Thailand's Military: Guaranteeing Security but Threatening Democratization
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Location
S020, Belfer Case Study Room, CGIS South, 1730 Cambridge St., Cambridge, MA
Sponsors
Thai Studies Program, Harvard Asia Center
Paul Chambers
Associate Senior Fellow, Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS) - Yusof Ishak Centre, Singapore; Lecturer, University of Oklahoma
Having carried out fourteen coups, enjoying legal impunity, unaccountable to elected officials, and possessing a monopoly of violence, the military stands as the second most powerful institution in Thailand—behind the monarchy. As Thais have sought more political space, it has been the military which has most squarely hindered increased democratization. How did this situation come to be? What is the state of civil-military relations in 2026? What is the future of the Thai military?
Discussant: Jay Rosengard, Director, Thai Studies Program, Harvard Asia Center