Thai junta leader: I want Shin Corp, satellites returned

The Straits Times, February 17, 2007

By Nirmal Ghosh, THAILAND CORRESPONDENT

My duty is to salvage country and its assets, says Sonthi

THE head of Thailand's military council, General Sonthi Boonyaratglin, said yesterday he wants the return of Shin Corp, the country's largest telecommunications company, to Thai ownership.

Singapore's Temasek Holdings bought a controlling stake in Shin Corp from the family of ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra in a controversial deal a year ago.

The 73.3 billion baht (S$3.4 billion) deal - the largest in Thai corporate history - gave Temasek control of satellite operator Shin Satellite, broadcaster iTV, and Thailand's biggest mobile phone company, Advanced Info Service (AIS).

'I want them back, especially the satellite,' Gen Sonthi said yesterday in a speech on patriotism to some 2,000 civil servants and military officials.

In his most categorical statement of economic nationalism to date, the general said: 'Singapore is a small country that lacks any farming area, but they are rich capitalists and brokers who can buy our assets.'

'I am concerned about our national assets that were bought. I want my assets back, especially the satellites,' he said.

He did not explain how he planned to get them back but said he was working hard on it.

Speaking to reporters later, he said it was the Thai military's duty not to 'let anyone take our national assets'.

'Do you want me to sit idly? My duty is to salvage the country and its assets,' he added.

The general's reference was to the broadcasting satellites Thaicom 1, 2 and 5, and the broadband satellite Thaicom 4, better known as iPSTAR.

All - and another which was disconnected last year due to technical problems - are owned by Shin Satellite, a subsidiary of Shin Corp.

The satellite operation is reckoned to be worth around US$3.9 billion (S$6 billion).

The satellites were deemed particularly sensitive by Mr Thaksin's critics, who argue that strategic assets had been placed under the control of foreigners.

It catalysed opposition to Mr Thaksin, who was eventually ousted in a bloodless coup d'etat led by Gen Sonthi last September.

During last year's street protests in Bangkok against Mr Thaksin, there were several protests outside Singapore's embassy in Bangkok over the Shin-Temasek deal.

Gen Sonthi first criticised the deal last month when he told a gathering of students: 'Our army has a problem now. When we make a call, the line goes to Singapore. When we talk secrets, they go straight to Singapore.'

AIS and Shin Satellite denied they had ever eavesdropped on their networks.

But sources said the Thai army was considering the launch of another satellite dedicated exclusively to military use.

Several analysts see Gen Sonthi's latest outburst as partly nationalist posturing aimed at the domestic audience.

But they say it could also be intended to put pressure on Temasek, which, according to banking sources, is working on a way to sell down its stake in Shin Corp, including the satellite subsidiary.

'The satellite is really the key issue. He may be trying to corner Temasek into selling Shinsat,' said an analyst who asked not to be named.

Professor Panitan Wattanayagorn of Chulalongkorn University's political science faculty told The Straits Times: 'The idea is to focus on the policy agenda of the military council - part of which is nationalism.

'But some of this is propaganda and in practice may be difficult to implement. The Shin deal is a complex one and, despite what they say, the council is still sticking to the rule of law.'


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WHAT SONTHI SAYS
'Singapore is a small country that lacks any farming area, but they are rich capitalists and brokers who can buy our assets. I am concerned about our national assets that were bought. I want my assets back, especially the satellites.'

GEN SONTHI, saying he wants the return of Shin Corp, Thailand's largest telecoms company, to Thai ownership


WHAT THE MFA SAYS
'Singapore is surprised at what Council for National Security chief Sonthi Boonyaratglin was reported to have said about getting back Thai national assets which have been sold to foreigners.
We should wait for the Thai government to clarify what those remarks meant.'
SINGAPORE FOREIGN MINISTRY SPOKESMAN, in response to media queries