Thailand Thailand Today

With positive growth rates since 1999, Thailand seems to be well on its way to economic recovery. The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) inaugurated the ambitious “Amazing Thailand” campaign to boost the economy, and in February 2000, officials declared the worst of the economic crisis to be over. Today, Thailand’s economy is one of the fastest-growing in Southeast Asia, largely due to the efforts of charismatic Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. Allegations of rampant corruption, however, plagued Thaksin’s administration, and reached a crisis point in March 2006, when massive protests called for his resignation. He resorted to running a highly controversial snap election marred by boycotts and suspicious results. Another election was scheduled, but the military lost patience and seized power in September 2006. Facing little opposition, the military suspended democratic rule and liberties, eventually drawing up a new constitution. Parliamentary elections were held in December 2007, but the military remains in the background, and political tensions have remained unresolved. Thailand faces other problems as well: violence broke out in the predominantly Muslim south in January 2004 in the form of a series of bombings and attacks on the government, and violence continues in that region, with 2,700 dead.

King Rama IX was born in December 1927 in Cambridge, Massachusetts, while his parents were studying medical-related fields at Harvard University and Simmons College. The young king ascended to the throne at the age of 18, so his actual coronation was postponed by four years so that he could finish his education. The longest-reigning monarch in the world, Bhumibol is also one of the most beloved; he is revered for his dedication to the underprivileged, his role in resolving government conflicts, and his commitment to the peace and unity of his country. As a constitutional monarch, he exercises little visible power, but his word commands tremendous loyalty and respect. His official titles are Head of State, Head of the Armed Forces, and Upholder of All Religions. The three “rights” that accompany these positions are to encourage, to warn, and to be consulted. Since 1974, he has become particularly active in reforestation projects in order to preserve Thailand’s flora and fauna. King Bhumibol has also been heavily influenced by his parents’ medical careers and places a great deal of emphasis on health care. The King also devotes himself to a variety of hobbies: he is a world-class yachtsman, as well as a famous composer, with 43 jazz and blues compositions to his name.

Hooked On Thailand

According to the United States Central Intelligence Agency, Thailand is considered to be a drug money-laundering center. Whether it be in the form of opium , cocaine , or other substances, narcotics and their sale have a strong presence in Thailand. Some argue that this trend arose with the increase in tourism, while others blame it on the drugs’ addictive qualities. Either way, widespread violence and the AIDS/HIV epidemic (both linked to the drug trade) have resulted in a nation-wide crackdown.

On January 28th 2003, former Prime Minister Thaksin signed an order that promised a “concerted effort of the nation to overcome drugs.” The year-long effort to rid the country of its drug problem resulted in more than 2,700 deaths and tens of thousands of arrests. While this campaign has helped to crack down on the drug trade, some fear that its violence may only make it harder to identify and treat intravenous drug users afflicted with HIV/AIDS. Still, the effort is felt in certain areas of Thailand. Full moon parties, once saturated with ectasy, opium, and acid, are now subject to the watchful gaze of the Thai police who frequently set-up roadblocks and checkpoints in an attempt to rid their country of these harmful drugs (see Sex, Drugs, and Lunar Cycles, ).

The Sex Industry And Aids

While traditional gender roles in Thailand are more equally balanced than in many other countries, Thailand has garnered an international reputation for its sex industry. Many young girls and boys enter prostitution as an escape from rural poverty; estimates of the number of sex workers in the country vary but range anywhere from 200,000 to nearly 2 million, with the majority of them female. While prostitution has been illegal since 1960, it is tacitly accepted and tolerated, making Thailand a destination for Western and Japanese “sex tours.” This industry accounts for an estimated 3 percent of Thailand’s economy, or about US $4.3 billion a year, and has numerous links to government corruption and organized crime.

Thailand’s sex trade was made all the more controversial due to the growth of the Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) to epidemic status in parts of Thailand during the late 1990s. By the end of 1999, the combination of thriving sex and intravenous drug industries resulted in 66,000 HIV/AIDS deaths in Thailand, the first country in Southeast Asia to experience the epidemic. Medical researchers warned that the country’s AIDS-related deaths would total approximately 286,000 by the beginning of the new millennium, and many feared that the disease was spreading to new sectors of Thai society. Today, these trends are slowly reversing. The effects of safe-sex practices such as condom use, first advocated in the early 1990s by Senator Mechai Viravaidya (justly dubbed “Mr. Condom” ) and his “100 Percent Condom” plan, are now becoming apparent in HIV/AIDS statistics. The use of condoms in commercial sex is up from 14% to over 90%, and protective measures have resulted in a 90% decrease in the rate of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). The government has thus taken a more pragmatic approach towards its sex industry and HIV/AIDS, creating cooperative partnerships between health workers, police, and sex workers themselves. However, complacency after previous success in the crusade for safer sex spurred a resurgence in infections, and in 2005 Viravaidya announced a new campaign that aims to counter it.

Southern Discomfort

Although Thais pride themselves on their religious tolerance, their government does not always follow the same path. The southernmost provinces of Thailand—Narathiwat, Pattani, Songhkla, and Yala, once the independent Sultanate of Pattani—only came under Thai rule in 1902 and have been restless ever since. The local population is overwhelmingly Muslim and speaks Yawi, a Malay dialect. Local separatists, angered by heavy-handed nationalist policies under the dictatorship of Phibun Songkhram in the 30s and feeling estranged from the Buddhist Thai government, began a violent insurgency in the 70s. The government under Prem Tinsulanonda in the 80s changed course, emphasizing negotiation, cultural rights, increased funding, and political representation. Violence died down throughout the 90s, but following the disbanding of joint task forces, local governments, and declaration of martial law under Prime Minister Thaksin, there was a resurgence of violence. In January 2004, armed men burned schools, looted weapons, and killed four Thai soldiers in the South. Scattered bombings and shootings plagued the area until the conflict came to a head in April of 2004, with militant raids on police stations and government buildings. The police fought back, killing an estimated 112 poorly-armed fighters. The Prime Minister assumed even more sweeping powers, including the detention of suspects for seven days, censorship of newspapers, and broad wiretapping authority.

The military government following Thaksin took a more conciliatory approach, but violence has continued, fueled by the conflict of previous years, and combined nationalism and religious sentiment. The tendency of insurgents to make no claims on violent attacks and operate under a high level of secrecy compounds the difficulty of negotiation or effective quelling of the violence. The current military regime’s refusal to discuss autonomy for the south or begin trials for human rights abuses committed by officials may play a role in the continued conflict. In the meantime, violence is likely to continue, and it is not clear how many more will be added to the current death toll of over 3000.

You Say Burma, I Say Myanmar. In 1989, the Burmese government changed the official name of the country from Burma to Myanmar. The name change has been adopted by most members of the international press, and the country’s official UN designation is Myanmar. However, many governments don’t recognize the name in a show of non-recognition of the government and refer to it by its traditional name of Burma. For the sake of clarity, Let’s Go: Thailand uses “Myanmar” when referring to the modern government and territory, and “Burmese” when referring to people, language, or culture.

Border Relations

Thailand is bordered by Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, and Myanmar and has had shaky relationships with each of these countries. From historical battles to present-day policy skirmishes, a variety of events have contributed to the tension often felt around Thailand’s 8000km perimeter. Sporadic border disputes with neighbors are sometimes compounded by cultural clashes, like the 2003 riots in Cambodia over a Thai soap opera star’s claim that Angkor Wat belonged to Thailand. At the present, however, peace prevails through cooperation on issues such as drug trafficking, membership in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and continued good relations abroad with the US.

Thai-Burmese Relations. Since the Burmese sacked the Thai capital of Ayutthaya in 1767 , Thai-Burmese relations have been off-and-on at best. Issues such as illicit drugs and border tensions contribute to the Thai-Burmese bout, as both Thai and Burmese drug lords have long been producing methamphetamine and smuggling it into one another’s countries as well as into China and India. The Burmese border area is littered with landmines, used by the military regime and the numerous rebel groups fighting against it. Make sure to check with the local tourist authority for information specific to the area you are planning to visit. The border between Thailand and Myanmar has also been crossed by hundreds of thousands of Burmese refugees. These immigrants are a constant presence in the border provinces of Thailand. The devastation wrought by Cyclone Nargis in 2008, is likely to complicate this issue even further.