Understanding Thai Democracy

Much has been said about the failure of democracy in Thailand, which is symbolized by the existence of the political vicious circle. ¹ There seems to be consensus among well-informed observers of Thai politics that a great measure of the responsibility for this unhappy development is squarely laid at the door of the military and the People’s Party. Yet even when the most-hyped version of democracy lauded by Pridi (the political ‘brain’ of the People’s Party and the 24 June 1932 revolution) and his supporters, was put in place as in 1946, it was quite clear that the essence of democracy as understood by the Western society was very much lacking. ² The same could likewise be said of the Constitution drafted by the conservatives and royalists in 1949 which is oft-quoted and lovingly referred to as the most democratic version of all Thai Constitutions, perhaps with the exception of the 1997 Constitution. Thus far, a Thai version of democracy appears to be nothing more than a series of documents written to ensure the power and interest of those who affected its drafting. In fact Thai Constitutions may be used as evidence to support an ongoing power struggle among the various factions of its ruling élite since the version of 27 June 1932 was introduced. The Thai masses, who neither understood nor much cared about the intricacy of democracy, appeared only to function as uninterested lookers-on most of the time.