Red Shirts (Thailand) Explained

The Red Shirts are a political movement in Thailand, formed following the 2006 coup d'état which deposed then-Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. Originally synonymous with the United Front for Democracy Against Dictatorship (UDD), a group formed to protest the coup and resulting military government, the movement subsequently expanded to include various groups with diverse political priorities. Its members range from left-wing and/or liberal activists and academics to the large number of Thaksin's rural and working-class supporters.^{[1] [2] [3]} The movement emerged as the result of socio­economic changes in Northeast Thailand in the 1990s and 2000s, including a growing middle class, rising aspirations, and an increasing awareness of the extreme inequality and of the fundamentally weak democracy in Thailand,^{[4] [5]} typified by Thailand's primate city problem.^[6] Red Shirts group dynamics center on frustrated economic and political aspirations to improve democracy and overcome inequality, which contributed to the 2009 Thai political unrest and the 2010 Thai political protests,^[7] as well as shared suffering at the hand of the ruling class hegemony.^{[8] [9]} As with other minorities, the Red Shirts have been dehumanized and demonized,^[10] with insults such as "Red Buffalo" (; khwai, 'buffalo', is a common insult in Thai meaning a stupid person), since reclaimed by some of its targets. Their claims for transitional justice following the 2010 Thai military crackdown have been subverted by the Thai state.^[11]

See also

• People's Alliance for Democracy, or "yellow shirts", an opposing protest group

Notes and References

1. Forsyth. Tim. 2010. Thailand's Red Shirt Protests: Popular Movement or Dangerous Street Theatre?. Social Movement Studies. 9. 4. 461–467. 10.1080/14742837.2010.522313. 145712901. 1474-2837.
2. Chachavalpongpun. Pavin. Pavin Chachavalpongpun. Thailand's Red Networks: From Street Forces to Eminent Civil Society Coalition. Southeast Asian Studies at the University of Freiburg (Germany) Occasional Paper Series. April 2013. 14. 9 September 2017.
3. Alexander. Saowanee T.. 2019. Identity in Isan and the Return of the Redshirts in the 2019 Elections and Beyond. The Kyoto Review. 27.
4. de Jong. Edwin. Knippenberg. Luuk. Ayuwat. Dusadee. Promphakping. Buapun. 2012. Red-Shirt Heartland: Village-Level Socioeconomic Change in Northeast Thailand Between 1999 and 2008. Asian Politics & Policy. 4. 2. 213–231. 10.1111/j.1943-0787.2012.01337.x. 1943-0779. 2066/102833. free.
5. Hewison. Kevin. Kevin Hewison. 2014-03-27. Considerations on inequality and politics in Thailand. Democratization. 21. 5. 846–866. 10.1080/13510347.2014.882910. 145019012. 1351-0347.
6. Fong. Jack. 2012-09-05. Political Vulnerabilities of a Primate City: The May 2010 Red Shirts Uprising in Bangkok, Thailand. Journal of Asian and African Studies. 48. 3. 332–347. 10.1177/0021909612453981. 145515713. 0021-9096.
7. Elinoff. Eli. 2012. Smouldering Aspirations: Burning Buildings and the Politics of Belonging in Contemporary Isan. South East Asia Research. 20. 3. 381–398. 10.5367/sear.2012.0111. 147295246. 0967-828X.
8. Taylor. Jim. 2012. Remembrance and Tragedy: Understanding Thailand's "Red Shirt" Social Movement. Journal of Social Issues in Southeast Asia. 27. 1. 120. 10.1355/sj27-1d. 145259518. 0217-9520.
9. Book: Montesano . Michael J. . Chachavalpongpun . Pavin . Pavin Chachavalpongpun . Chongvilaivan . Aekapol. Bangkok May 2010 : perspectives on a divided Thailand. 2012. Silkworm Books. 978-616-215-042-5. 943968424.
10. Sripokangkul. Siwach. 2015-08-18. Inferior to Non-humans, Lower than Animals, and Worse Than Demons: The Demonization of Red Shirts in Thailand. Asian Social Science. 11. 24. 10.5539/ass.v11n24p331. 1911-2025. free.
11. Sripokangkul. Siwach. 2019-06-11. Subversion of transitional justice in Thailand: transitional injustice in the case of the 'Red Shirts'. The International Journal of Human Rights. 23. 10. 1673–1692. 10.1080/13642987.2019.1624538. 197709427. 1364-2987.