"On a recent business trip to Thailand, I read the news of the Education Ministry shooting down the idea of making English a second language. “A second language! Wouldn't that be wonderful! It's been talked about extensively in government circles as a means of making Thailand a little more competitive” said Khun Chinnaworn, my Thai colleague.
There are two underlying currents at play here: first is the common line fed to Thais that Thailand, unlike its neighbours, is a country that has never been colonised. This is true — if you overlook the fact that the Japanese walked in here in 1941 and took over Rattanakosin Island. Thailand even declared war on the US and England! “But hey, what's four years of colonisation for a country that's been around for more than a thousand? And anyway, Japan isn't a ‘Western' country is it?!” said Chinnaworn."
http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/ew/2010/12/13/stories/2010121350060200.htm
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