Leniency toward the disadvantaged: Representations of Myanmar workers and the Thai government in the public communicative discourse

Abstract

This article examines the representations of Myanmar migrant workers and the Thai government’s press conferences in Thai and English during the COVID-19 pandemic. Through the lens of critical discourse analysis, the migrant workers were portrayed as helpless recipients of assistance, subtly reinforcing the alienation of migrants against the host society’s attempt at egalitarianism. The Thai government was positioned as a “protector,” strengthening the existing hierarchical power relations with foreign workers at the bottom of the social ladder. Buddhist morality was invoked to maintain patron–client relationships with the false impression of “brother and sister,” positioning Thai authorities as the attentive protector and Thai people as the benevolent host to whom the migrants should respect, obey, and be grateful. This supports Foucault’s notion that power is not the plain oppression of the powerless but the strategic building of power relations and dynamics between institutions and people in a society.