- Major historical events that have shaped culture of
Thailand
- Kingdoms of Sukhothai (14th century); Ayuthaya (14th to
18th centuries); Bangkok (18th century to present).
- Chakri kings (Chulalongkorn; Phumipol)
- 1932 revolt against the absolute monarchy
- Rise of bureaucratic-military rule
- The struggle for democracy
- Prime Ministers Sarit Thanarat; Prem Tinsulanond; Chartchai
Choonhavan; Chuan Leekpai
- The February 1991 military coup, led by General Suchinda,
against the government of Chatichai Choonhavan
- The Anand Panyarachun administration
- The March 1992 elections
- The 48 day government of General Suchinda
- The May pro-democracy uprisings against Suchinda
- The second Anand Panyarachun administration
- The September 1992 elections
- The Chuan Leekpai civilian government
- The 1995 July 2 elections; Banharn Silpa-archa
- The 1996 elections: Chuan Leekpai returns.
- Primary historical themes
- Status and deference to authority
Patron-client relationships
- Independence
- Quest for modernization
- Economic prospects
- Reasons for the remarkable growth rate of the Thai economy
- Political stability
- Commitment to free-market, export-driven policies
- Conservative, highly trained technocrats
- Role of Chinese minority
- Thailand as home for Japanese, Korean, and Taiwanese
assembly plants
- Birth rate controlled
- Difficulties of the Thai economy
- 1997 economics crisis:
Corruption, lack of transparency
- Poor infrastructure
- Environmental disaster: traffic, pollution, deforestation
- Gap between the rich and the poor; urban-rural gap
- Expected political changes
- Balance between stability and democracy
- Balance between law and order and civil liberties
- Balance between respect for leadership and desires of the
masses to have needs met
- Balance between role of military as the guarantor of
security and importance of civilian dominance
- Rise of middle class
- Absence of major internal or external threats
- Integration of Thailand into the world economy
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