Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Bangkok Today
As Thailand's seat of power and hotbed of political activism, Bangkok entered 2014
on shaky ground. Crippling antigovernment protests resumed after two years of relat-
ive stability under Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra. Protesters forced Yingluck
to call a snap election, only later to collaborate with the opposition Democrat Party to
boycott and obstruct the polls, which were ultimately nullified. Inconclusive election
results led to the Yingluck government's expulsion from office and a military
takeover.
Best on Film
Mon Rak Transistor
(directed by Pen-Ek Ratanaruang; 2001) An aspiring
loôk tûng
(Thai country music) singer
trades his bucolic life for one of struggle in the big city.
Nang Nak
(directed by Nonzee Nimibutr; 1999) This classic Thai tale is a fascinating peek at Thai beliefs, not to
mention at the provincial village that existed before Bangkok was taken over by concrete.
Best in Print
Sightseeing
(Rattawut Lapcharoensap; 2004) Written by an American-born Thai who later moved to Bangkok, the
short stories in this topic provide a look at the lives of normal Thais who live in the type of suburbs and towns most
visitors will never see.
Four Reigns
(Kukrit Pramoj; Thai 1953, English 1981) Four Reigns follows the fi ctional life of Phloi, a minor
courtier during the Bangkok palace's last days of absolute monarchy.
Democratic Stalemate
Yingluck's political adversity is part and parcel of Thailand's decade-long crisis, one
largely linked to her brother, former prime minister, Thaksin Shinawatra. Before a military
coup deposed him in 2006, Thaksin's performance over five years in power was mixed,
characterised by conflicts of interest, abuses of power and human rights violations on the
one hand, and policy innovations, popular rural income redistribution and electoral suc-
cesses on the other. While hounded by corruption allegations, Thaksin provided a sense of
upward mobility to the neglected masses and addressed the longstanding grievances of
Thailand's rural heartland, profoundly changing the face of Thai politics. Facing a corrup-
tion conviction and jail time, Thaksin and his ruling Pheu Thai Party pressed for a blanket
amnesty in November 2013. This amnesty gambit was the catalyst for the reconstitution of
