By IPS Correspondents
BANGKOK, Nov 26 2010 (IPS)

In this fast-developing South-east Asian country where dizzying neon signboards and glass-clad skyscrapers have been overshadowed only by a colourful political battle, a group of young photographers are hoping their work behind the lens can bring human rights back into focus.

A man ponders over a photograph in the ‘Human Rights / Human Wrongs' exhibition in Bangkok. Credit: Gregory Xavier/IPS

Called the ‘Human Rights / Human Wrongs’ exhibit, it is organised by the Friedrich Naumann Foundation in collaboration with the Goethe-Institut Thailand.

Against the backdrop of Thailand’s political situation in recent years, which has been marred by violence and crackdowns since a September 2006 military coup that ousted then-Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, the photography exhibition attempts to show how “people from different backgrounds deal with rights, respect and responsibility.”

“Right now there are many issues that are still in the middle of discussion. We are in the middle of a change in Thai society,” says Wannasingh, who was invited by the German foundation in Thailand to participate in the photo exhibition in order to appeal to a younger audience.

“In term of politics, as you know, there are many events that prompt us to rethink what kind of society we want to see in the future,” he adds. “I cannot just yet say for sure what kind of direction we are heading in the future, but I can say there are a lot of changes going on right now.”

“All citizens should be involved” in the process “to define what is necessary for society,” says Norbert Spitz, director of the Goethe-Institut in Bangkok. “It is definitely a huge privilege of artists to comment on the development of society through their subjective…. creations.”

“The medium of photography is a perfect way to make us aware of things that we might not realise in our daily routines,” Spitz adds. “The advantage of photography is that it freezes time.” Another of the photographers on show, Arthit Tangtatsawad, travelled throughout Thailand to capture his images, which reflected his concern over rising inequality within a country often seen as model by its neighbours.

For example, Arthit says, while parts of Thailand have been affected by flooding over the past few months, residents in the country’s capital – anti-flooding measures were done to ease the effects on the capital – have not been doing enough to help their fellow Thais.

Like how the photographers themselves see the world through different lenses but still “learn from each other”, Arthit believes Thais need to work together and look beyond the social and political differences in order for the country to move ahead.

But for many, says Natthinan Intarajump, a law undergraduate at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, the concept of human rights might be difficult to grasp.

“People think about human rights differently so it’s hard to define what is human rights,” says Natthinan, who attended the opening of ‘Human Rights / Human Wrongs’ after learning about it through a Twitter post by Wannasingh.

“This exhibition doesn’t give us the exact definition of human rights, but the view from the photographers and what they think about human rights,” she adds.

But perhaps, it is the myriad of differing – sometimes conflicting – views that best illustrates the human rights struggle in what continues to be a deeply divided country. Indeed, there is no easy, one-size-fits-all solution to the conundrum.

“Everybody has the right to freedom of expression. That said, nobody has the right to violate the rights of others,” says descriptive material from the exhibition. “No matter how divided society may be, citizens should respect each other’s opinion.”

For example, “there are whispers among some Bangkok residents that the protests by the (pro-Thaksin) ‘red shirts’ are infringing on their rights to live without disruption to their everyday lives,” says one Bangkok citizen, who declined to be named.

“Thailand used to be a country where everybody accepts who other people with little difficulty, but right now we are transforming into a nation with very low tolerance for different kinds of thinking,” says Wannasingh.

“I don’t think (my photographs) will help at all,” he adds, with a charming, self-deprecating chuckle. “I don’t think my pictures are that good,” says the budding photographer who only picked up his camera seriously some six months ago in May.

“But I want to touch on some social issues that I am concerned about, mainly the issues on tolerance in Thailand,” says Wannasingh, inviting viewers to “open their minds” to accept what they see in his pictures, and to wonder why people do things differently from themselves.

“I’ve been travelling to many parts of Asia, including over the past year doing a TV show, and I’ve seen a lot of different cultures, different ways of thinking,” says Wannasingh. “And I have come to the conclusion that you don’t have to really understand different ways of thinking; you just need to accept them for the way they are.”

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