Speaker Explains Thai Life
Eric Swensent as seen in the Greensboro News & Record - January 31, 2003
A government worker, Pimol Thampitakpong is taking a learning tour of the United States through a State Department program.
"I knew (the TV show) 'Survivor' was in Thailand," the 17-year-old said.
But Parrish and other students in an Advanced Placement U.S. Government class got the chance to fill in some gaps in their knowledge with the help of a special guest: Pimol Thampitakpong, an administrator of Thailand's Constitutional Court.
Through a U.S. State Department program designed to bring emerging leaders from other countries to America, Thampitakpong is spending about a month touring the United States, mainly to learn more about the American justice system. His temporary detour to High Point Central was arranged by the Piedmont Triad Council for International Visitors, which brings guests from the State Department program to the area.
"The (High Point) Community Foundation has given us a grant, and when we went into the grant meeting, they asked us if we would bring people into the schools," said Beth Robertson, the nonprofit group's executive director. "And the State Department asked us to show him a high school class."
So Thampitakpong took a break Thursday from asking questions and explained Thailand's constitution and its Constitutional Court, which functions much like the U.S. Supreme Court by ruling on whether a law is constitutional. But Thailand's version of the court can also pass judgment on proposed laws, he said.
Once Thampitakpong finished his presentation, he did his best through an interpreter to answer the students' queries, including whether his country has the death penalty (yes, and it covers major drug traffickers) and how many TV stations Thailand has (five, though many more channels are available via satellite).
Women also play a major role in Thailand's military, he said, with five or six women serving as generals.
Along with answering questions about his country's efforts to provide low-cost health care and aid its poor. Thampitakpong also showed he may have a future in diplomacy when one student asked him to name some countries that Thailand considers allies or enemies.
"American is our best ally, but we consider ourselves a friend to every country," he said.
After the questions-and-answers session ended, Thampikakpong said he enjoyed the chance to talk with the students: "All of the questions were great. Even though they might not know much about Thailand, the questions reflect their global interest."
The students also seemed to take plenty away from the meeting.
"I didn't know we were such close allies," said Parrish, 17.
Cameron Foster was surprised to hear about the prominent role women play in the military.
"You don't find many developing countries that have that," said the 17-year-old senior.