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Reinventing Thailand
From 2001 to 2006, Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra transformed Thailand's international role from one of obscurity into a kind of regional hegemon. Thaksin's diplomatic ambitions were reflected in his myriad of grandiose foreign policy initiatives, designed to locate Thailand at the forefront of regional politics and reinstall the Thai sphere of influence over weaker neighbouring states. He abolished the traditional bending-with-the-wind foreign policy, revamped the Thai Foreign Ministry, and empowered Thai envoys through the CEO Ambassadors programme. But in this process, Thaksin was accused of exploiting foreign policy to enrich his business empire. Thaksin's reinvention of Thailand as an up-and-coming regional power was therefore tainted by conflicts of interest and the absence of ethical principles in the country's foreign policy.
The Thaksinization of Thailand
The 1997 economic crisis ended two decades of pluralism in Thai politics and helped create the conditions for the landslide election victory in January 2001 of Thaksin Shinawatra, a fabulously wealthy telecommunications magnate often compared with Italian premier Silvio Berlusconi. Prime minister Thaksin has since exercised an extra-ordinary degree of personal dominance over the Thai political scene. The emergence of Thaksin and his Thai Rak Thai (Thais love Thai) Party has transformed Thailand's electoral landscape, rendering previous analyses of Thai politics substantially outdated. This book will examine Thaksin's background, his business activities, the emergence of Thai Rak Thai, his relationship with the military, Thaksin's use of rhetoric through media such as radio, his wider political economy networks, and the future direction of Thai politics. This detailed but gripping study draws on extensive research by two leading specialists in the field.
Thailand’s Political Peasants
When a populist movement elected Thaksin Shinawatra as prime minister of Thailand in 2001, many of the country’s urban elite dismissed the outcome as just another symptom of rural corruption, a traditional patronage system dominated by local strongmen pressuring their neighbors through political bullying and vote-buying. In Thailand’s Political Peasants, however, Andrew Walker argues that the emergence of an entirely new socioeconomic dynamic has dramatically changed the relations of Thai peasants with the state, making them a political force to be reckoned with. Whereas their ancestors focused on subsistence, this generation of middle-income peasants seeks productive relationships with ...
Future Forward
"Suddenly, Thai politics caught fire -- Future Forward deals with a remarkable phenomenon in Thailand's recent politics: the rise of a new party led by Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit, a wealthy, charismatic politician who upended conventional understandings of how elections work in the country. One year after Future Forward was founded, it became the third largest party in parliament. Another year on, it was summarily dissolved by the Constitutional Court. This is the first book to examine the most interesting new force to emerge in Thai politics for two decades, one also exploring the wider dynamics of political leadership, party formation and voter behaviour in a society where popular participation was largely suppressed after the 2014 militiary coup. Based on exclusive interviews with party leaders and a wide range of Thai-language sources, it examines how Future Forward succeeded in mobilising so much electoral support, whilst also arousing intense hostility from the conservative forces demanding its dissolution." --
The King Never Smiles
Thailand's Bhumibol Adulyadej, the only king ever born in the United States, came to the throne of his country in 1946 and is now the world's longest-serving monarch. This book tells the unexpected story of his life and 60-year rule: how a Western-raised boy came to be seen by his people as a living Buddha; and how a king widely seen as beneficent and apolitical could in fact be so deeply political, autocratic, and even brutal. Paul Handley provides an extensively researched, factual account of the king's youth and personal development, ascent to the throne, skilful political maneuverings, and attempt to shape Thailand as a Buddhist kingdom. Blasting apart the widely accepted image of the ki...
Thaksin
Thaksin Shinawatra has often been compared to Italy's Silvio Berlusconi. Both are fabulously wealthy media magnates who have entered politics. And both have a possessive passion for football. Berlusconi owns Forza Milan and, as many fans note with mixed feelings, Thaksin recently attempted to acquire a 30 per cent stake in Liverpool FC. But there is more to him than football. He became Thailand's prime minister in early 2001 after a landslide election victory in which he promised to 'think new, act new' to transform the country's economy and politics. Since then, Thaksin has been highly popular but also highly controversial. Two long-standing observers have described him as 'the best prime minister Thailand has ever had' and 'another grubby businessman'. This is the first serious study of Thaksin in English. It examines where he comes from and what he is trying to do. The authors, an economics professor and independent author, have written several other books on economics, politics and current affairs in Thailand.
Ethnic Business
The role of ethnic Chinese business in Southeast Asia in catalyzing economic development has been hotly debated - and often misunderstood - throughout cycles of boom and bust. This book critically examines some of the key features attributed to Chinese business: business-government relations, the family firm, trust and networks, and supposed 'Asian' values. The in-depth case studies that feature in the book reveal considerable diversity among these firms and the economic and political networks in which they manoeuvre. With contributions from leading scholars and under the impressive editorship of Jomo and Folk, Ethnic Business is a well-written, important contribution to not only students of Asian business and economics, but also professionals with an interest in those areas.
Populism in Asia
Across Asia, "populist" leaders emerged on an unprecedented scale around the start of the 21st century. Populism in Asia is the first book to examine this phenomenon. The 1997 Asian financial crisis undermined established political leaders and stirred popular discontent. Voters in East Asia responded by electing maverick politicians who promised to target corruption and establish fresh agendas. In Southeast Asia, populist leaders based their appeal on the frustrations and aspirations of groups excluded from political power. Leaders who came to office during this period include Thaksin Shinawatra in Thailand, Joseph 'Erap' Estrada in the Philippines, Roo Moo-hyun in South Korea, Chen Shui-bia...
Thailand: History, Politics and the Rule of Law (2nd Edition)
Thailand’s 2023 election results energised some Thais and traumatised others. Voters and analysts alike were astonished that a youthful party aiming to transform the country won the most seats, though not a majority. The Move Forward party wanted to de-militarise society and politics, de-centralise government administration, de-monopolise the economy, and curb the ideological, political, and financial power of the monarchy. For decades, Thai politics had revolved around two big questions: Do you support the charismatic Thaksin Shinawatra and his populist Pheu Thai party? Do you support military supervision of politics? Thaksin and the military—once enemies—now had a common foe. Relying...
Dictionary of the Modern Politics of Southeast Asia
The past three decades since the end of the Cold War have been a time of remarkable change for Southeast Asia. Long seen as an arena for superpower rivalry, Southeast Asia is increasingly coming into its own by locating itself at the forefront of regional integration initiatives that involve not only the states of the region, but major external powers such as the United States, China, India, Japan, and Australia. Extensively updated and revised in light of these changes and developments, this fifth edition of Dictionary of the Modern Politics of Southeast Asia remains indispensable. This new edition starts with profiles of each Southeast Asian country, before providing over 500 alphabeticall...
