タイの実業家政党と軍 : 首相府令66/523を中心として

Abstract

The military which has dominated Thai politics since 1932 is concerned about the recent emergence of political parties as significant political forces. The main contributors to this emergence are businessmen whose economic power has grown since the 1960s. Instead of political parties, local business tycoons play a crucial role in elections. On the other hand, owners of big businesses greatly influence these parties through monetary assistance. The military attacks these political parties through the Prime Minister's Office Order 66/2523, which is formally a counterinsurgency order. According to this order, democratic rule means rule for the majority of the people and politics must be democratized in order to defeat the Communist Party of Thailand. The present domination of parliamentary politics by businessmen's parties cannot be called democratic because it serves only businessmen's selfish interests. Clearly this attack is made for the military's purpose of preserving its own political interests. But the authenticity of the claim that the interests of the masses are little reflected in parliamentary politics in contemporary Thailand cannot be denied.