Seri Manangkhasila Party

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The Seri Manangkhasila Party ( Thai พรรค เสรี ม นั ง ค ศิลา , RTGS : Phak Seri Manangkhasila ) was a political party in Thailand that was active from 1955 to 1957. It was founded by the then Prime Minister Plaek Phibunsongkhram (Phibun) and represented the most influential military.

Field Marshal Phibun, who had ruled the country since 1948, went on an extensive trip to Europe and the USA in 1955. On his return he was apparently enthusiastic about Western democracy and freedom of expression. He allowed the formation of political parties again, which had previously been banned since 1951, and allowed a largely free press. He himself founded the Seri Manangkhasila party. The Villa Manangkhasila was the meeting place of the government, seri means "free". The most influential military, who rivaled Phibun for power and ruled with him in a kind of triumvirate, also joined it and formed internal wings. Phibun became party chairman, the general director of the police Phao Siyanon became general secretary and the commander-in-chief of the army, Field Marshal Sarit Thanarat , became deputy party chairman. While Phao was instrumental in organizing the party, Sarit was reluctant to participate. He also did not call on the troops under his command to vote for the party.

To secure victory in the February 1957 parliamentary elections, the government deployed thugs to intimidate opposition candidates and voters and forged votes. So she won 85 of the 160 seats. The election rigging, however, sparked major public protest. The government therefore viewed the “democratic” experiment as a failure and returned to more repressive methods. Another scandal came when it became public that a lumber magnate close to the party had obtained the right through his relationships to clear areas to be flooded as part of the Bhumibol Dam project. Field Marshal Sarit joined the protest for tactical reasons and broke with Phibun and Phao. He resigned as defense minister in August and, along with 46 appointed MPs, left the party. Sarit became the government's fiercest critic, giving it an ultimatum to resign in September and finally staging a coup . He then held new elections in which the Seri Managkhasila party only won 4 seats.

However, many former members of the party were re-elected as "independents". Sarit then founded the "National Socialist Party" ( Chat Sangkhomniyom ) in order to win these MPs for his government and to have a stable majority. Three former Seri Manangkhasila members then also belonged to the new government of Thanom Kittikachorn . In 1959, Sarit then carried out an authoritarian “revolution”, after which all parties were again banned.

annotation

  1. ↑ The name is also transcribed as Seri Manangkasila, Seri Manankasila or Serimanangkasila.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Thak Chaloemtiarana: Thailand. The Politics of Despotic Paternalism. Cornell Southeast Asia Program, Ithaca NY 2007, ISBN 978-0-8772-7742-2 , p. 72.
  2. ↑ Thak Chaloemtiarana: Thailand. 2007, pp. 75-76.
  3. ↑ Thak Chaloemtiarana: Thailand. 2007, pp. 78-79.
  4. ↑ Thak Chaloemtiarana: Thailand. 2007, p. 87.
  5. ↑ Thak Chaloemtiarana: Thailand. 2007, p. 88.
  6. ↑ Thak Chaloemtiarana: Thailand. 2007, p. 89.