Constitutionalism and the Rule of Law in Thailand

Abstract

Constitutional and political debates in Thailand currently revolve round good governance and the Rule of Law issues within the structure of the new 2007 Constitution. This paper aims to provide a critical analysis of the key issues relevant to the current constitutional and democratic reform process in Thailand after the military coup on 19 September 2006. This paper aims to provide a critical analysis of key issues relevant to the current constitutional and democratic reform process in Thailand. It will first trace Thailand's modern constitutional history. It will then discuss the fundamental principles of the 1997 Constitution in comparison with the new provisions of the 2007 Constitution that are designed to address some significant flaws of its predecessor. Specifically, it will examine the key issues for constitutional reform including the balance of powers, political vote buying and how to prevent future military coups. In order to break the vicious cycle of military coups followed by new constitutions and revolving door governments, the paper argues that Thailand needs to undergo radical changes, covering not only legal and political but also socio-economic reforms, which embrace the principles of constitutionalism, the rule of law and good governance at national, provincial and local or grassroots levels.