand had been colonised in the past.
Mr Chinnaworn said the ministry had carefully considered the proposal and found it might lead to misunderstandings among people and agencies responsible for implementing the policy. Other countries that have declared English a second official language were normally viewed as former colonies, he said. Thai is the only official language of Thailand.
If this isn't an example of Thai nationalism then I don't know what is.
Firstly, Thai language as we know it today has its roots in the Khmer system of writing, which was imported and modified by King Ram Khamhaeng. The language initially spread through the centre of what we today know as Thailand.
Tai-speaking people had been moving into Thailand from Southern China for years and they established territorial units known as muang and spread throughout the region, including in Chiang Mai.
Another Tai tradition developed in Sukhotai, which had previously been under Khmer control. Sukhotai briefly dominated southern Thailand, but eventually came to be challenged by an area in the lower Cao Phraya valley. The Tai arrived in this area in around the eleventh century in Lavo, which was part of the Mon kingdom. The Tai then ruled this area and the new kingdom was called Ayutthaya, which later absorbed Sukhotai and from which Siamese culture developed.
Essentially, Tai-speaking people took over an area that had long been ruled by the Mon and Khmer and one thing led to another before Thailand was born.
This is why, to me, it seems silly to pass over an opportunity to make English the official second language because it might lead to confusion about Thailand's colonial past.
Thailand was technically the only country in Southeast Asia not to be colonized, but that certainly doesn't mean Thailand wasn't influenced by colonialism or concepts from other countries. Where did Buddhism come from? It certainly didn't come from Thailand and yet it is the state religion.
There seems to be a conflict here between globalising education and protecting cultural identity.
I don't see how introducing English as the second official language would give anyone the impression that Thailand had been colonized. It just does not add up, so I'm left wondering exactly what Chinnaworn said. There were no quotes in the Bangkok Post story.
The reason I am a little doubtful is because Nation previously ran a story quoting Tongthong Chandransu, secretary-general of the Office of the Education Council, saying, "To initiate a nationwide English language teaching improvement scheme is a big issue. We need to prepare enough basic structure – like instructional tools, technology and qualified teachers – as well as arrange funds, which will take a long time."
