Thailand History

The Kingdom of Thailand (known as Siam until 1939) was ruled by the Khmers, based in what is now neighboring Cambodia, during the 11th and 12th centuries. In 1238, two Thai chieftains rebelled against Khmer domination and established the first independent Thai kingdom. Ayutthaya, to the north of Bangkok, was the capital of the kingdom from the early 14th century, until its destruction by Burmese invaders in 1767. The Burmese were quickly forced out and the monarchy re-established. The absolute rule of the monarchy lasted until 1932, when it was replaced by a system of constitutional monarchy. Thereafter, Thailand gradually installed a democratic, pluralistic system of government. Progress was slow, mainly because of the attitude of the military, which has traditionally exercised a strong (although rarely beneficial) influence on Thai politics. Since 1932, the army has taken over the government on no less than 17 occasions. During the Cold War, this was a minor consideration – democratic governments were a rarity in the region and Thailand’s chief strategic ally, the USA, were more concerned with Thailand’s role as a bulwark against encroaching communism from elsewhere in Southeast Asia. In this regard, Thailand was an influential member of the main regional anti-communist bloc, Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN). Since the end of the Cold War, Thailand has been prominent in proposing the reformation of ASEAN into a regional trading bloc. This was part of a realignment of Thai foreign policy engineered by the government of Chatichai Choonhaven, who led the country from his election in 1988 until his overthrow in a military coup in February 1991. This coup – the 17th and last since 1932 – was a short-lived affair headed by army chief General Suchinda Kraprayoon and ended with a return to democratic civilian government in March 1992. Over the next five years, Thailand had four elections and a variety of coalition governments. King Bhumibol, who is revered as a semi-deity by many Thais, intervened on several occasions to calm situations that appeared otherwise to be spiralling out of control. As well as the inherent problems of coalition politics, successive governments were also being undermined by growing corruption in Thailand’s political and business life. These issues were brought to a head by the 1997 Asian financial crisis, of which Thailand was one of the principal victims. The incumbent government fell, due to its inept handling of the crisis. After that, Chuan Leekpai, who had held the premiership between the end of 1992 and mid-1995, returned to the premiership at the head of Pak Prachatipat (Democratic Party), the main liberal party in Thailand. 1997 was a watershed year for Thailand. As well as the economic crisis, from which Thailand initially suffered severely but has since recovered well (see Economy), a new constitution limiting the influence of the military was finally put in place. The first elections for a new Senate under this new constitution were held in March 2000. The poll for the more powerful House of Representatives was held in January 2001. The problem of corruption, which has long bedeviled Thai politics, was reflected in the fact that the winner – the billionaire tycoon, Thaksin Shinawatra – had been indicted for fraud and tax evasion. Nonetheless, leading the quirkily named Thai Rak Thai (Thais Love Thais) party, Thaksin Shinawatra won a decisive mandate on the basis of promises to support poor farmers and stand up to the IMF. Despite his personal difficulties, Thaksin has presided over a relatively successful administration and became the country's first democratically-elected prime minister to win a second consecutive term in a landslide victory in elections held in February 2005. The Democrats appear unlikely to overturn Thaksin’s huge majority, especially since their most popular and experienced politician, Chuan Leekpai, retired in 2003. The economy is booming once again and significant progress has been made in the foreign policy field, especially in relations with India and Malaysia, with whom co-operative agreements on bilateral mutual security have been signed. Thailand also hosted a key stage of the ultimately successful peace talks between the Sri Lanka government and the Tamil Tiger rebels (see Sri Lanka). There have been some setbacks. The border with Myanmar, Thailand’s most troublesome neighbor in recent years, was closed for much of 2002 after fighting between the Myanmar army and Shan rebels spilled over into Thai territory – not for the first time. There has also been a steadily growing insurgency in the mainly Muslim-populated provinces in southern Thailand bordering Malaysia. This is rapidly becoming a serious problem for the Thai government. In addition, on December 26 2004, an earthquake in southeast Asia triggered a tsunami that impacted considerably upon Thailand's tourist infrastructure. The west coast was the worst hit area, including outlying areas and tourist resorts near Phuket. Many hotels were ruined. Thousands were killed and there are still around three thousand people missing. Although the Thai authorities were not keen on requesting disaster relief aid, they have sought technical help in identifying the many who died - this process is ongoing. Government Under the most recent version of the constitution, finalised in October 1997, the legislature is the bicameral Ratha Sapha (National Assembly). The 393-member Saphaphuthan Ratsadon (House of Representatives) is elected for a four-year term. Executive power is vested in the prime minister and cabinet of ministers, with the former drawn from the ranks of the Ratha Sapha – normally the leader of the largest party (or largest party in the governing coalition). Economy The Thai economy expanded very rapidly during the 1980s and early to mid 1990s; average annual GDP growth between 1990 and 1996 was 8.5%. The economy was already slowing down when the Asian currency crisis struck in the late summer of 1997. In 1998, the economy contracted by 11%. After a strong initial recovery, the Thai economy stuttered in 2001/2 following 9/11, and in 2003 suffered because of the reaction to SARS, the war in Iraq and fears of terrorism. Steady growth in 2004, because of domestic demand and strong exports, gave the economy resilience to the outbreak of Avian influenza and soaring oil prices and growth had recovered to 6.1%. However, following the tsunami in December 2004, growth slowed to 4.3% in 2005. The inflation rate is 4.4% with unemployment down to 1.8%. Following the financial collapse in 1997 the government launched the Amazing Thailand campaign which increased tourist arrivals dramatically, all keen to take advantage of the favorable exchange rate. Arrival numbers peaked in 2002 but were down by 10% in 2003 with the occurrence of SARS. However, visitor numbers have improved steadily and were more than 13 million in 2005, over 2 million more than 2002.