The Australian Institute of International Affairs presents
Dr John Funston
John Funston is a Visiting Fellow in the Faculty of Asian Studies, ANU. Prior to this he was Deputy Director then Director of the National Thai Studies Centre at ANU, from 2001-2007. He has worked on Southeast Asian politics for some four decades, including fourteen years in the region at universities in Malaysia and Brunei, and the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, Singapore. Recent publications include Government and Politics in Southeast Asia, ISEAS, Singapore, 2001 (editor and also author of the chapter on Thailand); Southern Thailand: The Dynamics of Conflict. Policy Studies 50. Washington, East-West Center and ISEAS, 2008; Thaksin's Thailand: Populism and Polarisation. ISIS-Thailand, Bangkok, 2009 (editor); and Divided Over Thaksin: Thailand's Coup and Problematic Transition, ISEAS, Singapore, 2009 (editor).
Thailand: Can it Escape Conflict and Violence?
Since a mass uprising that overthrew a military government in 1973, Thailand has experienced recurring cycles of instability and conflict – including military coups in 1976 and 1991, followed by mass opposition to military rule in 1992. The current cycle of unrest dates from mass demonstrations in late 2005, and has been marked by a deep polarisation between opponents of former Prime Minister Thaksin (yellow shirts) and Thaksin supporters (red shirts), a hastily called election which was boycotted by the opposition and subsequently ruled invalid, a succession of short-lived governments, a military coup, and continuous mass demonstrations by both sides. What has caused such contention? Is it, as some in the media have characterised it, a battle of the poor against the elite and royalists of Bangkok, allied to the army? Can the cycle of violence be broken? Australia has vital interests at stake, given our extensive diplomatic, security, economic, educational and tourist links with Thailand.
July 2008 - June 2009 Past Events (