In the twilight years of King Bhumibol Adulyadej (1946–2016), changes to monarchic power were already set in motion. Having been at the centre of political gravity, Bhumibol left a vacuum of power when he died. Vajiralongkorn, enthroned in 2016, filled the vacuum with his desire to further augment the monarchic power despite his lack of moral authority and charisma. This book focuses on Vajiralongkorn’s attempt to strengthen his position of power by employing a different method from the one used by his father, Bhumibol. The pro-monarchy institutions have readjusted their relationship with Vajiralongkorn, primarily for their own interests, hence perpetuating the changing nature of monarchic power. But at the other end of the spectrum, the young generation has reacted daringly to the growing power of Vajiralongkorn by demanding royal reforms, and in the process trespassing against the overly protected realm of the monarchy even in the face of the lèse-majesté law. The Thai monarchy has arrived at a crossroads, and yet has chosen to resist popular will and disregard call for reforms. The future of the monarchy remains dangerously uncertain.
In June 2023, before the book was released, it was already banned in Thailand for defaming the Thai monarchy. The ban was announced in the Royal Gazette and signed by Police General Damrongsak Kittiprapas, the national police chief. The announcement said the cover and contents of this book reflected attitudes deemed insulting, defaming or displaying great malice towards the king, the queen, heir apparent or regent, or threatening national security, peace and order or public morality. It cited Section 10 of the Printing Recordation Act 2007 for banning the book. The announcement also said anyone importing the book into Thailand is liable to a jail term of up to 3 years and/or a fine of up to 60,000 baht (£1,400). The book is published by the Council on Southeast Asia Studies of Yale University, as part of its Monograph Publication Series (No.69).
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Speaker and Chair Biographies:
Pavin Chachavalpongpun is associate professor at the Centre for Southeast Asian Studies, Kyoto University. He is the chief editor of the online journal, Kyoto Review of Southeast Asia, in which all articles are translated from English into Japanese, Thai, Bahasa Indonesia, Filipino, Vietnamese, and Burmese. He is the author and editor of several books, including Coup, King, Crisis: A Critical Interregnum in Thailand (Yale Southeast Asia Studies, Monograph No.68, 2020). Following the 2014 coup in Thailand, the junta summoned Pavin twice for “attitude adjustment.” He rejected the summons. As a result, a warrant was issued for his arrest and his passport revoked, forcing him to apply for a refugee with Japan.
Dr Qingfei Yin is Assistant Professor of International History (China and the World) at LSE. As a historian of contemporary China and inter-Asian relations, her research focuses on China’s relations with its Asian neighbours, Asian borderlands, and the Cold War in Asia. She is particularly interested in how the global Cold War interacted with state-building in marginal societies. She is currently completing her book manuscript State Building in Cold War Asia: Comrades and Competitors on the Sino-Vietnamese Border (under contract with Cambridge University Press). Subsequent projects are on how capitalist Southeast Asian countries shaped China during the latter’s early reform era in the 1980s and the historical memory of the Sino-Vietnamese Cold War partnership in the two countries. Her research has been funded by the Association for Asian Studies China and Inner Asia Council and Henry Luce Foundation/ACLS Program in China Studies.