The killing of a campus

FROM A QUIET grove in the heart of one of Bangkok's most venerable institutions, a bronze statue of the late reformer and statesman Pridi Banomyong gazes out over the Chao Phraya River. His face looks sad, as if he's about to cry, although it must be a trick of the light as the afternoon sun slants off the water.

Were he still alive, however, the man who helped transform Thailand's absolute monarchy into a constitutional monarchy and set the kingdom on the bumpy road to democracy would probably be shedding a tear or two for Thammasat University.

Flanked by leafy streets and the gentle curve of the river, a brown clock tower straining skywards in clumsy homage to the gold spires of the nearby Grand Palace, Thammasat University is more than just a centre of learning. It's the beating heart of the Thai democracy movement, a hotbed of idealism and energy, and a campus stained with the blood of students who gave their lives for their beliefs.

Many now fear that heart is about to be stilled by moves to send all new undergraduates out of Bangkok to study at the university's Rangsit campus, about 40 kilometres to the north in Pathum Thani province. One of the prime campaigners against the move, historian and former Thammasat vice-rector Charnvit Kasetsiri, has dubbed it the 'Myanmar [Burma]-isation' of education in Thailand, in a reference to how Burma dampened student activism by closing down the University of Rangoon.

He put forward his views at a recent and sometimes fiery public meeting attended by more than 600 teachers and past and present students. 'The Tha Prachan campus is unique as it allows students to be in constant touch with society,' says Mr Charnvit. 'It's right in the middle of Bangkok, it's a hub, a focal point. Moving the campus out of the city will wipe out the seeds of social awareness among the students, their collective memories of history, the legacies of the past, which have been entrenched through successive generations.'

Indeed, there are few corners of the cramped campus that do not ring with the echoes of monumental events. Thammasat University was founded in 1934, set up by Pridi as an alternative to the elitist Chulalongkorn University, so the sons and daughters of the grassroots could gain access to higher education. More than 7,000 students made donations to enable Pridi to buy a small plot of land and build the first classrooms. The university's name translates loosely as 'moral sciences', and its initial focus was on law and the humanities.