A CHIP OF THE OLD BLOCK 2023

Since 2020, a new generation of Thais have arisen who have bravely questioned and protested the deep structural inequalities of Thai society. Many of these individuals have ended up charged with a heavy criminal offense under Thai law, and a tool of conservative judicial activism. The heavy-handed use of what many consider the “nuclear option” of Thai law was an eye-opening event for many Thai people exposed the leanings of an ostensibly “neutral” judiciary, and has inspired us to investigate Thai history. To our surprise and astonishment, we found that the law is directly connected to the 1960s cold war context — a period that expanded and changed Thailand’s political actors drastically.

Since 2020, a new generation of Thais have arisen who have bravely questioned and protested the deep structural inequalities of Thai society. Many of these individuals have ended up charged with a heavy criminal offense under Thai law, and a tool of conservative judicial activism. The heavy-handed use of what many consider the “nuclear option” of Thai law was an eye-opening event for many Thai people exposed the leanings of an ostensibly “neutral” judiciary, and has inspired us to investigate Thai history. To our surprise and astonishment, we found that the law is directly connected to the 1960s cold war context — a period that expanded and changed Thailand’s political actors drastically.