President Ford’s legacy in Thailand tainted

December 29th, 2006 by admin

Ford’s legacy in Thailand tainted

Effects still felt from the former US president’s decision to violate Thai sovereignty in the Mayaguez incident

Gerald Ford has been and always will be remembered in Thailand as the only US president to have violated the sovereignty of Thailand. His decision to send US marines to rescue the American crew of the merchant ship Mayaguez seized by Khmer Rouge soldiers in the Gulf of Thailand in May of 1975 was a disaster with far-reaching ramifications. Washington failed to consult Bangkok on its plan to dispatch US marine special forces to U Tapao military base in Rayong province and went ahead with the rescue effort despite not having received permission from the host country. The Thai government was very upset at the violation of the nation’s sovereignty, especially newly elected prime minister MR Kukrit Pramoj, of whom it could be said that there was no love lost between him and the Americans.The incident helped shape Thai-US relations in the proceeding decades. It is not incorrect to say that it was the first time that Thailand learned first hand about the American attitude towards its small but faithful ally.

The US eventually paid a very high price for the incident because Kukrit, who became prime minister two months before the Mayaguez incident, took a tough stand that led to a complete withdrawal of all American troops a year later in June of 1976. The US government could not believe that the incident would lead to such a move.

Of course other developments - including the normalisation of Thai-Chinese relations and broadened ties with Indochina - following the incident helped to quicken the demise of the American military presence in Thailand, which began in the 1960s with the start of the US military engagement in Vietnam and Indochina.

For Thailand, the incident came at the worst possible time. The fall of Indochina to the communists frightened Thais. They were worried about the much-cited “domino theory”, which appeared to be in evidence at the time. Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos had fallen to the communists and so, according to the theory, Thailand could expect to be next.

The US’s blatant violation of Thailand’s territory stirred up pre-existing anti-American sentiment among left-leaning student movements in Thailand and contributed to tensions between these elements and right-wing ultra-nationalist groups that culminated in the bloodbath of 1976.

The Mayaguez incident, along with the failure of the US to aid Thailand during the economic crisis of 1997, feature prominently whenever there are discussions on Thai-US relations - a relationship that has been strained as a result of the two incidents, despite the ever-increasing importance the two countries have to each other.

The recent failure to conclude a free-trade agreement after nearly two years of talks demonstrates this deeply rooted mistrust. It will take a long time to remedy the situation.

Beyond Thailand, Indonesia’s invasion of East Timor, immediately after Ford’s visit to the country, represented another of the worst US policies towards Southeast Asia. It showed the US as being focused on its own interests, even when they could be of detriment to other countries. The disastrous consequences of the East Timor invasion are still being felt.

One can argue that at the time the US wanted to strengthen President Suharto’s hand to ensure that the country would protect US interests in the region. After all, the US troop withdrawal from Thailand and the defeat in the Indochina War automatically undermined the US’s post-World War II influence. The rise of China was real, along with the heightening of the China-Soviet conflict.

In the end, historians would agree that Ford’s decision to recapture the Mayaguez was aimed at boosting the confidence of the US public in its foreign policy. Certainly it was a last-hurrah effort, but it did demonstrate the extent of American firepower. Following the resignation of Richard Nixon as president, American morale was at its lowest ebb. Ford gave him a complete pardon to heal the nation and preserve the US presidency. The Mayaguez incident, therefore, could be seen as an attempt to boost the American ethos outside of the US, and that is how we will remember him