Self-sufficiency As A Political Agenda in Thailand
Self-sufficiency is being strengthened through the link between nationalism and the King. Criticism over the King's philosophy would be a demonstration that the critics do not respect the King. The philosophy itself is often portrayed as a national barrier that guards Thailand from evil foreign, greedy, scheming capitalists.
After the ousting of former Prime Minister Thaksin, the Thai government under the Prime Minister Surayut began a political campaign that under King Bhumibol's Localism is the new Utopia. Thus, Localism is used as a political tool to counter Thaksin's proposal of Thaksinomics. The King's philosophy had been introduced to Thailand before Thaksin was prime minister. In fact, for the celebration of King Bhumibol Diamond Jubilee, Thaksin's government organized public exhibitions commemorating the event, one of the major exhibitions being sufficiency economy.
Read more about this topic: Localism In Thailand
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