สำนักราชบัณฑิตยสภา

The Journal of the Royal Institute of Thailand Volume II - 2010 Towards A Culture of Peace in Thai Society 18 through negotiations and mediations, as arranged by a neutral partner rather than to look for solutions solely with the opposing sides. So far, Thais have found it difficult to ‘insulate’ grievances so as not to go overboard, neither with demands nor reactions. From never complaining, the pendulum has swung to the other extreme, it has become fashionable to be complaining all the time about all and sundry and demand a total turn-around of society and the reversal of the status quo. Those concerned must learn to identify what is important and what is less so, to separate the essential the ‘core’, from the peripheral, the ‘negligible’. Enhancing Communal Spirit Typically, once centralized administrations encounter local problems or are faced with protests, high-ranking officials deciding on measures to be taken (or not) or some other high-level panel which will discuss matters. This kind of reaction leaves out two crucial levels, that of the individual (affected) and that of the community (concerned). They need, however, to be included in any such efforts, to address and remove conditions for disaffection, violence and conflict. Crucially, such efforts thus need to be taken up on two fronts, at the level of the individual and a second intermediate level of the social institution and of groups. Hence, issues of concern [and soft spots] within Thai society that have surfaced in issues related to these important aspects need to be addressed and the social institutions at both these essential levels targeted. Besides, at a more general level, to generate a sense of solidarity, individuals need to extend basic skills on how to exchange views and opinions. Moreover, a sense of belonging to something greater than the family needs to be generated or encouraged, which will help foster a sense of communal rights and responsibilities. In a way, components and mechanisms of a social as well as inter-generational, and rural-urban dialogue need to be developed. However passing on any non-traditional ideas and values tends to be an uphill task once a person has turned into an adult, complete with a fixed set of values, world views and ideas that impose a standard set of attitudes and fixed patterns of behavior. Hence, children and youth need to be a prime focus of attempts at creating awareness and or affecting change. One set of long-term responses then ought to target adapting principles, substance matters and messages of socialization and formal education, i.e. parenting/ socialization and school curricula and syllabi, to the requirements of a more open, inclusive, tolerant society, while another, more short-term reaction could be targeted,