Posterior polishing continues

The royal family seems a bit short on posteriors to be buffed. Hence, Vacharaesorn Vivacharawongse’s manic efforts at what looks like self promotion, but with the palace – presumably the king – backing him him in.

We can’t help wondering is his sister isn’t involved. Princess Sirivannavari Nariratana is a proper royal and he isn’t. Not yet, anyway. With blood being so significant, it is reasonable to think that she might prefer a tubby full brother than a challenged half brother, Prince Dipangkorn Rasmijoti.

Of course, her brother’s current promotion and management as likely successor to the king goes together with her own shameless self-promotion. After years of being portrayed as excellent at everything, the buffing of Sirivannavari’s backside continues unabated and unabashed. Whatever takes her fancy gets media attention and the claims she’s the best thing since rice was first boiled are never-ending.

A recent effort was not about her sporting prowess – horse riding, badminton – or her scholarly brilliance, bit focused on her long-term dalliance with fashion and design. The Bangkok Post, which regularly “reports” this kind of royal PR buffalo manure, has yet another story on the royal’s “patterns.”

According to the “report,” the Puea Thai-led coalition government is throwing more taxpayer money into “promoting royal fabric patterns designed by … Sirivannavari … under a project aimed at preserving traditional handicrafts, improving local people’s living conditions and boosting sustainability in villages.” Yes, seriously.

With nothing better to do with his time than to belly slide before royals, “Suttipong Juljarern, permanent secretary for the Interior Ministry, recently presided over a ceremony to present the princess’ royal fabric patterns to all 76 provincial governors at a hotel in Bangkok.” Yep, all 76. And they are required to also give time and money to another royal PR scheme.

Of course, some of these “designs” are dedicated to her dad’s birthday. According to the polishers, the princess has studied “local fabric patterns from all regions of the country.” Villagers have no copyright, and even if they did, they’d have to hand over their intellectual and cultural property to the acquisitive royal.

But never fear, the “royal patterns will be passed on to local weavers and fabrics makers so they can blend them with local patterns and traditional wisdom in making hand-woven fabrics to innovate new designs.”

Unremarkable too, the royal designs “will be certified by the ‘Sustainable Fashion’ logo…”. Where did the logo come from? Of course, it was “bestowed and designed by the princess.” That squares the circle!

And, with but a bat of eyelid, she’s her grandmother’s progeny, apparently inheriting the genes that the now queen mother who had herself recognized as a promoter of local products, “helping weavers earn better wages and improve their living conditions…”. Wages? Yep, converting cultural capital into a means of capitalist exploitation.

Suttipong reckons the princess is talented, creative, trendy,  and more. He promises that the “Community Development Department (CDD) under the Interior Ministry and provincial governors nationwide are working together to promote Thai fabrics through the ‘Pha Thai Sai Hai Sanuk’ (Thai Fabrics Are Fun to Wear) project initiated by the princess.”

He reckons the “project is aimed at improving the livelihoods of local weavers and textile makers…”. We reckon the project is aimed to promote royals and royalism.