The Story of Thai Democracy

Originally written in 2017. Update 28/10/22: I am currently in the process of revising the pieces in this series. There will be some inconsistency in formatting.

‘The Story of Thai Democracy’ is a series of articles covering the political history of Thailand since the transition from absolute to constitutional monarchy.

An Introduction: an introduction to the goals of this series.

1. Royal Origins: the birth of the idea of a Thai democratic state under the absolute monarchs of the Chakri Dynasty.

2. The 1932 Revolution: the events that transformed Siam from an absolute to a constitutional monarchy.

3. Early Turmoil:  the first few years of constitutional Siam under the rule of the Khana Ratsadon.

4. Phibun vs Pridi: the alternating in power of the two most influential men of early Thai democratic history, Plaek Phibunsongkram and Pridi Phanomyong.

5. The Triumvirate: Phibun’s return to power and his second administration.

6. Strongman Sarit: the administration of Sarit Thanarat and his authoritarianism.

7. Octobers of Tragedy: a narrative of the twin tragedies of 1973 and 1976.

8. Premier Prem: the administration of Prem Tinsulanonda and his style of rule.

9. Black May: the events of Black May, and the democratic period that followed.

10. From Thaksin to Today: Thaksin Shinawatra’s policies and how his downfall led to a crisis that continues to the present day.

Lessons Learned: what have we learned from the story of Thai democracy? Why is this study important?

Thailand in Crisis

Originally written in 2018.

Since the rise of Thaksin Shinawatra to power in 2001, Thailand has been engulfed in a twenty year political crisis. ‘Thailand in Crisis’ is a series of articles that seeks to chronicle the events of Thai politics between the late 1990s and the 2014 military coup.

An Introduction: an introduction to the goal of the series.

1. Setting the Stage: Thaksin’s entrance into politics during the turbulent democratic period of the 1990s and the drafting of the 1997 constitution.

2. The Rise of Thaksin: Thaksin’s 2001 election victory and his rise to the premiership.

3. Thaksinomics: How Thaksin’s economic policies allowed him to earn rural support.

4. Thaksinocracy: How Thaksin consolidated his political power to an unprecedented degree for an elected prime minister.

5. The 2006 Coup: The coup d’état that removed Thaksin from power and the drafting of the 2007 constitution.

6. Nominee Governments: the premierships of Samak Sundaravej and Somchai Wongsawat, and the yellow shirt protests.

7. Battlefield in Bangkok: Abhisit Vejjajiva’s premiership and the red shirt protests.

8. Amnesty and Anarchy: the rise and fall of Yingluck Shinawatra and the PDRC protests.

9. The 2014 Coup: The coup d’état that brought Prayut to power and the drafting of the 2016 constitution.

Unanswered Questions: what is the path forward for Thailand?