Thailand

After a prolonged period of political uncertainty, Thailand has its new prime minister: Srettha Thavisin, a former U.S.-educated real estate tycoon who has always been close to the Shinawatra family. He is the epitome of a government that unites Pheu Thai, conservatives and the military

By Francesco Mattogno

One hundred days after the May 14 elections, Thailand has elected its new prime minister. With 482 votes in favor (including 152 senators), 165 against, and 81 abstentions, in the joint House and Senate vote on August 22 Pheu Thai candidate Srettha Thavisin passed the necessary threshold of 374 seats and became the 30th premier in Thai history.

His nomination was approved by King Maha Vajiralongkorn, who thus made the outcome of the parliamentary vote official and paved the way for the formation of the new government. Which will not be a "change" government. Or at least not of the change voted for by the relative majority of Thais, who at the polls had awarded Move Forward, the country's most progressive and radical political formation, as the party with the most seats in the lower house (151).

Instead, Pheu Thai, which came second in the elections (141 seats), will lead the new executive. In a turn that was as abrupt as it was announced, in early August the party founded by Thaksin Shinawatra abandoned its coalition project with Move Forward and initiated a series of negotiations to form an alliance with political forces linked to the conservative and pro-military establishment.

The successful outcome of the talks resulted in an 11-party, 314-seat coalition encompassing much of the outgoing government led by former coup general Prayut Chan-o-cha, with the exception of the Democratic Party. In fact, the alliance that supported Srettha includes the Bhumjaithai (BJT) of former Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, who may become the next interior minister, and the military's two parties, the Palang Pracharat (PPRP) of the other coup general Prawit Wongsuwon and the United Thai Nation (UTN) of outgoing premier Prayut, who has, however, announced that he plans to retire from politics.

In fact, Pheu Thai has struck deals with what until last May 14 were its bitterest enemies. Over the past two decades, the Shinawatra party has been ousted from power twice by army coups (2006 and 2014), and its leaders have been convicted of corruption and abuse of power by military-linked courts. The BJT, on the other hand, came into being in 2008 after an internal split within Pheu Thai, and has since become a symbol of betrayal and affiliation with conservative power for Reds supporters. Moreover, 16 out of 25 MPs from the same Democratic Party, once Shinawatra's number one opponent and now in the midst of a crisis, voted in favor of Srettha's nomination, contravening the party's line of abstention.

This is a reversal of what was promised before the election. At the height of the election campaign, Srettha-as well as all the Pheu Thai leadership-had ruled out an alliance with the military. Instead, on Monday, before the vote, he asked Thais to "forget" those words for Thailand's sake. Pheu Thai claims it had no alternative, since the Senate (appointed by the military) would have prevented any coalition including Move Forward from governing. To form an executive, therefore, one had to surrender to compromise with conservative forces in the name of "national reconciliation." And so it did.

Despite skepticism, the new prime minister pledged that the coalition would abide by Pheu Thai's electoral program, which made the economy a "priority" to go along with more progressive and democratic policies, such as amending the constitution and ending compulsory conscription.

Srettha is the main promoter of the "digital wallet," a 10,000 baht (270 euros) subsidy promised by his party to everyone over the age of 16, which would be in addition to an increase in the minimum wage. He said in the election campaign that he would push to expand Thailand's export markets in Africa and the Middle East and to forge more free trade agreements (above all, the one with the European Union), saying he also opposed decoupling between China and the United States. "I don't believe in working with individual nations," he said in an interview with the Nikkei.

A member of a well-connected family within the Thai elite, Srettha studied economics and finance in the United States (he graduated from the University of Massachusetts and took a master's degree at the Claremont Graduate School in California), and once he returned to Thailand in the 1990s he became chairman of Sansiri, a family business that became one of the largest companies in the Thai real estate industry. In contrast to many of his fellow entrepreneurs, Srettha has often exposed himself politically on social media and beyond, becoming one of the trusted men of former premiers Thaksin and Yingluck Shinawatra. In November last year, he finally joined Pheu Thai, stepping down as CEO of Sansiri two months before the elections.

Amid the prolonged political crisis, the country's GDP grew only 1.8 percent in the second quarter of 2023, well below expectations. Therefore, according to Bloomberg, given his business career and promises to stimulate the Thai economy through public spending, investors should welcome Srettha's appointment as premier. And there is talk of his possible dual role as finance minister as well. Different is the talk on the purely political level. The new prime minister has no political experience, nor a strong support base both within the party and in the electorate. And this is no small detail for a premier who will have to hold up a potentially very fragile and unpopular coalition (a poll of a sample of 1,310 citizens recorded about 63 percent disapproval).

Despite the decent result at the polls, for the first time in 20 years Pheu Thai did not win the election. This makes Srettha a much weaker prime minister than his predecessors elected with the Shinawatra party, who came to the seat with huge popular mandates and were surrounded by a kind of aura of invincibility. And in a further threat to his legitimacy, Srettha has been accused of tax evasion and malpractices during his time at Sansiri. The new premier will thus have to prove that he can control a government in which Pheu Thai, despite being the largest party in the coalition, is actually outnumbered by potential deals between BJT, PPRP and UTN, which together have 147 seats. One wonders then how well Srettha will be able to implement the promised policies, and whether moving behind him may be a far more navigated figure like Thaksin, moreover, who has just returned from exile.

As expected, Move Forward leader Pita Limjaroenrat failed to win enough senatorial votes to be named prime minister. For Thailand, a phase of great political uncertainty begins. Parliament goes back to vote on July 19: here are the scenarios for the formation of the new government

Article by Francesco Mattogno

64 votes were needed, 13 came in. The first joint session of the Thai parliament to vote for a new prime minister closed Thursday night without the nomination of the only candidate in the running, Move Forward leader Pita Limjaroenrat. This was no surprise.

After winning the May elections, Move Forward formed a coalition of eight parties, grouping a total of 312 seats: more than enough to have a majority in the lower house of 500 MPs, but too few to elect the new government without the influence of the Senate. Until May 2024, in fact, the 250 senators appointed by the military have the constitutional power to participate in voting to appoint the prime minister, who then needs at least 376 votes to be elected (which became 375 on Wednesday following the resignation of a senator). A huge obstacle for those proposing to shake up the pro-monarchist, pro-conservative status quo that those same senators have been charged with protecting.

The parliamentary session

Beyond token optimism, it was clear from the eve of the vote that Pita would not have the numbers to leave the chamber as Thailand's 30th premier. Before the vote, parliamentarians were given about six hours for debate. The Move Forward-led coalition remained united and put forward Pita as its sole prime ministerial candidate, while the pro-conservative front parties did not put forward any aspirants for the role. The result was a single-issue session.

All the speeches focused on the legitimacy of Pita and his party to govern, with the Move Forward's willingness to amend the law on lese majesty, a proposal that conservative deputies and senators have repeatedly deemed dangerous to the country's stability, at the center. Another central issue in the opposition to the Orange leader has been the legal proceedings hanging over him. On Wednesday, the day before the vote, the Election Commission of Thailand asked the constitutional court to disqualify Pita as an MP, accusing him of having been aware of his ineligibility due to owning shares in the media company ITV (the constitution in such cases prohibits him from running for office).

According to the Move Forward member, this is a specious accusation--ITV has not operated since 2007--but in the meantime, the constitutional court could suspend him from parliament pending final judgment, which could also include his disqualification from political activity and a sentence of one to three years in prison. The court also accepted another case seeking the dissolution of Move Forward because of the party's intention to amend the law on lese majesty. Pita denounced the suspicious timing of the two proceedings, which provided an assist to senators to legitimize their refusal to vote for a suspect as prime minister.

The day ended with 324 votes in favor of Pita's nomination, 182 against, 199 abstentions. Those in favor included 311 coalition deputies (House Speaker Wan Muhammad Noor Matha abstained as usual) and 13 senators. More than 40 members of the Senate, however, did not show up in the chamber.

The main scenarios

On a formal level, there is no upper limit on the number of votes parliament can hold to appoint the prime minister. The next joint session has been set for July 19, and it is expected that a possible third session could be held as early as the 20th. On the political level, things are different. "I'm not giving up," Pita said on the sidelines of the vote. But the support he enjoys from coalition partners may be timed. Some members of Pheu Thai, the alliance's second-largest formation, said the party would support him for three votes, but then would have to think of an alternative path.

There are essentially four possible scenarios. The first envisions that -- net of legal proceedings -- the Move Forward leader will be able to find the 64 votes needed to be named premier. MPs from Bhumjaithai, the third largest party in the House (71 seats), have said they would vote for him should his party abandon the plan to amend the law on lese majesty. Which Move Forward has categorically denied. The second is to thus maintain the coalition but have Srettha Thavisin, a Pheu Thai candidate deemed more acceptable even than Paetongtarn Shinawatra herself, daughter of the party founder, elected as prime minister. However, there are those who argue that the establishment is unlikely to accept Move Forward even being part of the governing coalition.

There is thus the possibility of "betrayal." Pheu Thai could leave the coalition and form a government with conservative and pro-military forces, a choice that could have consequences both in terms of popular support for the party and law and order. It is believed that in the event of Move Forward's ouster from the executive, a series of mass protests by its supporters could be triggered. Very likely even in the case of the last scenario, that of the formation of a very weak minority conservative government.

The other possibilities

There are other possibilities, however. A more extreme and complicated one is to extend to the bitter end the joint parliamentary sessions for voting for the premier until the Senate's term expires in May 2024. Unlikely also because it would worsen Thailand's already highly uncertain political and economic situation. Therefore, the pro-democracy coalition would be considering an alternative solution.

As reported by the Thai Enquirer, on Friday Thai afternoon Move Forward plans to propose to the House the amendment of Article 272 of the constitution, the one that allows the Senate to vote on the appointment of the prime minister. The proposal would pass with the support of half of the lower house deputies (250) and a third of the senators (84). According to Piyabutr Saengkanokkul, one of the leaders of the progressive movement, several of the senators who abstained from Thursday's vote could accept the amendment, which could then take effect within four weeks. It remains a complicated scenario. Meanwhile, the interim prime minister remains former coup general Prayut Chan-o-cha, in power since the 2014 coup. Prayut has announced his intention to retire from politics, but if the appointment of a new premier drags on for a long time his interim government would end up having to make important decisions, such as those regarding the budget for 2024 and the army and police reshuffle. Political instability has also always been a pretext in Thailand for "restoring order" through a coup. Hypotheses that no observer of Thai affairs ever feels like ruling out entirely.

By Maria Tripodi, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation

From 16 to 18 May, I was on a mission to Thailand to attend the 79th session of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) and for bilateral meetings, in conjunction with the stopover in the country of the Multipurpose Offshore Patrol Boat "Francesco Morosini". It was my first visit to Thailand, as well as the first by an Italian government member since 2018, reflecting Italy's renewed focus on a key player in the Indo-Pacific. At the ESCAP Commission, I spoke on 'Disaster Resilience: Early Warnings for All in Asia and the Pacific'. Italy is at the forefront of the fight against climate change and disaster management in the region and supports ESCAP's 'Multi-Donor Trust Fund for Tsunami, Disaster and Climate Preparedness' with a contribution of €260,000. This commitment was highly appreciated by the UN Under-Secretary-General and ESCAP Executive Secretary, Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana, to whom I renewed my intention to continue working together towards the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The session was also an opportunity to promote Rome's candidacy for EXPO 2030, during short meetings with some of our partners in the area (Tuvalu, Palau, Samoa).

I then had a fruitful conversation with the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Vijavat Isarabhakdi: on the 155th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Italy and Thailand, we hoped that our deep relations could continue to strengthen, thanks also to the forthcoming opening of the Italian Institute of Culture, the scholarships offered by the Italian Government, and the excellent results achieved in 2022 by our bilateral trade (+21%), which will also benefit from the EU-Thailand Free Trade Agreement, the negotiations for which were recently restarted. Italy is increasingly appreciated in Thailand, as I was able to see during my visit to the 'Future Energy Asia' fair (one of the main regional events in the energy sector) and the welcome given to the patrol vessel Morosini, excellence of our Defence, a sector in which bilateral cooperation can be strengthened.

The next 'High-Level Dialogue on Italy-ASEAN Economic Relations', to be held in Bangkok in the autumn, will be an opportunity to deepen cooperation with Thailand and ASEAN in strategic sectors: pharmaceutical, agri-food, fashion, space, renewable energy, and defence.

Article by Francesco Mattogno

Move Forward won the elections in Thailand, disproving predictions that long held Pheu Thai as the dominant party. The two have already decided to join together in a coalition, but the clear majority obtained in the House may not be enough

The consensus among analysts covering Thailand is that election polls are not that reliable. Both because of the method of data collection (mostly online) and because of the distribution of the sample, which comes mainly from the cities, Bangkok in particular. And indeed, the polls were wrong. Move Forward's growth in voting intentions in recent weeks was thought credible, but perhaps overstated. Instead, Pita Limjaroenrat's party won the May 14 election by a decent margin over second-placed Pheu Thai and has already formed on paper a coalition to lead Thailand according to its own political agenda, focused on constitutional and institutional reforms that promise to shake up the country's power structure. Precisely because of this, however, seeing Move Forward govern will not be so easy.

On Sunday, Thais voted to elect the 500 members of the lower house of parliament, but not the 250 members of the senate, appointed instead by the now-defunct National Council for Peace and Order, i.e., the military junta that led the country from 2014 to the 2019 elections. According to ad hoc provisions in the constitution, until 2024 senators have the power to participate in parliamentary votes to appoint the prime minister. A condition that in 2019 allowed coup general Prayut Chan-o-cha to remain in power despite the fact that his candidate party, the Palang Pracharat (PPRP), came second in the election. And that now potentially outvotes the Move Forward-led Democratic Front although it won a clear victory at the polls.

THE COALITION

The Pita-led party won a total of 152 seats (one more than originally expected), beating what was thought to be the main pro-democracy formation, Paetongtarn Shinawatra's Pheu Thai, which elected 141 MPs. Among the scenarios speculated both before and after the vote was that Pheu Thai might choose to ally with pro-military and conservative parties in an attempt to form a compromise government. On Monday, however, the party debunked this assumption, and Pita officially declared the birth on paper of a coalition involving four other parties besides Move Forward and Pheu Thai: the Prachachart (9 seats), Thai Sang Thai (6), Seree Ruam Thai (1) and the Fair Party (1).

The coalition's 310 seats are more than enough to achieve a majority in the House, where the PPRP elected 40 MPs and Prayut's "new" party, the United Thai Nation (UTN), 36. But that is less than the 376 needed to form a government without the senators' vote proving decisive. The idea of Pita and his people is that the popular mandate received is too strong, and that the Senate will not vote en masse to prevent him from governing. Otherwise, "those who are thinking of abolishing the election results or forming a minority government will pay a rather high price," he said at the press conference proclaiming victory. The Move Forward leader considers the hypothesis just described "unlikely," but some senators have already said they will not support him as prime minister.

For this, the third-place finisher in the election, Anutin Charnvirakul's Bhumjaithai (BJT), which won 71 seats, could prove crucial. Anutin is the outgoing health minister in the PPRP-led government, however, his is a center party, not anti-establishment but not completely siding with the military either. For now Pita has stated that "it is not necessary" to involve the BJT, but that could change. Meanwhile, the Move Forward leader-who says he is "ready to become Thailand's 30th prime minister"-is preparing a memorandum of understanding for the coalition. A kind of "government contract" in which the program of things to be done during the first year of the ruling executive will be outlined.

THE PROGRAM

There are indeed several issues on which the parties must agree. The coalition is made up of those who have shared the last four years in opposition, but relations, especially between Move Forward and Pheu Thai, have had ups and downs. The key issue is undoubtedly that involving Article 112 of the Thai Penal Code, i.e., the "law on lese majesty," which provides up to 15 years in prison for anyone who "defames, insults or threatens" members of the royal family.

Move Forward has among its candidates several of the protesters charged with lese majesty for their role in the 2020-21 democratic and anti-monarchy demonstrations, and Pita has long expressed his desire to repeal the law. As the elections have approached, the party's position has softened, but the intention to amend and depower the rule remains, and has been confirmed by the leader himself in several post-victory statements.

Although it has been blunted, it remains a radical position in the Thai context: the monarchy is among the most powerful in the world and a source of political legitimacy (the king must approve the appointment of the prime minister); no other major party has dared to question it so openly. At the press conference where Pheu Thai announced that it had agreed to join the coalition, Pateongtarn said that the party "will not support the abolition of Article 112," but that "there can be discussion in parliament on how to implement it effectively."

But Move Forward's program goes beyond the monarchical issue. The party has also proposed organizing a referendum to elect a constituent assembly to rewrite the constitution, replacing the 2017 military-driven one and thus limiting the army's influence and power in Thai politics. Then there is the will-this one shared with Pheu Thai-to cancel compulsory conscription, produce an anti-monopoly law, raise the minimum daily wage from 330 to 450 baht (from 9 to more than 12 euros), and legalize gay marriage. On marijuana, however, Move Forward would like to limit its use to medical purposes only.

On foreign policy, Pita proposed de facto non-alignment between the U.S. and China, but called for "rules-based diplomacy" to be respected. He condemned Russia's aggression in Ukraine, and on Myanmar he said Thailand should cooperate with the international community so that the Burmese people can "resolve their conflict." This too is a de facto distant position from the Thai military's top leadership, which has always maintained an ambiguous relationship with Myanmar's military junta.

THE SCENARIOS

Pita has been accused of holding some 42,000 shares in ITV, a Thai broadcaster that closed in 2007 but whose registration still remains active. This would be a violation of election laws (which prohibit candidates for parliament from having holdings in media companies), and at worst could lead to disqualification of the candidate and the party. Pita says he is calm, but for similar litigation Move Forward's de facto predecessor, Future Forward, was dissolved in 2020 and its top leadership banned from politics for ten years.

The matter will be investigated by the Election Commission. In case the military wants to overturn the election result, at the moment it is believed that the judicial route is more likely than a further coup, which has been denied by Armed Forces Chief Narongphan Jitkaewthae himself (who will also be on an official visit to Hawaii until May 28). If it is legitimate to have doubts about such statements, the same may be true for those of Prayut, who once the defeat became clear said he would respect the democratic transition. With the Senate on the conservative side, the possibility of a pro-military minority government also remains alive, which at that point (for numerical issues) should be led by the BJT. There is no shortage of time for possible reversals. The Election Commission must publish official election results within 60 days, then parliament will be convened to vote for the prime minister. After being approved by the king, the premier can form his government. It is expected to happen no earlier than early August.

Everything is set for Thailand's May 14 elections. Paetongtarn Shinawatra's Pheu Thai dominates in the polls but is unlikely to rule alone, while pro-military parties know they can count on the 250 votes of the unelected senate. Move Forward and Bhumjaithai the most interesting variables, but they will not be "free and fair" elections

Article by Francesco Mattogno

For two decades, elections in Thailand have been held according to an almost identical script. It is expected that the ones set for May 14 will not deviate from it too much either. It will again be a struggle between the Shinawatra family party and parties associated with the conservative, military-linked, pro-monarchist establishment. The Pheu Thai (PTP) - the third name of the Shinawatras' populist party, which has been dissolved twice in the past - won every election from 2001 to 2019, but ruled on and off only as long as the military allowed it to.

Despite two coups (2006 and 2014) and a new constitution written by the military (2017), Pheu Thai remains the country's leading electoral force. The generality of polls ahead of the May 14 elections give it between 46 percent and 49 percent, with its main premier candidate, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, still leading the polls by at least twenty points ahead of the other parties' incumbents. But to win will not be enough.

In Thailand, only the 500 seats in the lower house of parliament are elective, while the 250 seats in the senate (which participates in voting for the prime minister) are military-appointed. A condition provided for ad hoc in the 2017 constitution that allowed coup general Prayut Chan-o-cha to retain the prime minister's post in 2019 and hope for reelection today, despite the fact that his party, the United Thai Nation (UTN), is third and far behind in the polls (10-15%). Further behind, but for the same reason still struggling, is the other general behind the 2014 coup, Prawit Wongsuwon. He was the premier candidate of the main military as well as ruling party, the Palang Pracharat (PPRP), at 2 percent.

FORCED COALITION

Fifty-two million Thais will be called to vote. Pheu Thai's stated goal is to win about 300 seats, a threshold that would demonstrate an indisputable popular mandate and thus make it theoretically difficult for the Senate to thwart the formation of a Shinawatra-led government. According to analysis by the Thai website The Nation, this is not an impossible goal, but certainly a complicated one. And it is already clear that in order to build a stable executive - achieving a majority of at least 376 seats - the party will have to form a coalition.

Behind Pheu Thai, in second place in the polls is a progressive party, the Move Forward (MFP). Born from the ashes of Future Forward, which came third in 2019 and disbanded in 2020, Move Forward gathers among its candidates and voters many of the young people who participated in the democratic and anti-monarchy protests of 2020-21. It is a strong party among the under-25s and in urban centers. Forecasts put it at around 15-20 percent and potentially growing, but it should be considered that the polls mainly take into account Bangkok and major provincial cities, making the sample unrepresentative of rural areas of the country. However, Bangkok is the city that awards the most seats (33), followed by those in the northeast, a Pheu Thai stronghold region.

That Pheu Thai and Move Forward may form a post-election alliance (along with other smaller progressive parties) is evident. Move Forward leader Pita Limjaroenrat has ruled out coalitions only with those associated with the coup, namely PPRP and UTN. On alliance with the military, however, the Pheu Thai leadership has long maintained ambiguity. Only recently did Paetongtarn state that she did not "like the last two coups," i.e., the coups by which the military deposed and forced into exile first her father Thaksin and then her aunt Yingluck. More direct is the party's other premier candidate, real estate tycoon Shretta Thavisin, who said he did not want to join those who "looted the sovereign power of the people."

Complicating a relationship that would seem a foregone conclusion are Move Forward's radical stances toward the law on lese majesty. In the past, Limjaroenrat has explicitly called for the amendment of the infamous Article 112 of the Penal Code, which provides a penalty of 3 years to 15 years in prison for anyone who "insults or defames" the royal family. Thailand's monarchy is one of the most powerful in the world, and challenging it poses a risk to the political survival of parties that try. In the election campaign no one, including Pheu Thai, ever mentioned the law on lese majesty, and even Move Forward itself has toned it down.

THE CONSERVATIVE "CENTER" OF THE DEMOCRATS AND THE BJT

To be accused of high treason is easy; even more so is to respect the status quo. Thailand's Democratic Party (DP) has always been a master at this, although in recent years it has begun to pay for its own unscrupulous political transformism. In 2007 the country's oldest party reached 38 percent of the vote: today it is given around 4 percent. Democrats have often "declared things pleasing to the masses before elections" but have no clear political agenda, writes the Diplomat. The latest vote-catching move is the proposed legalization of sex toys (today owning one in Thailand can result in up to 3 years in prison), but there is a fair chance that this could drive away even the last remnants of the conservative electorate left to the Democratic leader and current Minister of Commerce, Jurin Laksanawisit.

Also part of the current PPRP-led government is Health Minister Anutin Charnveerakul's Bhumjaithai (BJT), the man behind the chaotic legalization of cannabis. He is a figure to be reckoned with because of his ability to put the BJT at the center between conservatives and progressives. If Pheu Thai dominates in the agricultural northeast, Move Forward is strong in urban centers, and Prayut's UTN in the south of the country, BJT seems able to pick up votes just about everywhere. It is given around 5 percent, but there are estimates that believe it is more competitive.

BETWEEN POLITICAL REFORMS AND ECONOMIC POPULISM

Charnveerakul's is seen as a balancing profile, one that would be capable of serving as prime minister either in a conservative government together with the military or in a progressive government. The BJT leader has also stated that he would support the formation of an assembly to rewrite Thailand's constitution, i.e., one of Move Forward's key policy proposals. Indeed, the Progressive Party and Pheu Thai have included a number of constitutional and army reforms in their election program, including the abolition of compulsory conscription.

These are measures that would challenge the current conservative legacy order of the coup and help make it difficult to think that the Senate would support an eventual Pheu Thai premier, particularly a Shinawatra. Because of this, and the fact that Paetongtarn will give birth to her second child right around the time of the elections, the possibility of a compromise prime minister (or that Pheu Thai will aim for Thavisin) should not be discarded.

If on the political level one can still notice markedly two poles, the conservative and the progressive, anti-military poles, things change when it comes to the economy. "Populism has won," argues analyst Titinan Pongsudhirak. Beyond minor differences in form, each party has as the mainstay of its economic program the presence of one or more subsidies and welfare measures. Unbridled welfarism was inaugurated by the Shinawatras, who made it the primary source of their popularity for two decades, particularly among farmers. An approach not appreciated by all, especially in Bankgok, but one that has the merit of clearing the air on the issue of huge income inequality in Thai society and actually strengthening the welfare system, an issue on which the Prayut government also built some of its support. Today the same pro-military parties that portrayed the Shinawatras as irresponsible are among the most generous in promising economic aid, but the really ambitious proposals always come from Pheu Thai, which pledges to double the minimum wage for workers and to give everyone over the age of 16 10,000 baht (about 270 euros). Ideas that have drawn criticism for their potential burden on government spending. Little is read instead about how to structurally reform Thailand's economy, which has not grown as much as those of the region's major states for a decade. One common desire is to make the country a manufacturing hub for new technology industries, such as electric cars, reinforcing a process that has already been underway for some years.