Political Parties of Thailand – Examination for Democratic Stability

On the threshold of elections designed to be held in February 2019,  the first after the military junta seized power in 2014, it is important  to define the role of parties in the political process of Thailand, which  as other developing countries of Asia, faces  challenges in democratic state building. The contemporary political  history of kingdom represents the confrontation of two tendencies –  authoritarianism and democracy what has a reverse impact on  political parties, their character, structure and ability to represent  interests of the society as a whole. The author analyses the process  of party evolution in the historical retrospective in the context of  transformation of political system – from bureaucratic to  semidemocratic subjected to economic modernization and changes in  socio structure of society where traditional form of organization patron-client is persisted. The author defines three  stages of evolution of party system in Thailand The first is  characterized by the full control of civil-military bureaucracy over  parties. The second stage is closely related to the formation of provincial political clientele groups. The third stage marks the  evolvement of party of “power” with the implication for  strengthening the parliamentary democracy in the beginning of XXI  century. And as the result of it – to the destabilization of political  system, based on the relative balance of power between two main  political forces – bureaucracy and army interested in reservation of authoritarian government, and bourgeoisie supporting the  liberalization of political institutes. With the emergence of party of “power” supported by the majority of population advocating  parliamentary democracy political spectrum has changed. The arising conflict of interests subjected to collision of positions  regarding the model of political governance was overcome by  military coup. Analyzing the political spectrum on the threshold of  elections the author comes to conclusion that the restoration of  compromised model of political governance sample of 80-90 years of  XX century is the most likely option of political development of  Thailand in the near future. Though it differs in one aspect – the  social structure has changed, there is the rise of that groups of population that intend to participate in the political process, what  will force the power to be more transparent and social oriented. These challenges face the political parties as well.

1. Apichat Satitniramai, Yukti Mukdawijitra, Niti Pawakapan (2013) Re-examining the Political Landscape of Thailand, Bangkok: Thailand Universities Healthy Public Policy, Thai Health Promotion Foundation.

2. Connors M.K. (2008) Article of Faith: The Failure of Royal Liberalism in Thailand. The Journal of Contemporary Asia, vol. 38, no 1, pp. 143–165.

3. Hewison K. (2006) Thailand: Boom, Bust, and Recovery. The Political Economy of South-East Asia. Markets, Power and Contestation (eds. Rodan G., Hewison K., Robison R.), Melbourne: Oxford University Press, pp. 72–106.

4. Hewison K. (2014) Thailand: The Lessons of Protest Asian Studies. Journal of Critical Perspectives on Asia, vol. 50, no 1, pp. 1–15.

5. Hicken A. (2002) The Market for Votes in Thailand. Paper presented at the International Conference “Trading Political Rights: The Comparative Politics of Vote Buying”, Cambridge, August 26–27, 2002. Center for International Studies, MIT.

6. Kanchoochat V., Hewison K. (2016) Introduction: Understanding Thailand’s Politics. Journal of Contemporary Asia, vol. 46, no 3, pp. 371–387.

7. McVey R. (ed.) (2000) Money and Power in Provincial Thailand, Nordic Institute of Asian Studies.

8. Montesano M. (2014) What Is to Come in Thailand? ISEAS Perspective, February 10, 2014, no 7.

9. Nguyen M. (2011) The Continual Breakdown of Democracy in Thailand. A Case Study on the Role of Elite Competition, Modernization and Political Institutions in the Democratization Process of Thailand, Brown University.

10. Puangthong Pawakapan (2014) The Thai Junta’s Interim Constitution: Towards an Anti Electoral Democracy. ISEAS Perspective, August 12, 2014, no 45.

11. Riggs F. (1966) Thailand: The Modernization of a Bureaucratic Polity, Honolulu: East-West Center Press.

12. Sawasdee S.N. (2006) Thai Political Parties in the Age of Reform, Bangkok, Thailand: Institute of Public Policy Studies

13. Sawasdee S.N. (2014) Politics of Electoral Reform in Thailand, Kyoto: Kyoto University.

14. Wilson D. (1962) Politics in Thailand, New York: Cornel University Press.