ABSTRACT
The 1973 "Revolution" has been widely identified, even in the aftermath of the later 1976 reaction, as initiating a new era in Thai politics and history, and as the true voice of popular, and especially rural opinion in a country where the latter still accounts for at least seventy percent of the total populace. During 1973-76, military power remained little diminished in consequence of the Student Revolution, except to the extent that the Palace exploited the situation to become more assertive. Additionally, more conventional political interests such as big business, the media, and the political parties seem increasingly to have been having their way in support of the system created by the 1978 constitution. During early 1983, they defended together the termination of the original temporary, five-year provisions of the 1978 constitution, which provided for, amongst other things, a new, military-dominated, appointed Senate with blocking powers on legislation.
