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Gold rush turns to nightmare
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GOLD fever was replaced by red faces in Thailand on Wednesday as Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra faced a chorus of mockery for taking seriously claims the economy could be saved by a treasure trove hidden in a cave.
"No gold, no bills, only red faces," was the banner headline in the Nation daily. "Thaksin exits cave, enters the real world."
Controversial senator Chaowarin Latthasaksiri started the gold rush last week by saying that 2,500 tonnes of World War Two booty left behind by the Japanese army were hidden in a cave near the Myanmar border, stashed inside a train and surrounded by the skeletons of Japanese soldiers who had committed hara-kiri.
He said the haul included a massive hoard of gold and US bonds with a face value of more than US$50 billion.
Thaksin took the story seriously enough to change his schedule and fly to the cave by helicopter on Friday, and senior politicians said the treasure was valuable enough to pay off Thailand's US$62 billion national debt.
But officials soon pointed out that the bonds were obvious fakes, and Chaowarin admitted he had never seen the treasure but was basing his story on the claims of an elderly monk who said he stumbled upon it years ago while meditating.
As it became clear that Chaowarin -- and Thaksin -- were almost certainly victims of a hoax, the government scrambled to distance itself from the senator. Thaksin refused to meet a crestfallen Chaowarin when he sought an audience on Tuesday.
But the damage had been done. The Nation said Thaksin had become "the subject of international ridicule."
Thaksin denied on Wednesday that he had lost face because of his visit to the cave during Thailand's Songkran holiday.
He said the excavation of the Li Jia cave in western Kanchanaburi province would be reconsidered. "Everything is suspended now. We will wait for a satellite survey, which we expect to be finished in the next 10 days."
Thai-language business daily Krungthep Thurakij ran an editorial headlined "Back to reality, Thailand." "There is no miracle to end the economic crisis overnight," it said.
The Nation said that Thaksin's judgement looked increasingly suspect. It said falling victim to the cave hoax was his latest blunder, following the embarrassing saga of a blast that destroyed a plane he was about to board last month. (SD-Agencies)
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