Twas two nights before Christmas, when outside the mall, it was visions of swastikas that did deeply appall.
Israeli’s ambassador yesterday registered his disappointment over the sight of two men dressed in full World War II-era Nazi uniforms posing for selfies and giving thumbs-up signs at a holiday display at the CentralWorld shopping mall.
“I am disappointed to see the sad reoccurrence of incidents in which Nazi symbols are displayed on random occasions in Thailand,” Israeli ambassador to Thailand, Meir Shlomothe, wrote in a statement posted online. “Needless to say, that this is an insult to the 6 million Jews and other victims of the Nazi regime, and their relatives.”
The latest in long-running cultural collisions in which imagery unthinkable in many parts of the world is celebrated openly started with images of the men posted online Monday.
In the photos, the men wear what appear to be very detailed replicas complete with stahlhelm helmet and officer’s cap emblazoned with the Nazi Party’s eagle and swastika emblems, were posted to Twitter and picked up by sexpat blogger Stickboy Bangkok, catapulting the images into virality across social media.
“There is yet a lot to be done in Thailand through proper education and public awareness,” the statement continued.
The host of the event, Central Pattana Public Co. Ltd., or CPN, wrote in reply that it was “deeply appalled” by the images.
“On behalf of CentralWorld, CPN is deeply appalled by the images of men dressed in military-like uniforms performing obscene gestures in front of the decoration zone at CentralWorld widely circulated on social media,” the company tweeted.
“[We] are facilitators of the decorations to promote love, friendship and the spirit of the community coming together during this festive period to the general public and, by no means, associated with the individuals and their resulting action.”
Later in the afternoon, the embassy updated that one of the two men in the photos apologized to the embassy. Neither of them was identified.
Earlier this year, Pichayapa “Namsai” Natha, member of idol girl group BNK48 wore a T-shirt featuring a World War II-era German war flag shirt — complete with swastika — during a televised concert rehearsal. She apologized to the embassy and helped campaign for Holocaust awareness.
It’s a cyclical event stretching back many years. In 2016, Silpakorn University students dressed up as Adolf Hitler for an event alongside students dressed as Chinese Communist Red Guards. In 2013, graduating Chulalongkorn University students posed giving the Nazi salute in front of a massive graduation mural in the middle of campus that featured Hitler among pop culture superheroes.
Both incidents took place on or around International Holocaust Memorial Day.
Related:
Swastikas and statues, SE Asia’s fixation with Nazi iconography
BNK48 to campaign for Holocaust awareness after member wore Nazi shirt at televised rehearsal
