Gordon denies offensive remark against Thais

Sen. Richard Gordon yesterday denied making any derogatory statements against the Thais, saying the Thai ambassador could have been misinformed and that he should be the one to apologize for blowing the issue out of proportion when he appeared not to have done research before giving his statement.

The senator said he would never criticize another country, “much less Thailand because (he) has a high regard for its people.”

“I have nothing to apologize for,” Gordon said.

Gordon, chairman of the Senate committee on tourism, explained that he never said that Thai people were “politically immature,” which reportedly miffed Thai Ambassador Kulkumut Singhara Na Ayudhaya.

“I did not say that. Why should I say that? I do not know where that came from, but I am sure it did not come from me. Maybe it was from another individual. Far be it from my mind to say anything against a country. Why should I say that Thai people are politically immature? I think the ambassador had been misinformed on this matter. A simple phone call would have clarified the issue,” he said.

“He should be the one to apologize. The Thai ambassador should be reprimanded by his government for over-reacting to issues in the host country. He is posted here to ensure harmonious diplomacy and not destroy diplomatic relations by a knee-jerk statement,” Gordon said.

The senator stressed that he issued a statement to express his sympathy to the Thai people because of the damage wrought by the political crisis on Thailand’s tourism and export industry, and to warn Filipinos that it could also happen in the Philippines.

However, he lamented that his statement might have been taken out of context and consequently blown out of proportion.

“My statement was clear. What I said was that with the present situation here in the Philippines, such as the Charter change issue, which is also very combustible, we may also find ourselves in the midst of a political unrest if we are not careful,” Gordon said.

“What has happened in Thailand could also happen here. What happened to Thailand was that their airports were forcibly occupied. Their tourism industry, which is their number one industry, and the export industry were affected. They cannot export their fruits and cut flowers. And people were even hurt and stranded,” he added.

According to Gordon, he has high regard for the Thai people, adding that not only do Filipinos and Thais enjoy a close relationship, but he also has numerous Thai friends.

“I hold Thai people in very high esteem. Thais have always been experts in diplomacy because they have never been colonized by anybody. They have always remained neutral,” he said.

Gordon also said that Filipinos, being in a free country, were free to express their opinions, even as he maintained that he did not say anything against the Thai government that could be taken as an insult.

For his part, the envoy said yesterday that his action of raising to the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) his concern over the statements made by Deputy Presidential Spokesman Anthony Golez and Gordon stating that Thai people lack political maturity and the political turmoil in Thailand could not possibly happen in the Philippines was done after consulting Thailand’s Foreign Ministry.

“I’m not worried at all. I did the correct thing. I consulted Bangkok and they called me this morning to say what I did was to protect the dignity of the Thai people and it is correct,” the ambassador told The STAR.

The ambassador said Gordon was very emotional when he challenged him to do research about the statement he made on the political development in Thailand.

He said that the information about the statement of Gordon and Golez were not only reported in the Philippine media but also picked up by Bangkok.

“Senator Gordon is very emotional and he challenged me to do the research. He should do the research and if he thinks he is correct he can do everything. Everything I did was polite, the way a diplomat would do,” he said.    – With Pia Lee-Brago