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Further Reading

February 1991 Coup

In the late 1980s, the Thai political party system continued to evolve, albeit spasmodically. It was at a delicate stage of transition from its past status as an adjunct to the bureaucratic establishment to a more substantial role as a channel for popular representation and a provider of top political executives. The concept of party politics dated back to the early 1930s, but its impact was generally insignificant, having been overshadowed by the military-bureaucratic elite. The struggle for power was nearly always settled by coup, and the pluralistic demands of the society were accommodated through either bureaucratic channels or patron-client connections.

The perception that political parties and politicians were unworthy of trust was widespread in 1987. However, a coup was ruled out by Chaovalit, the new army commander in chief, even though he publicly castigated politicians as venal and hypocritical. In February he asserted that political parties, the Constitution, and elections alone would not make for a genuine democracy in Thailand, where, he argued, the party system and elections were controlled by a wealthy few who used the trappings of democracy for their own benefit. Appearing before a parliamentary committee in April 1987, Chaovalit maintained that to build a real Thai-style democracy with the king as head of state, the ever-widening income disparity must be narrowed first and that at the same time political parties and all government entities including the military "must join hands and walk ahead together."

The Chart Thai Party, sometimes called the "generals' party," was founded in 1974 by a group of retired generals and was led until July 1986 by Pramarn Adireksan, retired major general and former president of the Association of Thai Industries and the Thai Textile Association. Aggressively anticommunist, Chart Thai was backed by a number of prominent industrialists. After the July 1986 election, it was led by retired General Chatichai Choonhaven, whose relationship with Prem was friendly.

Choonhaven became Thailand's prime minister in 1988. On June 14, 1990 Prime Minister Chatichai Choonhaven visited Washington on his first state visit since being elected to office in July 1988. His visit came on the heels of a Thai diplomatic triumph with Japan in Tokyo at which the non-Communist resistance in Cambodia and the Hun Sen government in Phnom Penh agreed to form a Supreme National Council. This was no small achievement. For the first time there are hopeful signs that a peace settlement can be achieved in Cambodia that excludes the Khmer Rouge and unites the non-Communists with the State of Cambodia in a new Cambodian Government. The Thais under the leadership of Prime Minister Chatichai labored long and hard to create peace in Cambodia. Much of what they had done has occurred out of the limelight. Many times the Thais had taken positions antithetical to those of other countries in the region, including the Chinese who continue to support the Khmer Rouge and who have in the past been active supporters of the Thai Communist Party.

Premier Choonhaven was arrested February 23, 1991 in a military coup, by one count the 18th since 1932. This coup was a short-lived affair headed by army chief General Suchinda Kraprayoon and ended with a return to democratic civilian government in March 1992. Chatichai was arrested by the soldiers who were ordered by the military to intervene as he was in the airport hangar because of corruption charges and the accusation of inability against him. Then the non-elected primer General Suchinda Kraprayoon appointed himself to hold the position on May 18, 1992. In one intervening incident, hundreds of pro-democracy protestors and many Thai people were killed and wounded in the violence. King Bhumipol (Rama IX) had to lend a hand to stop the bloodshed confrontation. Afterwards, Suchinda was forced to resign and Anan Panyarchun was appointed to the temporary primer at that time. Over the next five years, Thailand had four elections and a variety of coalition governments.