+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Social Science Japan No.4, August 1995
Copyright Institute of Social Science, University of Tokyo
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Tall Stories: Japanese Political Studies in Thailand

Nakharin MEKTRAIRAT

ALL students of Thai politics today, whether serious or not, have taken at least one or two classes on Japanese politics and history. This represents an educational advance quite appropriate for Thailand and other NICs in an era of globalization. However, unless some long-standing problems are addressed Thailand will find it difficult to deepen its knowledge of the Japanese political economy.

First, Thai students have fallen into the trap of seeing Japan as Thailand's historical twin, the only other Asian state to have remained independent and non-colonized. This, in my view, is a myth. The tall story of Thailand's similarity to Japan, which has its roots in the imaginations of the late 19th and early 20th century Thai elite, has been reinforced and amplified (for reasons too complex for this brief discussion) to become a central element in contemporary Thai education.

Second, Thai students exhibit a lamentable lack of critical judgement with regard to history. Those carrying out political studies of Japan are no exception; their simplistic studies that represent Japan as a duplicable model for Thailand's development are not based on an understanding of the origins of the Japanese system.

Third, Thai students need to discover fundamental structural differences between the Japanese system and the so-called "Thai type". The notions of feudal and patrimonial patterns of political society are still valuable in this context.

If these three shortcomings in Thai approaches to studies of Japanese politics are dealt with, then an effective challenge can be mounted on the hoary tales of Thailand's independence and its similarity to Japan that appear without fail in Thai texts.

The Thai approach to the study of Japanese politics, which emphasizes the affinity between Thailand and Japan, is not only misleading in itself; it is also responsible for reinforcing the conservative view of Thailand's own history. According to this view, both Thailand and Japan are rice-growing societies, primarily Buddhist, and monarchical in political structure. But the comparison, which is invariably flattering to Thailand, is based on ignorance of the Thai state and a readiness to swallow received ideas. For example, it is commonly said in Thailand that during the Chulalongkorn reign (1868-1910) Thailand was at the same level as Japan, and furthermore that Chulalongkorn's attempted reforms were aimed at achieving a Thai nation-state similar to Meiji Japan's. Ideas such as these must be subjected to more critical evaluation.

The reader should not misunderstand me. Comparative studies of Thailand and Japan can certainly be worthwhile, as can the study of Japanese politics from a Thai perspective. But these studies must be carried out with an awareness and appreciation of what are hard facts and what is myth, and with critical theories appropriate to the study at hand.

Thai political studies could benefit from a background knowledge of many elements of Japanese politics: political factions, cliques, gangsters, coalitions, disharmony, friction, charisma, indecisiveness, the power of prerogative, and privilege, to name but a few. A study of Japanese politics yields concepts such as ideas of nation and state, gunbatsu and habatsu politics, oyabun-kobun relationships, money politics in its various forms and organization of business interests, all of which would be useful for Thai students seeking a better understanding of Thai society. I am arguing for comparative study as a two-way process of cultural learning, cultural transmission, and self-realization.

We must not overlook the complicated history of Thai-Japanese relations. In the late 19th century, during the war period and up to the present day, Thai society and politics have been influenced to a greater or lesser extent by an influx of people, activities, technologies and all kinds of products from Japan. A knowledge of the sources and purposes of these influxes is vitally important for an understanding of Japanese politics as well as for an appreciation of their effects on Thailand.

Finally, Thai researchers of Japanese politics should set aside theoretical standpoints and concentrate instead on carrying out serious empirical studies and on applying their knowledge. The definitive Thai texts on Japanese politics have still to be written.

Nakharain MEKTRAIRAT is Associate Professor of Political Science at Thammasat University, Thailand. He is currently Visiting Researcher at the Center of for Southeast Asian Studies, Kyoto University.