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The Thaksinization of Thailand.

Article Excerpt
The Thaksinization of Thailand. By Duncan McCargo and Ukrist Pathmanand. Copenhagen: Nordic Institute of Asian Studies, 2005. Softcover: 277pp.

Never has a Thai leader generated so much academic interest in so short a time. Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra's rise to power in January 2001 and his prolonged rule since have been so phenomenal and unrivalled in Thai political annals that they have spawned a burgeoning sub-field in the study of Thai politics that can be dubbed "Thaksinology", underpinned by all kinds of books and articles focusing on Thaksin and all facets of his personal and professional life. The volume under review is the latest English-language investigation of the telecommunications billionaire in the seat of power. It is a team effort between the most prolific Western analyst of Thai politics and an indigenous researcher who is fast coming into his own. Coming out within a year of Pasuk Phongpaichit and Chris Baker's incisive and insightful Thaksin: The Business of Politics in Thailand, McCargo and Ukrist had a tough act to follow. Yet The Thaksinization of Thailand does not disappoint, notwithstanding a handful of empirical kinks and analytical shortcomings.

For critics of Thaksin's virtual authoritarian rule and pandering populist policies, this book offers intellectual therapy and sheer indulgence....

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