• First study in English to examine the Thaksin phenomenon in depth.

• Draws on extensive research by two leading specialists in the field.

Prior to the 1997 economic crisis, for around twenty years Thai politics was characterized by a pluralistic political order, featuring unstable coalition governments, competing interests, and a gradual displacement of bureaucratic and military influence by the rising power of elected politicians (who in turn were closely linked to a range of business actors). A major reform package was enacted in 1997, coinciding with the promulgation of a new constitution.

However, the country’s financial problems helped create the conditions for the emergence of the Thai Rak Thai (Thais love Thai, or TRT) Party under the leadership of Thaksin Shinawatra, a fabulously wealthy telecommunications magnate often compared with Italian premier Silvio Berlusconi. Although presenting itself as a nationalist, transformative party, at heart TRT is little more than a vehicle for the interests and ambitions of its founder-leader. Since winning a landslide election victory in January 2001, Prime Minister Thaksin has exercised an extraordinary degree of personal dominance over the Thai political scene. The emergence of Thaksin and TRT has transformed Thailand’s electoral landscape, rendering previous analyses of Thai politics substantially outdated.

This book will examine Thaksin’s background, his business activities, the emergence of Thai Rak Thai, his relationship with the military, Thaksin’s use of rhetoric through media such as radio, his wider political economy networks, and the future direction of Thai politics.

Contents
Preface
Introduction: Who is Thaksin?
Thaksin and the politics of telecommunications
Thai Rak Thai: A new form of Thai party?
Thaksin and the repoliticization of the military
Thaksin’s political discourse
Thaksin’s new political economy networks
Conclusion: The Thaksinization of Thailand and future of Thai politics
Bibliography
Index