Thailand: The Historical and Indefinite Transitions

The year 2016 was arguably one of shock and unpredictability for Thailand. No other major event in 2016 was as historically significant as the passing away of His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej (1927–2016) on 13 October 2016 at the age of eighty-nine. He was the beloved King of all Thai people,¹ and the world's longest-serving monarch, reigning for seventy years. His frail health since 2014 had been closely monitored by Thailand's leading medical professionals. The Royal Household Bureau's various announcements on the condition of his health time and again caused concern nationwide and led to many religious ceremonies to wish him a speedy recovery. Once the official announcement of his passing became public knowledge, the whole nation seemed to come to a standstill. Most commuters travelling home that evening shed tears publically without embarrassment while checking the news on social media. Every sector of Thai society agreed that the King's passing was a major historical transition. Once they overcame this sense of great loss, the other prevailing question was what would happen in terms of the royal succession.

Aside from the King's passing, the political landscape in Thailand in 2016 was more pessimistic. Thai society continued to be characterized by polarized contention and other negative political features. The full blossom of democratization was still far from reality, though the draft charter was completed and approved by a nationwide referendum in August 2016. Some argued that Thailand was still in an indefinite transition, while others labelled it a great leap backward. For those with a pessimistic view, the acronym COSTUP would describe the state of affairs in the country in 2016, standing for Corruption, Oppression, Social injustice, Tyranny, Unequal rights or unemployment, and Poverty—representing the rise in political, economic, and social costs confronting the military-led regime, and Thailand in general, in 2016.

The King's Passing: His Enduring Legacy and a Historical Transition

To most Thai people the passing of the revered monarch in October 2016 was so overwhelming that nationwide bereavement and grief ran very high. The "all-in-black" practice was adopted nationwide, governed by different timeframes according to the sector of the country; i.e., the general public, regardless of gender or age, donned black outfits as a sign of mourning for at least thirty days, while the government has decreed that its officials will wear black for a full year. Black fabric was suddenly in short supply due to the unexpected high demand. Some fabric retailers had no idea what to do with all the yellow outfits stocked up in preparation for the annual celebration of the late King's birthday, which falls on 5 December—known as National Father Day.

All government agencies nationwide were expected to fly the national flag at half-mast for thirty days. A total ban has been imposed on daily entertainment activities, both in the hospitality sector and media outlets. Most Thai and foreign language newspapers, websites, and TV stations switched to black and white and toned down their colourful content. Regular television programmes were replaced by repeated national broadcasts, especially of a programme on the history of the monarch and his various contributions to the nation during his reign. The Prayut administration sought Thai society's cooperation in toning down the Loy Krathong (the Thai tradition of floating krathong on waterways, a tradition believed to dispel bad luck), Christmas, and New Year celebrations.² There is no denying that His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej was a multitalented monarch—ruler, developer, philosopher, thinker, musician, environmentalist, composer, sportsman, photographer, to name some of his talents.

His development philosophy, the so-called self-sufficiency economy, has been praised to varying degrees at both the national and international levels. Since his passing, the influx of Thai people into Bangkok from various parts of the country to pay their final respects at the Grand Palace has become a daily phenomenon. At the time of writing, scores of Thai people continued to assemble at an unabated rate at the Grand Palace to pay their respects. The Ministry of Social Development and Human Security...