A long-time campaigner on air pollution, Weenarin said voters’ growing awareness of the issue was encouraging, but warned against framing it as a choice between the environment on one side and economic growth, healthcare and democracy on the other.
“These things can be done in parallel, because maintaining your health and being alive is a really important precondition for any other issue that you care about,” she said.
“This is something that has to be above political or business interests, whether that’s the case or not is to be seen.”
Hampering substantive change is Thailand’s system of political patronage, in which wealthy clans leverage links to further their business interests, said Danny Marks, assistant professor of environmental politics and policy at Dublin City University.
Air pollution is blamed on poor rural farmers burning their crops, he said, but they are paid by huge multinational Thai firms.
“Those who benefit basically from everyone breathing the bad air, unfortunately, are those who are quite close to the government,” Marks told AFP.
He noted that even leading opposition parties like Pheu Thai had never prioritised air pollution or environmental issues.
“I think they have always been allied to big business,” Marks said.