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The London School of Economics and Political Science The London School of Economics and Political Science The Rise of the Octobrists: Power and Conflict among Former Left Wing Student Activists in Contemporary Thai Politics Kanokrat Lertchoosakul A thesis submitted to the Department of Government, the London School of Economics and Political Science for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, London, UK September 2012 1 Declaration I certify that the thesis I have presented for examination for the MPhil/PhD degree of the London School of Economics and Political Science is solely my own work other than where I have clearly indicated that it is the work of others (in which case the extent of any work carried out jointly by me and any other person is clearly identified in it). The copyright of this thesis rests with the author. Quotation from it is permitted, provided that full acknowledgement is made. This thesis may not be reproduced without my prior written consent. I warrant that this authorisation does not, to the best of my belief, infringe the rights of any third party. I declare that my thesis consists of 97,959 words 2 Abstract Since the early 1990s, the prominent role of ‘Octobrists’ – former left wing student activists from the 1970s – has become increasingly evident in parliamentary and extra-parliamentary politics. Some Octobrists have played leading or supporting roles in key moments of political transition, such as the 1992 urban middle-class movement for democracy, various social movements throughout the mid-1990s, the political reform process of the late 1990s, and the rise of the Thais Love Thais (Thai Rak Thai) government under Thaksin Shinawatra in 2001. But over the course of the past ten years, these former student activists have become increasingly divided, amidst the protracted conflict between ‘Yellow shirt’ (anti-Thaksin) and ‘Red Shirt’ (pro-Thaksin) forces in Thai politics. Octobrists have defended opposing political stances and severely attacked one another across the political divide. This thesis examines why the Octobrists have managed to remain a significant force in Thai politics, despite the collapse of left wing politics in the late 1970s, and why they have experienced deepening internal divisions and a crisis of legitimacy over the course of the past decade. This thesis argues that the Octobrists successfully exploited shifts in the structure of political opportunities over the 1980s and 1990s which allowed them to overcome constraints on their involvement in politics. These former left wing student activists successfully made use of the political skills, social networks, and progressive language which they had developed and refined since the 1970s, in order to gain access to new channels of political influence and power. Above all, they managed to reframe their earlier history as leftist failures and to craft a new political identity as ‘Octobrists’, as heroic fighters for democracy and against authoritarian rule in the 1970s. In examining the rise and deepening of conflicts among the Octobrists, moreover, this thesis traces the shifts in political environment which accompanied the ascendancy and entrenchment of the Thaksin government and the rise of anti- Thaksin mobilisation over the past decade, which undermined the loose unity among Octobrists and created new sources of tension and conflict in their midst. The thesis also shows how the notion of ‘Octobrists’ shifted from an effective rubric for forging a shared identity among former student activists to a rhetorical device for conflict and contestation among former comrades-in-arms. 3 ‘In the spirit of criticism’ 4 Table of Contents Declaration ……………………………………………………………………….….... 2 Abstract ………………………………………………………………………….......... 3 Table of Contents ……………………………………………………………............... 5 Acknowledgements ………………………………………………………………........ 7 List of Tables and Figures …………………………………………………………... 10 List of Abbreviations and Acronyms ……………………………………………..... 11 Note on Transliteration …………………………………….……………………..… 13 1. Introduction to the Revival of 1970s Thai Octobrists in Contemporary Politics …………………………..…………………………..……………........14 1.1 Social Movement Theory framework and the Octobrists ………….............25 1.2 Research methods and techniques …………………………………............35 1.3 Thesis and chapter outline ………………………………….……...............39 2. The Emergence, Evolution and Decline of the Thai Student Movement during the 1970s …………………………………………………………........42 2.1 Pre-1970s radical movements ………………………………………..…….43 2.2 Formation and development of the pre-14th October 1973 student movement ………………………………….………………………………........................47 2.3 Radicalisation and unification of the student movement between 14th October 1973 and 6th October 1976 ………………………………….…..........58 2.4 Life with the armed struggle and the decline ………………………..…….71 2.5 Conclusion ………………………………….……………………….…......84 3. The revival and construction of Octobrists from ‘1970s failed leftist student activists’ to ‘1970s Octobrists-democratic fighters’….……………………..87 3.1 Initial failure in revitalising the leftist movement among 1970s student activists .......……………………….………………………………............. ….89 3.2 Later success: transformation of ‘extreme student activist’ to ‘Octobrist: democratic fighters’ …………………….…………………….……………......97 Recasting the 14th and 6th October histories ………….………………..99 Democratising 14th October 1973 ………………………….......99 Moralising the leftist history of 6th October 1976 ……............105 Normalising the 1970s extreme leftist ideas and identity …………….112 Normalising leftist backgrounds and life with the CPT............112 Deradicalising the 1970s radical reputation and cultural objects ………………………………….………………..........114 Institutionalising ‘Octobrist: democratic warrior’ …………………..117 3.3 Conclusion ………………………………….…………………………….118 4. The Revival of the Octobrists in Parliamentary Politics in the 1990s……120 4.1 Octobrists in the political liberalisation of the late 1980s ..........................121 1970s political skills and networks ……............................……...........123 The first wave of Octobrists in electoral politics ..……........................127 The second wave of Octobrists in electoral politics .............................130 Some failed, while others succeeded ……………............................. ...133 4.2 Octobrists in the late 1990s political reform...............................................146 5 Elected Senate Octobrists …………………………........................ 148 The Octobrist National Human Rights Commissioners ….............. 152 4.3 Conclusion …….. ..........................……................................................ 155 5. The Revival of the Octobrists in Extra-parliamentary Politics in the 1990s ..........................…….....................................................................156 5.1 Revival of Octobrists as successful members of the middle class ……. 157 Octobrists in the business world …………………………………... 158 Octobrists in the newspaper business ……………………………... 163 Octobrist singers and writers ……………………………………… 165 Octobrists in NGOs and Civil Society Organisations ……………...170 Octobrist intellectuals and academics …………………………..... 176 5.2 Political participation of the Octobrist middle class in extra-parliamentary politics ………………………………….…………………………………. 183 Octobrists in the May 1992 people’s uprising…………………...... 187 Octobrists in the rise of social movement in the 1990s ……….……192 Octobrists in the 1990s political reform ……………………....… 195 5.3 Conclusion ………………………………….……………………...… 199 6. The Octobrists and the Rise of the TRT government …………………..201 6.1 The rise of the TRT Party and the Thaksin government ………….........202 6.2 Octobrists inside the TRT Party ……………………………...…..….....207 6.3 Octobrists outside the TRT Party ………………………………...…….220 6.4 Conclusion ………………………………….…………………….….....223 7. Octobrists amidst the rise of the Yellow and Red Shirt conflicts ……...225 7.1 Octobrists during the rise of the anti-TRT movement and the Yellow Shirts ………………………….………………………………….…...…...226 Octobrists in the anti-TRT movement ……………………………....233 Reaction from Octobrists inside the TRT – leave the Party or fight to defend their stronghold.……………………………….………....244 7.2 Octobrists and the rise of the Red Shirts……………….…………….....249 Octobrists in the TRT ……………………………….…………..... 253 Octobrists in the anti-PAD and anti-Coup movements …….…..... 253 From the anti-Coup to the ‘Two-No’ and Red Shirts campaigns.... 258 7.3 Conclusion ………………………………….……………………...… 261 8. Conclusion ………………………………….…….……………………..... 263 8.1 Why success? ………………………………....…………………….... 263 Political Opportunity Structure ………..………………………..... 264 Mobilisation Structures ………...………………………………..... 267 Framing process ……………..………………….………………... .269 8.2 Why conflict? ……………………………….………………………… 275 New political environment….…………………………….……….. 275 Frame competition ……….………………………….…………….. 277 Bibliography ………………………………….…………………………………... 279 List of Interviews ………………………………….…………………………........311 6 Acknowledgements This thesis is one of the most significant paths in my intellectual journey. I grew up in a family with parents who had been directly involved in the 1970s political activism and who proudly called themselves ‘Octobrists’. Therefore, my childhood was full of bedtime stories of the 14th October 1973 victory and heroes, danger of state suppression during the 6th October 1976, problems of right wing and royalist movements in Thai political history, etc. When I first started my intellectual life at the university, Octobrists were already well-recognised
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