Marshal Sarit and Absolutist Rule in Thailand

Abstract

ON SEPTEMBER I7, I957, Field Marshal Sarit Thanarat and his Americanequipped troops seized control of Thailand's government. Although it was not apparent at the time, this move was more than just another coup d'etat in a country where military officers have long played a predominant role in the political and commercial life of the nation; the overthrow of the former regime headed by Field Marshal Phibun Songkhram marked a major turning point in the evolution of the Thai political system. The purpose of this article is to survey briefly the development of the Thai government since the beginning of the constitutional regime in I932 and to assess the current trend of the Sarit government under political absolutism. The establishment of a constitutional government in June i932 ended more than five hundred years of absolute rule in which the monarchy was regarded as having quasi-divine powers and served as the sole source of political authority. Throughout this period the political and social structure of the country became rigidly stratified and the people were indoctrinated from birth to render undivided loyalty to the king. The impact of the West in the nineteenth century caused the absolute monarchy to become increasingly humanitarian and to hasten the adoption of many modern technological and administrative innovations.' The benevolent policies of the monarchy and increasing contact with the West gradually gave rise to new political groups who demanded a more modern and liberal form of government. The bloodless coup which overthrew the absolute monarchy was staged by a small group of intellectuals and military officers who called themselves the People's Party.2 Led by a young commoner named Pridi Phanomyong, the Party promulgated a constitution which established a modified parliamentary system patterned largely on that in Great Britain and France. While professing Western democratic ideals, the leaders of the Party organized the new government in a manner that assured their remaining in power for at least ten years. The newly established Assembly of People's Representatives was divided into two categories of representatives, one-half elected by the people and one-half appointed by the government. The new constitution,