Happy Birthday to Your Majesty Queen Sirikit, the Caring
Mother of the Thai Nation, on the occasion of your Seventy-third birthday,
12 August 2005. The festivities appropriately also coincide with the
nation-wide celebration of Mothers Day.
Prologue
This short piece is presented as a token of loyalty,
affection and respect for our beloved Queen Sirikit. It is not intended to
be a definitive account of the Queen’s incredibly-dedicated life; rather,
it merely selects out some salient points of Her Majesty’s benevolence.
The writer has used a rather eclectic approach to tribute
to the Queen, particularly text from the Chai Pattana Foundation Journal
(August 2000), various reports from magazines and newspapers, including the
Bangkok Post, The Nation, Pattaya Mail and, of course, Palace
sources.
(Photo courtesy Bureau of the
Royal Household)
All over the country, Her Majesty the Queen brings joy to Her people.
The King and the Queen of Thailand - along with members
of the Royal family - have been a tremendous influence on the Thai society,
bringing a relatively backward, almost medieval country out of its
instability and insecurity into what has become a fully-recognized member of
the family of nations, taking a lead role in many ASEAN, Asian and world
affairs.
For example, Supachai Panitchpakdi is director-general of
the World Trade Organization and the Thai deputy prime minister, Surikiart
Sathirathai is a possible candidate for the top UN post of secretary
general, after Koffi Anan retires at the end of 2006.
Thus, Thailand takes its place proudly in the world’s
fora and it is the King and Queen who have been the guiding lights behind
the Kingdom’s evolution.
Peter Cummins
12 August 2005
Sirikit:
From lean years to Queen
Born on 12 August 1932, daughter of the Thai Ambassador
to France, Mom Chao Nakhatmongol and his consort Mom Luang Bua Sanitwongse,
Mom Rajawongse Sirikit Kittiyakara was destiny’s child.
Following the end of WW II in 1945, the young Sirikit
followed her father’s ambassadorial posting first to the Court of St.
James and then Paris. The beautiful Sirikit, whose name means “beauty and
honour”, continued her education, studying language and music, aspiring to
become a concert pianist.
But, lest one think that the future Queen was
‘pampered’ as a child, although the daughter of an upper-class family,
she often walked to school or rode the tram and, with the advent of World
War II, the young girl’s movements and freedoms were quite restricted.
(Photo courtesy Bureau of the
Royal Household)
Her Majesty the Queen works to give livelihood to the Thai people.
“When I was young, I lived a frugal life in Bangkok’s
Theves area,” the Queen recalled recently, “growing up in the general
hardship imposed by the Second World War.”
“I used to feel sorry that my Mum was not able to
afford beautiful clothes for me. I inherited my clothes from my brothers,
while Mum sewed the student uniforms for my sister and I,” said the Queen.
“My father, the future ambassador to St. James and
Paris, used to have to run to catch a tram. But he taught us adamantly, that
poverty was not something to be ashamed of. It was evil and corruption that
were disgusting and shameful.”
In 1948, Sirikit met her husband-to-be and the future
King of Thailand, Bhumibol Adulyadej, in Paris, while both were studying in
Europe; Bhumibol in Lausanne and Sirikit in Paris.
On July 19, 1949, the young couple announced their
engagement at the Windsor Hotel in Lausanne, Switzerland and returned to
Thailand for their marriage on 28 April 1950. The new King and Queen of
Thailand were married by HM Queen Sawang Vadhana, the paternal grandmother
of His Majesty, at the Sra Pathum Palace in Bangkok, on 28 April 1950.
Thus, their Majesties have just celebrated their 55th
wedding anniversary, and the nation enjoys Her Majesty’s 73rd birthday,
knowing that in her tiny hands, back those decades ago, Sirikit was destined
to up-raise the Thai people and improve life for each and every one of the
some 60 million people who would become her subjects.
When the young prince was crowned King Rama IX on 5 May
1950, the new King’s first official proclamation was to instate his bride
of just one week to become Queen Somdej Phranang Chao.
Thus, the King of Thailand’s everlasting heritage to
the Thai people was to commit them to the care of a beautiful and loving
Queen who has spent every day of these ensuing 55 years looking to the
welfare and well-being of the Thai people.
Known for more than a half-century as the “Mother of
all the Thais”, Queen Sirikit’s birthday appropriately coincides with
Mothers Day.
The
Peoples’ Welfare Is Paramount
Early in their reign, when visiting remote areas, the
Royal Couple were disturbed by the plight of the rural people, the lack of
educational and medical facilities and, not the least, poor nutrition which
aggravated all other problems. The King determined to take positive action
to help the farmers, while Her Majesty focused on “the home”, seeking
ways to enable the women-folk to earn cash to help alleviate the grinding
and debilitating poverty.
(Photo courtesy Bureau of the
Royal Household)
3 October 2001 - Her Majesty the Queen during a visit to the Pattani Central
Mosque, Pattani Province.
Earlier this year, in fact, Her Majesty’s concern for
her people over-flowed as she was struck by the violence tearing apart the
southern provinces of Yala, Narathiwat and Pattani.
So acute was the pain the Queen felt that she was
compelled to speak out, for the second time in six months. Queen Sirikit
made a rare nationally-televised appeal urging an end to the unrest in
Thailand’s mainly Muslim south, after a deadly airport bomb attack earlier
this month.
“I have been thinking of this for the last few days,
after the bombing at the Hat Yai international airport, that I cannot sit
idly by, because the incident is quite serious,” the Queen said. “It
will affect the tourism industry and the economy could collapse,” she
said.
The 72-year-old queen made the remarks during a heartfelt
and deeply patriotic speech to some 1,200 village defence volunteers and
scouts at the Royal Palace in Bangkok. The village defence volunteer and
scout system was created during the Cold War as an anti-communist measure,
but continues to this day.
The 40-minute address was taped and broadcast on every
Thai television station during prime time.
She made a similar appeal in November, after spending two
months in the southern provinces along the Malaysian border, where a
separatist insurgency has claimed more than 650 lives since January 2004.
Her Majesty spoke of the senseless killing of ordinary people, including
Buddhist monks. She described those responsible for these crimes as totally
alien to her and quite unlike the past separatists who had never resorted to
indiscriminate murder.
Like her last address, the speech avoided any criticism
of the government’s handling of the unrest, while urging ordinary Thais to
unite against violence.
“I do not incite you to arm and mount retaliatory
killings ... but I plead to you all not to remain idle because this
situation is very dangerous to our country,” she said.
Queen Sirikit said the April 3 bombings in the southern
commercial centre of Hat Yai - targeting an airport, a hotel and a
department store - showed the extent of the threat posed by the southern
unrest.
“We have experienced a tsunami, which is a very serious
national calamity, but the bombs all over the south are more dangerous to
our economy and Thailand because it severely affects the livelihood of the
people,” she said.
Nearly 5,400 people died when the December 26 tsunami
struck six southern provinces in Thailand.
So personal has been Her Majesty’s concern, that just
recently, she granted an audience to a four-year-old boy, Patchaporn
Charernsilp who had been seriously injured in the Hat Yai airport attack.
Furthermore, she came to the assistance of a bereaved family from Narathiwat
who had lost their bread-winner in the violence, at the same time the Queen
requested the Fourth Army to do its utmost to protect the people in the
south from the violence and unrest endemic to the region.
Thus, today, the whole Kingdom of Thailand rejoices and
celebrates the birthday of the Her Majesty the Queen, the “Mother of the
Nation” and, by extension, pays a tribute to Thai Motherhood, as Thailand
also honours “Mothers’ Day”, at this time.
Ongoing
Celebrations
Since her 71st birthday in 2003, in fact, the Thai people
have been celebrating the birthday of the Beloved Queen. One of the early
manifestations was three years ago, shortly after Her Majesty’s 70th
birthday, when a splendid gala, featuring a Thai silk fashion show -
appropriately called “Queen of Silk” - was held in Her Majesty’s
honour at Government House.
(Photo courtesy
Bureau of the Royal Household)
The highlight of the spectacular evening was the
conferring upon the Queen the Louis Pasteur Award by the International
Sericultural Commission and the Brussels Eureka 2001, awarded by the
National Research Council of Thailand.
As an added honour, the Ministry of Agriculture and
Cooperatives commissioned a special musical tribute called “Mai Rak”
(Love of Silk), “in appreciation of Her Majesty’s role and activities in
Thai silk and developing it to a world standard over the past five
decades.”
These awards coincided with the staging of the 19th
Congress of the International Sericultural Commission - the first time
Thailand has ever had the occasion to host this prestigious event. Thus it
was a fitting tribute to Her Majesty, witnessed by some 500 sericulture
experts from more than 23 countries who attended the Congress.
Of course, a familiar sight to the Thai people and,
certainly those at the Congress, is the Queen attired in Thai silk,
particularly Mudmee (known also as Ikat), Korat and Chiang Mai silks.
During her trips around the Kingdom and abroad, the Queen
invariably wears Thai silk, as do those of her staff who accompany her. As a
result of this exposure, the international community has learned to admire
the beauty of Thai silk and to appreciate a handicraft that is uniquely
Thai.
But the mudmee Thai silk that the Queen has promoted had
a much earlier exposure. On their official state visit to Australia in
August 1962, the Sydney Daily Telegraph reported: “Queen Sirikit last
night made a dazzling first appearance in Thai national dress. Hundreds of
people gasped in admiration when Queen Sirikit arrived to attend a state
dinner at the Australia Hotel. Women in the crowd were mesmerized at the
sight of the Queen’s ankle-length slim-fitting gown of orchid pink Thai
silk!”
There is almost an endless list of awards, celebrations
and dedications to Her Majesty, ranging from a nation-wide tree-planting of
one million trees to mark each year of the Queen’s life, to concerts,
fashion parades, to a world record sky-diving performance. There is a
Queen’s cookbook, the opening of a “Butterfly Garden” and, certainly
not the least, two highly-prestigious awards from the United States
acknowledging the Queen’s role in preserving Thai crafts and her
humanitarian assistance to the Thai people, refugees and wildlife.
It is not possible to single out the huge number of
accolades and dedications made to the Queen. Only to categorize them,
without any particular order of priority. Herewith are some of them:
The 2004 Aid to Artisans Award: for the preservation of
Thai crafts, presented at a gala dinner in New York on 2 February, 2004;
The Marshall Legacy Institute’s Annual International
Award 2003, for the Queen’s work in helping improve the lives of people
and protecting wildlife. Upon the presentation of this award in Washington,
D.C. on 4 February 2004, the director of the Institute, which is dedicated
to the removal of landmines, pointed out that “Her Majesty had played an
important role in promoting the welfare of Thais, with special emphasis on
the poor and refugees.”
At the end of 2003, Her Majesty gave permission to print
500 copies of her recipes in a cookbook entitled “Kin Tam Mae”
(“Eating as Her Majesty Does”) which stresses the benefits of good food
which she prepares for her own family.
The Public Health Ministry said, “The book was a
demonstration of Her Majesty’s kindness and it underscored the Public
Health Ministry’s declaration of 2004 as ‘The Year for Safe Food’.”
A world record of 672 skydivers from 42 countries, early
this year, leaped from six C-130 military transport planes, unfurling on
their descent a gigantic Thai flag to honour the Queen.
The Queen’s Gallery, opened on Rajadamnoern Klang
Avenue, opposite the Golden Temple in honour of Her Majesty’s 71st
birthday in 2003, is Bangkok’s newest art centre and, as well as a
collection of portraits of the Queen painted by HM the King, the art and
museum displays pieces that have been contributed by galleries and private
collectors worldwide.
There have been cultural performances, soloists and many
musical tributes to the Queen, herself a skilled classic pianist.
More recently, in July this year, the Queen Sirikit
Centre for Breast Cancer was officially opened by her daughter, HRH Maha
Chakri Sirindhorn, President of the Thai Red Cross Society, at the King
Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital which is run by the Red Cross Society.
Loy Krathong Day last year was a splendid occasion for
many Pattayans and residents of the Eastern Seaboard when Her Majesty
nominated many to receive the Queen Sirikit Service Award, presented by the
21st Infantry Regiment of the Royal Armament, the Queen’s Guard in
Chonburi.
This award is generally bestowed upon Thais who have
dedicated their lives in the service of the community but, due to the
Queen’s birthday, it was extended to the expatriate community of Pattaya
and many members of the Rotary Club of Jomtien-Pattaya were so honoured.
The
Support Foundation
Almost coinciding with Her Majesty’s 73rd birthday is
the 29th anniversary of the founding, on 21 July 1976, of the Supplementary
Occupations and Related Techniques, popularly known by the acronym SUPPORT.
The foundation was established to place, on a more formal basis, the
activities started by the Queen, to initiate cottage industries for village
and farm women, without the necessity of leaving home.
(Photo courtesy Bureau of the
Royal Household)
11 November 2001 - Her Majesty the Queen conversing with the local populace
who came to greet Her Majesty during a visit to the SUPPORT Foundation of
Her Majesty Queen Sirikit of Thailand, Sok Som Kob and Klong Chareon
Villages, Si Chomphu District, Khon Kaen Province.
From her own personal funds, Her Majesty supplied weaving
looms and materials to make fabrics, clothing and soft goods, as well as
providing equipment to produce other marketable items. Having lived in
Europe for many years, the Queen was conversant with the enormous diversity
of European arts and culture and thus recognized the variety of crafts and
styles distinctive to different regions of Thailand: hand-woven fabrics,
basket-ware and rattan products, utensils and a myriad other artefacts.
Her Majesty is justifiably well known for her clear
perception and this rose to remarkable heights with her outstanding vision
for making SUPPORT into a viable proposition. She brought back from
retirement former court artisans - even grandmothers - to teach presumably
lost crafts to a ‘new generation’. The Queen’s advice to the
‘retirees’ was that, “Before they urged the villagers to make
anything, they must be certain that the end-product is marketable - and not
made for charity alone which does not provide a real livelihood. SUPPORT is
designed to make the villagers self-reliant,” the Queen emphasized.
Particular stress was placed upon bringing
physically-handicapped people to work at SUPPORT projects, raising their
confidence and creating a satisfaction for each person who was, thus,
achieving a level of self-reliance by being able to earn an income - and not
having to rely on charity or handouts to survive.
Mudmee Silk is but one of the Queen’s legacies to the
Foundation. It was Her Majesty who ‘resurrected’ this almost-forgotten
weaving craft, indigenous to the northeast. Mudmee, meaning literally
‘tied threads’, is an intricate ‘tie and die’ process which produces
brilliant colours, each piece being unique and the pattern is the individual
imagination of the weaver - there are no blueprints to follow.
Due to Her Majesty’s guidance, as well as to her
wearing of Mudmee at official functions in Thailand and abroad, Mudmee silk
is universally known as a distinctive, exotic and outstandingly beautiful
Thai artefact.
This writer recently had the good fortune to visit the
Silk Museum, adjacent to the Community College, Ban Kookard, in Khon Kaen
Province, when undertaking an educational assignment commissioned by the
United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). It was a journey into a hall of
beautiful, shimmering and intricately-designed silk, carefully laid out.
Many
Projects to Raise Living Standards
Recently, in fact, with the welfare of the hilltribe
people foremost in her mind, the Queen asked the Third Army to drop its
plans of moving them to lowlands, fearing “such re-location will affect
their way of life”.
(Photo
courtesy Bureau of the Royal Household)
Her Majesty Queen Sirikit
Although probably best known for the SUPPORT project, the
Queen’s great determination to raise the living standards and improve the
quality of life for the Thai people has led to many other projects,
beneficial to the people and Nature equally. For example, there are the
Queen Sirikit Botanic Garden, the Forest Loves Water and The Little House in
the Big Forest Projects.
During her ongoing visits - often with the King and other
members of the Royal Family - to the remotest and poorest areas of the
country, Her Majesty soon realized that it was preservation and wise use of
the natural resources and environmental protection which were the imperative
components in striking a balance between the welfare of human settlements
and Nature.
The Queen was most disturbed by the deterioration of
these vital elements, particularly the water resources, which she observed
on each visit, were either becoming depleted or badly degraded. The end
result was a further blow to the well-being and improved way of life for
even her least subjects.
The Queen counselled the people, “To bond together in
order to protect the forests which are sources of the watershed and natural
food,” at the same time, “Encouraging them to use natural resources
properly and efficiently, to achieve sustainable benefits.”
Her Majesty also urged the people to become self-reliant
and, “To grow food and garden crops, to undertake a comprehensive
cultivation of herbal plants and raise animals as a food source.”
The
Queen Sirikit Botanic Garden
Her Majesty has continually worked very hard, with
dedication and determination, to improve the living standard and quality of
life of the Thai people and the establishment of the Queen Sirikit Botanic
Garden is just one manifestation.
In 1996, Her Majesty presided over the unveiling ceremony
of the sign of the Queen Sirikit Botanic Garden, located at Mae Rim
District, Chiang Mai Province.
(Photo courtesy Bureau of the
Royal Household)
Her Majesty the Queen inspecting handicraft products made by members of the
Development Project under the Royal Initiation of Her Majesty the Queen,
Ruam Thai Village, Muang Mae Hong Son District, Mae Hong Son Province.
The Queen issued a directive to establish the Garden as a
Thai plant conservation centre, where botanical research and study could be
undertaken in order to maintain the impressive biodiversity of Thai flora.
This includes collection and propagation of Thai flora for conservation
purposes, especially the indigenous species, the rare and endangered
species, and such valuable species as Thai orchids, herbal plants and the
country’s economic wood resources.
During each of her visits to the remote rural parts of
the country, she observed the on-going problems with great concern, fully
recognizing the value of the natural resources, as well as the environment
and its rapid deterioration, especially the water resources.
The Queen graciously provided suggestions and initiated
numerous beneficial projects for the Thai people, noting that SUPPORT and
the many other projects have all created jobs and income for people,
enabling them to become self-reliant and to enjoy a better quality of life.
People are also encouraged to grow food and garden crops, to carry out a
comprehensive cultivation of herbal plants, as well as to raise animals to
provide as a food source, and other benefits.
Thai people are very fortunate to have a Queen who not
only cares for the country’s valuable natural resources, but also for the
people’s welfare. She has transformed barren land into a verdant pasture,
with many colourful flowers and cool shade from growing trees.
Concomitantly the people have also gained benefits from
the various types of medicinal herbs grown. All works have been undertaken
with respect to the four fundamental needs of life, namely: food, clothing,
shelter and medicine, which are basically derived from nature.
All these wonderful improvements are bestowed by the
altruistic Queen of Thailand, who built the foundation for achieving
sustainable benefits among the Thai people, at the Queen Sirikit Botanic
Garden.
The
Demonstration Farm Project
In March, 1997, the Queen initiated a project to
establish three demonstration farms, two of which are in Chiang Mai Province
at Baan Khun Tae, Moo 5, Chom Thong District and at Baan Mae Tungting, Moo 5
Samoeng District. The third is located in Chiang Rai Province, at Baan Rom
Fah Thong, Moo 9, Viang Kaen District. At these project farms, experimental
sheep and poultry farming are undertaken.
The Queen regularly visits these remote areas to see, at
first-hand, how the quality of life is improving for the farmers who now
have secure occupations, are husbanding different types of animals for food
and, equally-importantly, are now protecting the forest, wildlife and the
watershed - in fact, the environment as a whole - from any further
degradation.
(Photo courtesy
Bureau of the Royal Household)
Just recently, in fact, the Queen “urged Thais to feel
more grateful for their blessed country - the golden lands that have
provided them with shelter and the abundant resources that have sustained
their lives.”
In Ubon Ratchathani, close by the border of Laos, lies a
natural forest called Dong Na Tham, a huge area covering some 55,000 rai
(approx. 220,000 acres), targeting 16 villages and 1,800 families in three
contiguous districts Khong Chiam, Si Chiang Mai and Pho Sai.
The hardships and poverty of the people were compounded
by the fact that they could not earn enough by rice farming and were forced
by circumstances to start illegal logging and smuggling of arms and drugs
along the border. The environment and the ecology suffered, too, as just one
outcome.
In one of her frequent visits to the people of Ubon
Ratchatani, the Queen impressed upon them the dire need to “protect the
forest and sustain life” through such occupations as sheep raising, with
the wool thus produced, used as the raw material for farmers’ training
courses on weaving.
Other livestock cultivation includes the raising of
rabbits and boars which, together with fish farming, provide protein to the
people.
The Queen has been singularly pleased with the progress
and suggested that “these model farms should act as educational
demonstration centres where people from other areas can come to see and
learn, applying this new knowledge to their own lands.”
The Queen’s initiatives are based on His Majesty the
King’s philosophy of a “sufficiency economy” which counsels reduction
of the production costs of rice, field and garden crops; fish and frog
raising in ponds lined with plastic sheets; cultivation of garden crops
around the perimeter of ponds; and chicken raising, using termites drawn
from the soil as feed.
Her Majesty’s projects in Ubon Ratchatani have led to a
most positive change, both to the people’s lives and the surrounding
environment.
Now there is enough food and the people in these projects
have learned new skills and do not need to leave their own area to seek
work. Furthermore, they refrain from animal hunting and forest encroachment
and have been instilled with a feeling of land ownership, resulting in care
for the country’s natural resources. Now, they are determined to safeguard
such heritage for the benefit and welfare of future generations. This
exemplifies remarkable progress.
Other
Royal Development Projects
The Queen has made a number of incisive statements at
various locations and times when visiting her Royal Development Projects.
In Roi Et Province, at the end of 1999, the Queen pointed
out that, “The forest is a water resource for the people. Without forests,
or if we keep destroying the trees, though we gain more land, we will lose
all water supply. The land ... will become a desert. Forests should exist to
preserve life and water and maintain the rainfall which helps us to a better
living...”
Starting a Royal Development Project near Pra Mountain in
Nong Bua District, Nakhon Suwan Province - an area connecting five provinces
- Her Majesty observed that, “Due to deforestation, water resources were
diminishing. That is because the forest is one cause … one essence that
brings rain.”
The Queen would not have expressed such concerns if the
large amount of forest area in Thailand had not declined. At the end of last
year, in fact, the remaining forest area in Thailand was only about 25% of
the country’s total area.
Nakhon Suwan is one of the provinces where trees were
massively destroyed, mainly in the area of Mae Wong National Park in the
western part of the province. The remaining forest areas are about 7% of the
province area and can be found in the mountain range called “Tuak Khao Pra
Soong”, with the eastern part bordering Phetchaburi Province.
This mountain range contains the only remaining fertile
forest in the province. However, due to human settlements around the area,
coupled with the presence of beautiful granite formations which are in
demand by the local builders, the area was intruded upon to reclaim land, to
collect wild materials, and to fell trees for the timber. These activities
are greatly exacerbated in the dry season, resulting in forest fires.
In relation to this, Pra Kroo Wa Pee Pa Tum, who serves
as Lord Abbot of Nong Bua District, as well as being Monk Leader for
Environmental Preservation, joined with the Natural Resource and Environment
Preservation Club and the people of Nong Bua District to present a petition
to Her Majesty to restore the forest and water sources to their original
fertile conditions.
Thereupon, the Queen adopted the area and endorsed it as
the site for a Royally-initiated project called the Environmental
Preservation and Rehabitation of the Pra Mountain Range Project in Nong Bua
District, Nakhon Sawan Province.
The project covers an area of 69,035 rai (27,614 acres)
and is aimed at restoring the environment and natural surroundings to become
a year-round water source for the people. This fulfils Her Majesty’s
initiative to bring back life and forest to the land.
In an immediate response to this Royal initiative, the
Office of the Royal Development Projects Board (RDRB) allocated a sum from
the 1999 budget to the Royal Forest Department to rehabilitate the highland
ecological system. With this budget, a watershed covering 2,000 rai (800
acres) and a buffer zone also covering 2,000 rai (800 acres), were chosen as
the sites for reforestation.
In addition, the RDPB supported the Land Development
Department by undertaking the planting of vetiver grass and the construction
of soil embankments, to divert and store water.
For the lowland area, other government agencies were
included to cooperate in the development of people’s quality of life and
occupations in order to discourage the destruction of trees, and also to
instil in them the sense of joint collaboration in forest preservation, so
as to restore fertility to the forest in a sustainable and long-term manner.
Recently, project implementation has made progress, even
though there exist some obstacles and the achievements are not concrete.
Nevertheless, the condition of the environment in the area shows improvement
and the farmers reap benefits from the forest which they helped to plant and
now care for.
There is now sufficient water for cultivation and the
people have a stable life for earning a living. No longer having to face
famine, they become self-reliant and self-sufficient.
This basically describes the successful outcome of just
this single project and enables it to the attain goals according to the
wishes of Their Majesties the King and the Queen, to see their subjects
achieve self-sufficiency, while making optimal use of the resources in the
locality, thus reducing dependency on external sources.
These are just some of Her Majesty’s initiatives which, over a lifetime
of devotion and dedication to Her people, have certainly improved the life
of her subjects.
| Epilogue
“I love being a Mother,” the young Queen said,
addressing a group during a Royal Visit to the United States in
October 1967. The Queen has been the “Mother to all Thais” for her
lifetime.
On the eve of her 71st birthday in August, 2003,
the Queen informed a big gathering of dignitaries at Chitralada Palace
that, “His Majesty the King had been keeping a close watch on my
public role - at times advising me on what I should or should not
say.” Right now, “He is watching my performance on television. He
said ‘enough of matters involving forestry and water’… and when
I travel abroad, he follows my English speech closely,” the Queen
added with a smile.
This brief dedication could be summed up in Her
Majesty’s own words, emphasizing her humanity, goodwill and, not the
least, her humour. “Has HM the King encouraged you to concentrate on
work for the well-being of the people?” the Queen was once asked in
an interview. “He did not encourage me at all ... he ordered me
to,” the Queen replied. “I will look after the land and the
farmers and you must look after their families,” the King said.
A Most Happy 73rd Birthday Your Majesty, from all
of us at the Pattaya Mail. |
