DOCSLIB.ORG

Understanding the Fog Shrouding Thai Vision Junya Yimprasert and Richard Thompson Coon

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Understanding the Fog Shrouding Thai Vision Junya Yimprasert and Richard Thompson Coon For the world at large - an essay about Thailand Understanding the fog shrouding Thai vision Junya Yimprasert and Richard Thompson Coon Action for People's Democracy (ACT4DEM Thailand) [email protected] (December 2015) Preface This essay attempts to enable readers to better understand the causes of what is being described as a deadlock in the political life of the Kingdom of Thailand. Deadlock here means that, at present in practice, there appears to be no body or group with ability to architect or engineer a way-out of the cycle of protest - military crackdown and coup - new constitution - election and protest - that is causing so much suffering, humiliation and loss. Some key factors contributing to the turmoil are presented and discussed, with emphasis on the role of the civil society, in particular on the contribution of the trade union movement and the NGO Coordinating Committee on Development NGO- COD. In looking at how to move-on from the politics of having to choose between an elected government and love of King and country, the paper pays respect to the potential risk of further violence in a country where the Prime Minister was, before self-appointment, the Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Thai Army, whose main, active role to date has been to crack-down on Thai people struggling for their rights. As the power-struggle at the top of Thai society intensifies around matters connected to the transition of the throne, the people of Thailand and the Thai economy are being pushed into a fragile predicament. The paper proposes that all responsible people inside and outside Thailand, especially the International Community, can and need to focus more honestly on the origins of the political fog that is shrouding the answer to the question of how Thailand can move forward - to realise the democratic aspirations of the people of Thailand in harmony with those of the ASEAN Community - to build a sustainable regional economy. This essay is developed from a conference paper prepared for: 'Political participation in Asia: Defining and deploying political space', Stockholm University, 22‐24 November 2015. 1 CONTENTS PAGE PREFACE 1. The roots of confusion 3 1.1 70 years of oppression and suppression 3 1.2 Monarcho-militarism versus democracy 4 1.3 King Bhumibol (Rama 9, 1946 - present) 4 1.4 The Cold War military juntas 1958 – 1989 6 1.5 Education 6 1.6 Elections and the belated class-struggle 8 1.7 The so-called Democrat Party 9 1.8 'Thai-style' corruption 11 1.9 69 years of political instability 12 1.10 The semi-democratic 'People's Constitution' of 1997 14 1.11 The Shinawatra phenomenon 14 2. Propaganda, brain-washing & the prestige of the Palace 1 6 2.1 Propaganda and brain-washing 1957 - 1980 and onwards 16 2.2 The Royal projects 17 3. A feudal turmoil 19 3.1 Growing resistance 19 3.2 The Thaksin era 20 4. The civil society 23 4.1 A few words about the People's Alliance for Democracy PAD (2006 - 2008) 23 4.2 Why NGOs participated in the royalist crack-down on democratic freedom 23 4.3 Why trade unions participated in the royalist crack-down on democratic freedom 24 4.4 A few words about the NGO Coordinating Committee on Development NGO-COD 26 4.5 'Thai-style' defamation of universal values 30 5 The way forward 31 5.1 Political deadlock 31 5.2 Monarcho-militarism 32 5.3 Moving forward by respecting people's choices 33 CONCLUSION 34 References 35 About the authors 39 2 CHAPTER ONE The roots of confusion 1.1 70 years of oppression and suppression 'Killing communists for nation, religion and King' was normal fare for Thai children born after 1946. The roots of Thailand's current political confusion are embedded in 70 years of extreme, pro- royalist propaganda. Below are just a few examples of the horrific events that punctuate all too regularly the history of the Land of Smiles since Bhumibol became king in 1946. From the few records that are available the death-toll from political assassinations and extrajudicial killings is seen to top 11,000, but this figure in no way speaks of the actual number of people that have died as a result of political oppression and state-sponsored crackdowns since 1946, a number that never will be known: • 25-28 April 1948. Hundreds of police and military officers stationed in Narathivat Province surround and crackdown on the villagers of Dusongdor. About 400 villagers were murdered. • 28 Feb - 01 March 1949. By order of the chief of the military junta Marshall Phibun, 4 members of the Pridi Alliance for Democracy were assassinated. After being arrested and handcuffed, 4 of them, Members of Parliament, were riddled with bullets in the back of a police van. The Chief of Police Intelligence, an outspoken defender of democracy, was shot dead in the street, opening the door to the most evil period in the history of the Royal Thai Police. • 13 December 1952. By order of the Chief of the Royal Thai Police, the Leader of the Labour Party Tieng Sirikhan, former MP from Sakon Nakhon Province, was brutally murdered in Bangkok together with four friends. Their bodies were taken to be burnt in Kanchanaburi Province, 200 km from the scene of the crime. • 1971-1973. During this period of 'killing communists for nation and king', in Pattalung Province alone around 3,000 villagers were brutally murdered by the Royal Thai Army - some were burnt alive in drums of oil, some pushed into sacks to be dropped down the side of a mountain or pushed out of helicopters. • 14-15 October 1973. Monarcho-military crackdown on working-class people and students. 77 people were killed on the streets of Bangkok, most by military gunfire. 847 were wounded. • 6 October 1976. Monarcho-military crackdown on student protest, in which, according to government records, 41 students were killed by a mixed force of Royal Thai Police, Royal Thai Border Guards and para-military ‘Protect the Monarchy’ thugs. 30 bodies were identified, 10 were too damaged to identify. Hundreds were injured. 3,154 students were arrested. Many thousands of people went into hiding, most fleeing to the forest. In anger over the brutality of the state many did join the Communist Party of Thailand and remained in hiding until granted immunity after the Communist Party was dissolved in 1980. • 17 - 19 May 1992. Monarcho-military crackdown. This 'Bloody May' witnessed about 45 killed on the streets of Bangkok, about 38 by bullets from the Royal Thai Army. Official reports say 38 people were ‘disappeared’, unofficial reports say 70. • April-May 2010. Monarcho-military crackdown under PM Abhisit Vejjajiva (Democrat Party), who declared a 'Live firing zone’, in other words issued elite troops with license to kill Thai civilians. 99 people were killed on the streets of Bangkok, almost all by military snipers. About 2000 were wounded. 470 were arrested. When official records say ‘wounded’ or ‘died on the spot’ they forget to add 'from a military bullet to the back of the head'. 3 1.2 Monarcho-militarism versus democracy On the morning of 24th June 1932, the People's Party, comprising mainly young Thai educated abroad, with a civilian sector led by Pridi Bhanomyong and a military sector led by a young military officer Plaek Phiboonsongkram (later PM, later Marshal and Dictator), conducted a peaceful coup d'étât that changed the system of rule in Thailand from Absolute Monarchy to Constitutional Monarchy with the power of the King limited by a half-appointed half-elected Parliament. The 1932 coup aimed to set Thailand on the road to democracy. After 80 long years that aim has yet to be fulfilled. In 2015 Thailand is ruled by a military junta calling itself the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO). The country has a National Legislative Assembly of 220 people hand-picked by the NCPO, half of whom are military officers. The function of the NLA is largely to rubber-stamp the dictates of the NCPO. Both these set-ups are headed by the last C-in-C of the Royal Thai Army, General Prayuth Chan-o-cha, self-appointed Prime Minister and Dictator. Returning to 1932, on 24 June the first statement issued by the People's Party's to annul absolute monarchy reads as follows: "All the people … When this king succeeded his elder brother, people at first hoped that his government would bring peace and security, but matters have not turned out as they hoped. The king maintains his power above the law as before. He appoints court relatives and toadies without merit or knowledge to important positions, without listening to the voice of the people. He allows officials to use the power of their office dishonestly, to take bribes in public construction and procurement, and seek profit from changes in the prices of money, which squanders the wealth of the country. He elevates those of royal blood (phuak chao) to have more privileged rights than the people. He governs without principle. The country’s affairs are left to the mercy of fate, as can be seen from the depression of the economy and the hardships of making a living – something the people know all about already." This statement remains as relevant in 2015 as it was 80 years ago. How come? Because of the continuous and systematic refusal of the Palace, royalist and military elite to accept universal suffrage and the authority of a parliament formed through open election. In 1933, the first royalist coup to fail was fed with money by Rama 7.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Social Movements and Political Opposition in Contemporary Thailand
    The Pacific Review, Vol. 22 No. 4 September 2009: 451–477 Social movements and political opposition in contemporary Thailand Kengkij Kitirianglarp and Kevin Hewison Abstract There is an underlying optimism in much of the literature that considers the emergence of social movements as being associated with deepening processes of democratization. The expansion of civil society is seen to expand political space. This paper takes a critical lens to this perspective, using recent political events in Thailand as a case study of the political strategies and alliances of social movements. We examine the debates that saw many social movements and their leaderships ini- tially support elected Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and his Thai Rak Thai Party only to see this support drain away as these same movements called on their followers to bring down the government. More importantly, we examine how these movements came to ally with conservative forces associated with the palace and mil- itary. Based on the Thai case study, we suggest that these seemingly unlikely out- comes result from the very nature of social movements. Leadership by middle-class activists, the need for alliances, the development of networks, and a focus on single issues and identities leads social movements to make substantial political compro- mises. The consequences can be negative for democratic development. Keywords Social movements; democratization; monarchy; Thaksin Shinawatra; Thai Rak Thai Party. While the emergence of social movements is dated to the eighteenth cen- tury, with marked expansion during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries (Tilly 2004), Thailand’s social movements are largely a phenomenon of the Downloaded By: [Hewison, Kevin] At: 16:10 28 September 2009 late twentieth century.
    [Show full text]
  • Search Centre (SEARC) Working Paper Series No
    Southeast Asia Research Centre (SEARC) Working Paper Series No. 187 Under the Boot: Military-Civil Relations in Thailand since the 2014 Coup Paul Chambers Lecturer in International Relations (IR) ISEAA, Chiang Mai University Thailand Under the Boot: Military-Civil Relations in Thailand since the 2014 Coup Paul Chambers [email protected] ISEAA, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai, Thailand Working Paper for SEARC, August 15, 2016 Abstract: Thailand’s May 2014 military putsch has ushered in a period of authoritarian control not seen in the country for 40 years. A spiraling number of Thais suspected by the ruling junta of subversion have been arrested for “attitude adjustment” with the number of political prisoners soaring to over 1000 persons. Allegations of torture and sexual abuse of prisoners by soldiers have grown. Political rights and liberties have been quashed. Military courts have become the dominant judiciary of Thailand. Soldiers and junta leaders act with legal impunity. Finally, the junta has sought to enact a new constitution which enshrines a greater political role for the military across the country. In mid-2016 the junta has become even more repressive as opponents in Thai civil society increasingly test the limits of their resistance. How successful has the junta been in establishing mechanisms to ensure their perseverance in power? What are the internal and external challenges to the junta? What is the future of Thai military rule or the beginning of demilitarization? This study addresses these questions. Introduction In 2016 Thailand has experienced the longest period of total military rule since the years 1958-1969. A ruling junta has used brute force, the imposition of laws expanding junta prerogatives, and monarchical endorsement to legitimize its hold on the country—all the while promising Thais that democracy will return as soon as a new constitution is enacted.
    [Show full text]
  • A Coup Ordained? Thailand's Prospects for Stability
    A Coup Ordained? Thailand’s Prospects for Stability Asia Report N°263 | 3 December 2014 International Crisis Group Headquarters Avenue Louise 149 1050 Brussels, Belgium Tel: +32 2 502 90 38 Fax: +32 2 502 50 38 [email protected] Table of Contents Executive Summary ................................................................................................................... i I. Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 1 II. Thailand in Turmoil ......................................................................................................... 2 A. Power and Legitimacy ................................................................................................ 2 B. Contours of Conflict ................................................................................................... 4 C. Troubled State ............................................................................................................ 6 III. Path to the Coup ............................................................................................................... 9 A. Revival of Anti-Thaksin Coalition ............................................................................. 9 B. Engineering a Political Vacuum ................................................................................ 12 IV. Military in Control ............................................................................................................ 16 A. Seizing Power
    [Show full text]
  • Media Framing of Military Junta's Suppression of Political Dissidents
    Media Framing of Military Junta’s Suppression of Political Dissidents Regarding the Constitutional Draft from January to August 2016 in Thailand A Research Paper presented by: Thanit Nilayodhin (462343tn) (Thailand) in partial fulfilment of the requirements for obtaining the degree of MASTER OF ARTS IN DEVELOPMENT STUDIES Major: Human Rights, Gender and Conflict Studies: Social Justice Perspectives (SJP) Specialization: Conflict and Peace Studies Members of the Examining Committee: dr. Dubravka Žarkov dr. Shyamika Jayasundara-Smits The Hague, The Netherlands November 2017 ii Contents List of Annexes v List of Acronyms vi Acknowledgement vii Abstract viii Chapter 1 1.1 Introduction 1 1.2 Background of the military junta's suppression: Pre-coup political conflict 1 1.3 Context of the Military Junta’s Suppression of Anti-Charter Movements 2 1.4 Context of The Nation 6 1.5 Research Questions and Objectives 8 1.6 Research Methodology 8 1.7 Justification of the Study 10 1.8 Scope of the Research 10 1.9 My Positionality towards the Topic 10 Chapter 2: Theoretical Perspectives 11 Chapter 3: Military Junta Ideology and Media Frames 3.1 Military Junta Ideology Dominating the Media Sphere 14 3.2 Four Media Frames of News Coverage 16 Chapter 4: Normal power to suppress frame 4.1 Normal Power of State Authorities 17 4.2 Dissidents as Victims of State Authorities 19 4.3 Conclusion 20 Chapter 5: Law enforcement by key government figures frame 5.1 Government Figures’ Imperative 21 5.2 Exclusion for Disguising the Junta Image 22 5.3 Conclusion 22 Chapter 6: Dissidents’ criticism of the NCPO frame 6.1 Attention Drawn to Dissidents 23 6.2 Less NCPO Suppression, More Dissidents’ Anti-Charter Image 24 6.3 Conclusion 25 Chapter 7: Keeping order frame 7.1 Government’s “Order” and “Neutrality” 26 7.2 Unclear “Order” and Absent Junta 27 iii 7.3 Conclusion 27 Chapter 8: Reflections of the Media Frames on Military Junta Ideology 8.1 The Media Frames in a Nutshell 29 8.2 Dominant Frame vs.
    [Show full text]
  • The Owners of the Map: Motorcycle Taxi Drivers, Mobility, and Politics in Bangkok
    The Owners of the Map: motorcycle taxi drivers, mobility, and politics in Bangkok The Harvard community has made this article openly available. Please share how this access benefits you. Your story matters Citation Sopranzetti, Claudio. 2013. The Owners of the Map: motorcycle taxi drivers, mobility, and politics in Bangkok. Doctoral dissertation, Harvard University. Citable link http://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:11169780 Terms of Use This article was downloaded from Harvard University’s DASH repository, and is made available under the terms and conditions applicable to Other Posted Material, as set forth at http:// nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:dash.current.terms-of- use#LAA The Owners of the Map Motorcycle Taxi Drivers, Mobility, and Politics in Bangkok. A dissertation presented by Claudio Sopranzetti The Department of Anthropology in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the subject of Social Anthropology Harvard University Cambridge, MA September 2013 © 2013 – Claudio Sopranzetti All rights reserved. Professor Michael Herzfeld Claudio Sopranzetti The Owners of the Map: Motorcycle Taxi Drivers, Mobility, and Politics in Bangkok. Abstract This dissertation offers an ethnography of motorcycle taxi drivers: Bangkok’s most important and informal network of everyday mobility. Drawing on over eight years of experience in the region, six months of archival research, and 24 months of fieldwork, I analyze how the drivers, mostly male rural migrants, negotiate their presence in the city through spatial expertise, bodily practices, and social relations. Their physical mobility through traffic, I argue, shapes their ability to find unexplored routes in the social, economic, and political landscapes of the city and to create paths for action where other urban dwellers see a traffic jam or a political gridlock.
    [Show full text]
  • Deciding About Thailand's Election System
    東南亞研究中心 Southeast Asia Research Centre Michael H. NELSON Regional Research Unit Southeast Asian Studies Program School of Liberal Arts Walailak University The Democrat and Phuea Thai Parties in Thailand’s 2011 Elections: Thaksin Shinawatra Returns to Power Working Paper Series No. 140 February 2013 The Southeast Asia Research Centre (SEARC) of the City University of Hong Kong publishes SEARC Working Papers Series electronically © Copyright is held by the author or authors each Working Paper. SEARC Working Papers cannot be republished, reprinted, or reproduced in any format without the permission of the papers author or authors. Note: The views expressed in each paper are those of the author or authors of the paper. They do not represent the views of the Southeast Asia Research Centre, its Management Committee, or the City University of Hong Kong. Southeast Asia Research Centre Management Committee Professor Mark R. Thompson, Director Dr Kyaw Yin Hlaing, Associate Director Dr Chiara Formichi Dr Nicholas Thomas Dr Bill Taylor Editor of the SEARC Working Paper Series Professor Mark R. Thompson Southeast Asia Research Centre The City University of Hong Kong 83 Tat Chee Avenue Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong SAR Tel: (852 3442 6330 Fax: (852) 3442 0103 http://www.cityu.edu.hk/searc The Democrat and Phuea Thai Parties in Thailand’s 2011 Elections: Thaksin Shinawatra Returns to Power Michael H. Nelson1 The elections of July 3, 2011, were not a routine procedure for determining which party, or coalition of parties, should govern Thailand for the next four years. From the time the outgoing coalition government led by Democrat Party chairperson Abhisit Vejjajiva took over from the remnants of Thaksin Shinawatra’s People’s Power Party (PPP), which had been dissolved by a verdict of the Constitutional Court in December 2008, it had been seen by many as having been formed illegitimately.
    [Show full text]
  • Unruly Boots: Military Power and Security Sector Reform Efforts in Thailand Chambers, Paul
    www.ssoar.info Unruly boots: military power and security sector reform efforts in Thailand Chambers, Paul Arbeitspapier / working paper Zur Verfügung gestellt in Kooperation mit / provided in cooperation with: Hessische Stiftung Friedens- und Konfliktforschung (HSFK) Empfohlene Zitierung / Suggested Citation: Chambers, P. (2013). Unruly boots: military power and security sector reform efforts in Thailand. (PRIF Reports, 121). Frankfurt am Main: Hessische Stiftung Friedens- und Konfliktforschung. https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:0168- ssoar-349442 Nutzungsbedingungen: Terms of use: Dieser Text wird unter einer Deposit-Lizenz (Keine This document is made available under Deposit Licence (No Weiterverbreitung - keine Bearbeitung) zur Verfügung gestellt. Redistribution - no modifications). We grant a non-exclusive, non- Gewährt wird ein nicht exklusives, nicht übertragbares, transferable, individual and limited right to using this document. persönliches und beschränktes Recht auf Nutzung dieses This document is solely intended for your personal, non- Dokuments. Dieses Dokument ist ausschließlich für commercial use. All of the copies of this documents must retain den persönlichen, nicht-kommerziellen Gebrauch bestimmt. all copyright information and other information regarding legal Auf sämtlichen Kopien dieses Dokuments müssen alle protection. You are not allowed to alter this document in any Urheberrechtshinweise und sonstigen Hinweise auf gesetzlichen way, to copy it for public or commercial purposes, to exhibit the Schutz beibehalten werden. Sie dürfen dieses Dokument document in public, to perform, distribute or otherwise use the nicht in irgendeiner Weise abändern, noch dürfen Sie document in public. dieses Dokument für öffentliche oder kommerzielle Zwecke By using this particular document, you accept the above-stated vervielfältigen, öffentlich ausstellen, aufführen, vertreiben oder conditions of use.
    [Show full text]
  • Civil Society and Democracy in Southeast Asia and Turkey
    CIVIL SOCIETY AND DEMOCRACY IN SOUTHEAST ASIA TURKEY CIVIL SOCIETY AND DEMOCRACY IN SOUTHEAST ASIA AND TURKEY Edited by N. Ganesan Colin Dürkop ISBN: 978-605-4679-10-2 www.kas.de/tuerkei CIVIL SOCIETY AND DEMOCRACY IN SOUTHEAST ASIA AND TURKEY Edited by N. Ganesan Colin Dürkop Published by Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung e.V. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the permission of Konrad – Adenauer – Stiftung Ahmet Rasim Sokak No: 27 06550 Çankaya-Ankara/TÜRKİYE Telephone : +90 312 440 40 80 Faks : +90 312 440 32 48 E-mail : [email protected] www.kas.de/tuerkei ISBN : 978-605-4679-10-2 Designed & Printed by : OFSET FOTOMAT +90 312 395 37 38 Ankara, 2015 5 | ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 7 | INTRODUCTION 12 | CIVIL SOCIETY AND DEMOCRACY: TOWARDS A TAXONOMY Mark R. Thompson 44 | CIVIL SOCIETY AND DEMOCRATIC EVOLUTION IN SOUTHEAST ASIA N. Ganesan 67 | CIVIL SOCIETY, ISLAM AND DEMOCRACY IN INDONESIA: THE CONTRADICTORY ROLE OF NON-STATE ACTORS IN DEMOCRATIC TRANSITION Bob S. Hadiwinata and Christoph Schuck 96 | MALAYSIA: CROSS-COMMUNAL COALITION- BUILDING TO DENOUNCE POLITICAL VIOLENCE Chin-Huat Wong 129 | PHILIPPINE CIVIL SOCIETY AND DEMOCRATIZATION IN THE CONTEXT OF LEFT POLITICS Teresa S. Encarnacion Tadem 160 | THAILAND’S DIVIDED CIVIL SOCIETY AT A TIME OF CRISIS Viengrat Nethipo 198 | LIFE AND TIMES OF CIVIL SOCIETY IN TURKEY: ISSUES, ACTORS, STRUCTURES Funda Gencoglu Onbasi 231 | CONCLUSION N. Ganesan 239 | NOTES ON CONTRIBUTORS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This book has been long in the making since the first workshop on state- society relations in Southeast Asia was first held in Kuala Lumpur in 2011.
    [Show full text]
  • SYMBOLIC COMMUNICATION THROUGH GUY FAWKES MASKS and WHISTLES in POLITICAL MOVEMENTS in THAILAND Praewpan Parnnuch a Dissertatio
    SYMBOLIC COMMUNICATION THROUGH GUY FAWKES MASKS AND WHISTLES IN POLITICAL MOVEMENTS IN THAILAND Praewpan Parnnuch A Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Communication Arts and Innovation) The Graduate School of Communication Arts and Management Innovation National Institute of Development Administration 2018 ABSTRACT Title of Dissertation Symbolic Communication through Guy Fawkes Masks and Whistles in Political Movements in Thailand Author Miss Praewpan Parnnuch Degree Doctor of Philosophy (Communication Arts and Innovation) Year 2018 The objective of this research is to study and analyze the signification and the roles including the communication adjustment of the Guy Fawkes masks and whistles used in Thailand’s political movements. It is a qualitative research done by means of documents analysis and in-depth interview methods. The research results are as follows: There are several aspects in terms of the meanings of the Guy Fawkes masks and whistles used in Thailand’s political movements, such as Thaksinocracy (or Thaksin regime) and Yingluck government, politics/governance, monarchy, definition of protesters and their movements, emotions, concept and methods of movements, needs and goals There are also several roles of the Guy Fawkes mask, for example; it’s used for concealing the identities of participants, reflecting the current situations, representing ideas and political ideology, icons of the destruction of political ideology, universality, methods and tools for a movement. About the reconstruction of the meanings, it is found that the ways Guy Fawkes masks are used in Thailand’s political movements, not only do they kept the original meaning but also they adjusted to a different meaning and sometimes create a new meaning.
    [Show full text]
  • NOREF Report
    July 2012 NOREF Report Thailand: contested politics and democracy Naruemon Thabchumpon Executive summary This report assesses the current political cross-class networks that have adopted situation in Thailand. It first explores the a dual strategy: engaging in the issue- politics of contestation after the 2011 based politics of favour or against a election, upcoming events on the electoral particular person or subject matter, while calendar and the 2007 constitutional at the same time forming a social grouping amendment. It then examines the politics for the betterment of the people. Since of change in Thailand’s political landscape there has been more agitation against the and the effect of political parties’ policies on political role of the military, the idea of a the country’s socioeconomic conditions. judicial coup d’état has been increasing Thereafter it discusses the country’s seen in Thai political society. By using democratic space and the limited freedom such arguments, the contestation over of expression, especially in terms of the meaning of democracy of the political issues and the lese-majesty law. abovementioned networks can be seen as Finally, it analyses possible scenarios a mechanism to unite ordinary people into for democratic change and conflict a political force and is thus related to the transformation in terms of the politics of issue of ordinary citizens’ access to power. succession. The report argues that Thailand’s politics of contestation can be seen as a set of Naruemon Thabchumpon, PhD, is a lecturer in politics and government in the Faculty of Political Sciences and director of the International Development Studies Programme at Chulalongkorn University, Thailand.
    [Show full text]
  • Bureaucrats and Policy Control in Thailand Jacob RICKS Singapore Management University, [email protected] DOI
    View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Institutional Knowledge at Singapore Management University Singapore Management University Institutional Knowledge at Singapore Management University Research Collection School of Social Sciences School of Social Sciences 7-2018 Agents, principals, or something in between? Bureaucrats and policy control in Thailand Jacob RICKS Singapore Management University, [email protected] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/jea.2018.17 Follow this and additional works at: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/soss_research Part of the Asian Studies Commons, and the Political Theory Commons Citation RICKS, Jacob.(2018). Agents, principals, or something in between? Bureaucrats and policy control in Thailand. Journal of East Asian Studies -Boulder-, , 1-39. Available at: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/soss_research/2527 This Journal Article is brought to you for free and open access by the School of Social Sciences at Institutional Knowledge at Singapore Management University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Research Collection School of Social Sciences by an authorized administrator of Institutional Knowledge at Singapore Management University. For more information, please email [email protected]. Agents, Principals, or Something in Between? Bureaucrats and Policy Control in Thailand Jacob I. Ricks Assistant Professor of Political Science 90 Stamford Road, Level 04 School of Social Sciences Singapore Management University Singapore 178903 [email protected] +65 6808 5460 *** Accepted for publication in the Journal of East Asian Studies, January 2018 *** Date: 17 January 2018 Length: 10,341 words (including text, endnotes, references, and acknowledgements) Abstract: In the aftermath of the 2006 and 2014 Thai coups, observers declared the resurrection of the bureaucratic polity.
    [Show full text]
  • Vertical and Horizontal Perspectives on Rights Consciousness
    University at Buffalo School of Law Digital Commons @ University at Buffalo School of Law Journal Articles Faculty Scholarship Summer 2012 Vertical and Horizontal Perspectives on Rights Consciousness David M. Engel University at Buffalo School of Law Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.law.buffalo.edu/journal_articles Part of the Comparative and Foreign Law Commons Recommended Citation David M. Engel, Vertical and Horizontal Perspectives on Rights Consciousness, 19 Ind. J. Global Legal Stud. 423 (2012). Available at: https://digitalcommons.law.buffalo.edu/journal_articles/477 Originally published in the Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies. Reproduced with permission. This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Faculty Scholarship at Digital Commons @ University at Buffalo School of Law. It has been accepted for inclusion in Journal Articles by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ University at Buffalo School of Law. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Vertical and Horizontal Perspectives on Rights Consciousness DAVID M. ENGEL* ABSTRACT It has become commonplace to assert that rights consciousness is expanding globally and that individuals worldwide are demonstrating an increasing awareness of and insistence upon their legal entitlements. To marshal empirical support for such claims is, however, exceedingly complex. One important line of socio-legal research on rights consciousness adopts what might be called a "vertical" perspective, tracing the flow of legal forms and practices from prestigious and authoritative centers of cultural production to local settings, where they may be adopted, resisted, or transformed. Vertical perspectives on global rights consciousness have broadened and enriched the field of law and society by examining linkages between local communities and world capitals, individuals and international organizations, and everyday interactions and systems of global regulation and enforcement.
    [Show full text]