“If politics was good” trends on twitter in Thailand

The hashtag #ถ้าการเมืองดี (If politics was good) trended on twitter in Thailand early on Tuesday with social media users using the opportunity to muse what Thailand would be like if the political situation in the country was stable.

As of Tuesday morning, over 120,000 tweets referenced the hashtag.

Thailand’s economy is set to contract at least 8 per cent this year due to the effects of the coronavirus pandemic. Political instability in the country over the past two decades has seen growth rates stagnate while regional neighbours constituents to develop at a brisk pace.

Student-led protests have also gripped the country over the past two months with students calling for a rewrite of the military-drafted constitution, the dissolution of parliament, and the end to the harassment of activists by the state.

The protests originally began in February after the dissolution of the progressive Future Forward Party but were abruptly halted due to the onset of the coronavirus pandemic. As the pandemic subsided in Thailand, the protests have started up again – fueled by economic uncertainty and anti-government sentiment.

The hashtag seemed to be driven in part by rainstorms over Bangkok on early Tuesday with traffic gridlock and parts of the capital flooded.

#ถ้าการเมืองดี เราจะเจอเรื่องแบบนี้น้อยลง https://t.co/vdiu7lbUYj

— Sparkling (@MrSparkShow) September 1, 2020

#ถ้าการเมืองดี การศึกษาจะเข้าถึงได้ทุกคน ไม่ใช่มาแบบ รร.ห่วยแตกจนตั้งแฮชแท็กโรงเรียนส้นตีน

— เด็กดื้อ กูจะทำ เรามีสิทธ์ที่จะทำตามที่เราต้องการ (@AncientsEarth) September 1, 2020

#ถ้าการเมืองดี https://t.co/dRPRBuxaDO

— Poy Poy (@alohapoy) September 1, 2020