Ji Ungpakorn
Encyclopedia
Giles Ji Ungpakorn Giles Ji Ungpakorn (Thai
: ใจ อึ๊งภากรณ์, pronounced tɕāj ʔɯ́ŋpʰāːkōn (born 1953) is a Thai
-British
academic and political activist
. He formerly worked as an associate professor at Faculty of Political Science, Chulalongkorn University
, before he fled to the United Kingdom after facing a lèse majesté
charge in Thailand.
governor and Thammasat University
rector Puey Ungpakorn
and his wife Margaret Smith of London
, and holds both Thai and British citizenship. He has two older brothers, Jon Ungpakorn
and Peter Ungpakorn.
Giles Ungpakorn was educated in England
at Sussex and Durham Universities and the School of Oriental and African Studies
, University of London
before returning to Thailand in 1997.
, Giles led a demonstration in downtown Bangkok by university students. He was later accused of lèse majesté
for writing a book called A Coup for the Rich, where he argued that the coup was illegitimate and supported by the King. Ungpakorn is widely known an activist with the socialist Turn Left Thailand group.
In February 2007, his English-language academic work A Coup for the Rich was refused distribution by the bookstore of Chulalongkorn University
. His listing the controversial The King Never Smiles
, which he has reviewed and criticised, as a reference was the explanation given by the store manager.
Giles Ungpakorn was formally charged with lese majeste in Bangkok, Thailand on January 20, 2009. He had 20 days to respond to the charges, after which the Thai authorities would decide whether his case would be given to the Thai courts for prosecution. Ungpakorn said he was being charged because of the contents of his book A Coup for the Rich, which points out the main reasons the coup in Thailand two years ago took place. He fled Thailand in February 2009, returning to the United Kingdom. He stated: "I did not believe I would receive a fair trial."
Giles Ungpakorn is a self-declared republican and a vocal opponent of the Thai monarchy and the military. While fleeing Thailand, he wrote Red Siam Manifesto, which explicitly criticised King Bhumibol Adulyadej
. He has criticised King Bhumibol for being a "weak, unprincipled" monarch who has never supported democracy, and holds the army, the elites and the king responsible for supporting the Thammasat University Massacre
of 1976. He has also fiercely denounced the king's much-touted sufficiency economy principles
, branding it an arrogant commandment for the poor to know their place, given that the King is the richest Monarch in the world. He also declares himself a Marxist
. He is a member of the Thai socialist group Turn Left
, which is part of the Trotskyist International Socialist Tendency
. Giles is also a Red Shirt and member of Kon Thai UK, a Red Shirt organisation in the U.K.
In an opinion piece written for the Asia Sentinel
website he has discounted the prospects of a successful social and political reform, and has aligned himself with those who are calling for a social revolution to occur in Thailand. Giles has also criticised those who advocate armed struggle.
His latest English language book: "Thailand's Crisis and the Fight for Democracy", published in early 2010, is Giles' attempt to explain the present situation in Thailand before the Red Shirt demonstrations and clashes with the military in April and May 2010.
Thai language
Thai , also known as Central Thai and Siamese, is the national and official language of Thailand and the native language of the Thai people, Thailand's dominant ethnic group. Thai is a member of the Tai group of the Tai–Kadai language family. Historical linguists have been unable to definitively...
: ใจ อึ๊งภากรณ์, pronounced tɕāj ʔɯ́ŋpʰāːkōn (born 1953) is a Thai
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
-British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
academic and political activist
Activism
Activism consists of intentional efforts to bring about social, political, economic, or environmental change. Activism can take a wide range of forms from writing letters to newspapers or politicians, political campaigning, economic activism such as boycotts or preferentially patronizing...
. He formerly worked as an associate professor at Faculty of Political Science, Chulalongkorn University
Chulalongkorn University
Chulalongkorn University is the oldest university in Thailand and is the country's highest ranked university. It now has nineteen faculties and institutes. Regarded as the best and most selective university in Thailand, it consistently attracts top students from around the country...
, before he fled to the United Kingdom after facing a lèse majesté
Lèse majesté
Lese-majesty is the crime of violating majesty, an offence against the dignity of a reigning sovereign or against a state.This behavior was first classified as a criminal offence against the dignity of the Roman republic in Ancient Rome...
charge in Thailand.
Early life and education
Giles Ji Ungpakorn is the youngest son of former Bank of ThailandBank of Thailand
- History :The Bank of Thailand was first set up as the Thai National Banking Bureau. The Bank of Thailand Act was promulgated on 28 April 1942 vesting upon the Bank of Thailand the responsibility for all central banking functions...
governor and Thammasat University
Thammasat University
Thammasat University , or in brief TU , is Thailand's second oldest university. Officially established on 27 June 1934, the university was originally named by founder Pridi Banomyong, University of Moral Science and Politics , reflecting the political fervor of the time...
rector Puey Ungpakorn
Puey Ungpakorn
Puey Ungpakorn, MBE was an extremely successful bureaucrat who played a central role in the shaping of Thailand's economic development and in the strengthening of its system of higher education...
and his wife Margaret Smith of London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, and holds both Thai and British citizenship. He has two older brothers, Jon Ungpakorn
Jon Ungpakorn
Jon Ungpakorn is a London-born Thai non-governmental organization executive and member of the Senate of Thailand. He is an older brother of Peter Ungpakorn and Ji Ungpakorn, and is of Chinese-Thai and British parentage...
and Peter Ungpakorn.
Giles Ungpakorn was educated in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
at Sussex and Durham Universities and the School of Oriental and African Studies
School of Oriental and African Studies
The School of Oriental and African Studies is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college of the University of London...
, University of London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
before returning to Thailand in 1997.
Political role
In 2006, after the military staged a coup and revoked the constitution1997 Constitution of Thailand
For legal and historical context, see the Constitutions of Thailand articlethumb|275px|Bangkok's [[Democracy Monument, Bangkok|Democracy Monument]]: a representation of the 1932 Constitution sits on top of two golden offering bowls above a turret....
, Giles led a demonstration in downtown Bangkok by university students. He was later accused of lèse majesté
Lèse majesté
Lese-majesty is the crime of violating majesty, an offence against the dignity of a reigning sovereign or against a state.This behavior was first classified as a criminal offence against the dignity of the Roman republic in Ancient Rome...
for writing a book called A Coup for the Rich, where he argued that the coup was illegitimate and supported by the King. Ungpakorn is widely known an activist with the socialist Turn Left Thailand group.
In February 2007, his English-language academic work A Coup for the Rich was refused distribution by the bookstore of Chulalongkorn University
Chulalongkorn University
Chulalongkorn University is the oldest university in Thailand and is the country's highest ranked university. It now has nineteen faculties and institutes. Regarded as the best and most selective university in Thailand, it consistently attracts top students from around the country...
. His listing the controversial The King Never Smiles
The King Never Smiles
The King Never Smiles is an unauthorized biography of Thailand's King Bhumibol Adulyadej by Paul M. Handley, a freelance journalist who lived and worked as a foreign correspondent in Thailand. It is published by Yale University Press and was released in 2006...
, which he has reviewed and criticised, as a reference was the explanation given by the store manager.
Giles Ungpakorn was formally charged with lese majeste in Bangkok, Thailand on January 20, 2009. He had 20 days to respond to the charges, after which the Thai authorities would decide whether his case would be given to the Thai courts for prosecution. Ungpakorn said he was being charged because of the contents of his book A Coup for the Rich, which points out the main reasons the coup in Thailand two years ago took place. He fled Thailand in February 2009, returning to the United Kingdom. He stated: "I did not believe I would receive a fair trial."
Giles Ungpakorn is a self-declared republican and a vocal opponent of the Thai monarchy and the military. While fleeing Thailand, he wrote Red Siam Manifesto, which explicitly criticised King Bhumibol Adulyadej
Bhumibol Adulyadej
Bhumibol Adulyadej is the current King of Thailand. He is known as Rama IX...
. He has criticised King Bhumibol for being a "weak, unprincipled" monarch who has never supported democracy, and holds the army, the elites and the king responsible for supporting the Thammasat University Massacre
6 October 1976 Massacre
The Thammasat University Massacre, or Massacre of 6 October 1976 , was an attack on students and protesters that occurred on the campus of Thammasat University and at Sanam Luang in Bangkok. Students from various universities were demonstrating against the return to Thailand of Field Marshal...
of 1976. He has also fiercely denounced the king's much-touted sufficiency economy principles
Localism in Thailand
The chief proponent of localism in Thailand or moso is King Bhumibol Adulyadej's "the philosophy of Sufficiency Economy". The foundations of King Bhumibol's theory included sustainability, moderation and broad-based development...
, branding it an arrogant commandment for the poor to know their place, given that the King is the richest Monarch in the world. He also declares himself a Marxist
Marxism
Marxism is an economic and sociopolitical worldview and method of socioeconomic inquiry that centers upon a materialist interpretation of history, a dialectical view of social change, and an analysis and critique of the development of capitalism. Marxism was pioneered in the early to mid 19th...
. He is a member of the Thai socialist group Turn Left
Turn Left
Turn Left was an independent student-run publication at Cornell University from 2000 to 2007. Calling itself "Cornell's Liberal Voice," Turn Left focused on political and humanitarian issues that it believed were underreported by other media outlets...
, which is part of the Trotskyist International Socialist Tendency
International Socialist Tendency
The International Socialist Tendency is an international grouping of unorthodox Trotskyist organisations based around the ideas of Tony Cliff, founder of the Socialist Workers Party in Britain...
. Giles is also a Red Shirt and member of Kon Thai UK, a Red Shirt organisation in the U.K.
In an opinion piece written for the Asia Sentinel
Asia Sentinel
Asia Sentinel is a web-based Asian regional publication focused on news, business, arts and culture. The site was launched in August 2006....
website he has discounted the prospects of a successful social and political reform, and has aligned himself with those who are calling for a social revolution to occur in Thailand. Giles has also criticised those who advocate armed struggle.
His latest English language book: "Thailand's Crisis and the Fight for Democracy", published in early 2010, is Giles' attempt to explain the present situation in Thailand before the Red Shirt demonstrations and clashes with the military in April and May 2010.