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Ohm (left) and Aer with their dog Tone
Photo: Watsamon Tri-yasakda
The sky in Nonthaburi, a city in the metropolitan area of Bangkok, is full of clouds.
It's mid-October, monsoon season.
Ohm-Kasama Sopapan, 37, and her friend Aer-Arthida Tosuwan, 34, keep updating their Facebook and Twitter feeds.
They want to see what is happening during the protests.
As in previous months, this Saturday in October, thousands of protesters take to the streets of the Thai capital.
They are demanding that the government of the former General Prayut Chan-o-cha resign and that the role of the monarchy be openly debated.
The two women protested a few days ago.
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The couple prepares dinner in their outdoor kitchen
Photo: Watsamon Tri-yasakda
Now Ohm and Aer are preparing dinner - fried satoh beans with prawns, a family recipe.
Aer heats the oil in the wok in your balcony outdoor kitchen.
Ohm, 37, cut the beans.
"I can't cook," she says and laughs.
The couple run a dating platform.
Aer also works in her family's jewelry store in a mall in the middle of Bangkok, about 25 minutes by car from her home.
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Ohm's family house
Photo: Watsamon Tri-yasakda
The two women live and work in a studio in the one-story extension of Ohms family house.
They called their terrier Tone, "only child".
Ohm's mother, her younger brother and the housekeeper live in the main house.
Read in our series "For dinner at ..." what moves women around the world. While eating in Bangkok, Ohm and Aer talk about their everyday life, what they are most concerned with, worried and happy about - politically, financially and personally.
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Ohm and Aer were already at the demonstrations in Bangkok
Photo: Watsamon Tri-yasakda
Ohm and Aer on the current situation: "People can no longer bear to be oppressed in this pseudo-democracy"
Aer:
"Recently a friend asked: 'What has changed since we were children?'
I think: actually nothing. Sure, we have smartphones and the Internet, the technology is improving. But the infrastructure and public transport in Bangkok are still poor. That is one reason why so many young people are protesting. They are demanding: no military coups more, instead democratic elections and political equality. They shout: "Down with the dictatorship!"
Many people can no longer bear to be oppressed in this pseudo-democracy, in which the government does not have to ask itself critical questions.
The military government protects its own people.
Already in 2009 and 2010 I demonstrated with the red shirts.
The demands from then are similar, but the protests are much more peaceful now.
Ohm and I are not at the forefront either;
above all we wanted to support the others.
We were shocked when the government shot water at the demonstrators.
They're still teenagers! "
Ohm:
"I was demonstrating for the first time in my life. Because I have a kind of obsessive-compulsive disorder, I have to take care of my health, and I can't stand large crowds. But on the spot I felt the incredible energy of this generation. The older ones have to listen to them . I always imagine our country to be one big family. My mother and I have different opinions, but we still discuss and listen to each other. This is the only way we can live together. "
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The two women run a dating platform
Photo: Watsamon Tri-yasakda
Work and money: "We actually only need our smartphone to work"
Aer: "
I used to pair up friends on my private Facebook page - for fun, not as a business idea. My younger brother then programmed an app for us. We have been administrators of our dating site on Facebook for three years has almost 300,000 likes. "
Ohm: "
Our site is not like Tinder; it's more about community. We have just organized a food speed dating with 90 singles in a Korean restaurant. In the spring, such events were still impossible due to the pandemic. Now we just have to Wear a mask on trains, in shops and buildings. Otherwise there are no more restrictions, the restaurants are open again. "
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In Thailand there are hardly any corona restrictions, only in shops, public buildings and trains there is a mask requirement
Photo: Watsamon Tri-yasakda
Aer:
"Our everyday life is almost back to normal. I think Thailand is coping with the pandemic comparatively well because we keep our distance anyway, do not shake hands or kiss each other in greeting. Officially, only 59 Covid-19 infected people are said to have died. "
Ohm:
"We don't feel restricted by the home office. To work we actually only need our smartphone. Our salary varies for this: In a few months we earn 200,000 baht, the equivalent of more than 5400 euros, in others only a tenth of that you live well in Bangkok if you don't pay rent like us.
I mean, university graduates earn the equivalent of around 400 euros a month.
Aer also works in her parents' jewelry store.
We can use it to cover our everyday costs - eating, vet, going out.
After my management master's degree, I worked for a large beverage manufacturer.
Despite a fixed salary, the commute and the job stressed me out.
It has become more important for me to spend time with my family. "
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Ohm and Aer when cooking
Photo: Watsamon Tri-yasakda
Equality and LGBTQ rights: “Aer could like to clean if she likes.
But then I would wipe again anyway "
Ohm:
"I wash the dishes, I wipe, I love cleaning! Even as a child I couldn't stand dirty toilets. When our friends' apartments are messy, I help them to clean up. My family has had a housekeeper for years. But she is more like an aunt. Sometimes she sits on the sofa and watches me mop the floor. "
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Your dog Tone, the name translates to "only child"
Photo: Watsamon Tri-yasakda
Aer:
"Ohm exaggerates the mopping. Our terrier got sick once because he licked the cleaning agent off the floor. My part in the household is that I always cook. We both love Thai food."
Ohm:
"Aer could of course also like to clean. But then I would very probably wipe it again anyway. But I'm trying to improve my obsession a little. We have been adapting since we moved in together eight years ago."
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The studio of the two is living and working area in one
Photo: Watsamon Tri-yasakda
Aer:
"Ohm was my first girlfriend. At the beginning my father found it irritating that I was with a woman. It's no longer an issue."
Ohm:
"Not for my family either. But members of the LGBTQ community continue to describe Thai films and series as jerks or victims of bullying. Of course, that influences how society perceives us. Basically, the situation of the community here has already improved. This summer For example, the cabinet approved the civil partnership as a draft law. That would not be equal to straight marriage, but at least the couples could adopt children. But we are not planning that. "
Aer:
"It's neither about gender nor sexual orientation, but about the fact that we are all human beings who should have the same rights."
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Aer: "If it has to go fast, I look for hashtags on Twitter. But then I check again whether it is not fake news after all"
Photo: Watsamon Tri-yasakda
About their media and news
consumption
: "
I no longer read the daily newspaper. But I check Facebook, Twitter and watch television"
Ohm:
"I don't read the daily newspaper anymore. But I check Facebook, Twitter and watch TV. During the protests in particular, I constantly updated my feed, which stressed me a lot. I notice how different media platforms present news differently, so you should read several. Media are like people: everyone has their own point of view. "
Aer:
"I read national newspapers like Thairath or MThai online. I also watch the news on television. If it has to go fast, I look for hashtags on Twitter. But for me these are only hints; I then check again whether it is are not fake news after all. "
Ohm:
"I don't do that, I just ask Aer."
Icon: enlargePhoto: Watsamon Tri-yasakda
Worries and wishes: "Every evening we talk, regardless of whether we argued or not"
Ohm:
"I really hope that the protests will remain peaceful and the violence will not escalate; that there will be no deaths. Personally, I am worried about the future. The country's economy has collapsed as a result of the pandemic, some estimate 11.4 percent And Thailand depends on tourism, but currently hardly any tourists come to the country.
And we're from the middle class - how do you think the poorer are doing? "
Aer:
"I very much hope that we will be spared a second wave of the pandemic. Even if we made it through personally economically, I ask myself: Will we make it again? I have no plan for the future. I am more of a troubleshooter and convinced that everything will come as it should. Sometimes I have rather mundane thoughts like: Will I do something crazy when I'm drunk? "
Ohm:
"That's right, Aer loves to party. By the way, I'm not worried about our relationship at all. Every evening we talk to each other, regardless of whether we have argued or not, and fall asleep hand in hand. It's been nine years now."
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