The Thai government has set national elections for July 3

source: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703730804576312970888853948.html


The Thai government has set national elections for July 3, after securing royal approval to dissolve Parliament on Tuesday, paving the way for what is expected to be a fiercely contested campaign pitting Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva's Democrat Party against supporters of ousted populist leader Thaksin Shinawatra.

Political analysts say the election will be among the most important this key Southeast Asian economy has ever faced, and could set the political tone in the country for years to come, determining whether it gets back on track after years of instability or possibly faces renewed unrest.

One big question is whether voters who previously cast ballots for Mr. Thaksin before he was overthrown in a military coup nearly five years ago will support Mr. Abhisit's more cautious, technocratic style of government.

Mr. Abhisit, a 46-year-old, British-educated economist, said he was calling the election several months before the end of his term in December to give Thai voters a chance to stop the country's political conflicts and enable a new government focus on strengthening Thailand's economy, an important global manufacturing and export hub.

Mr. Abhisit unveiled a series of welfare spending projects, including subsidies and inexpensive loans. In a televised ceremony, the prime minister unveiled the package he called "nine New Year's gifts for Thailand." The measures included enabling taxi drivers to secure loans to buy their own vehicles and allowing other disadvantaged Thais to contribute to a government fund that would make them eligible to receive social-security benefits.

The policies are directed at poorer Thais, who have tended to support Mr. Thaksin, a 61-year-old former telecom billionaire who is the only Thai leader ever to be re-elected or to complete a full term.

Mr. Thaksin, meanwhile, has laid out changes to Thailand's corporate-tax rates and has promised large rises in the country's minimum wage to galvanize domestic consumer spending at a time when foreign investment is seeking cheaper locations.

Pheu Thai Party

The Pheu Thai Party (PTP) (Thai: พรรคเพื่อไทย, Phak Phuea Thai, For Thai Party) is the third incarnation of a Thai political party originally founded by former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. The Pheu Thai Party was founded on September 20, 2008, as an anticipated replacement for the People's Power Party (PPP), which the Constitutional Court of Thailand dissolved less than three months later after finding party members guilty of electoral fraud.^[1] The People's Power Party was itself a replacement for Thakin's original Thai Rak Thai (TRT) party, which the Constitutional Court dissolved in May 2007 for violation of electoral laws.^[2]


In a PTP general assembly, the first executive commission was elected on December 7, 2008,^[3], ^[4] The candidates for the party's leader were: Yongyuth Wichaidit, Apiwan Wiriyachai, the former Vice President of the House of Representatives), former health minister Chalerm Yubamrung and former industry minister Mingkwan Saengsuwan.^[5][6] Yongyuth Wichaidit was elected as the party's leader. ^[7],^[8]


source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pheu_Thai_Party

In a December 2008 parliamentary session MPs of five PPP coalition parties decided to endorse Abhisit Vejjajiva as the next Prime Minister and themselves forming a Democrat-led coalition. The PTP campaigned for their endorsement by the PPP-coalition parties. However, Abhisit had gained their support for the premiership^[9][10] After that, the party called for a national unity government in which all parties would be involved, with Snoh Thienthong of the Royalist People's Party as the new premier. This proposal was rejected by the defecting coalition parties and the Democrat Party.^[11] On December 11, Worrawat Eua-apinyakul, a PTP member, suggested that the party should push for a house dissolution and general elections, with the hope of depriving the prospective coalition of a parliamentary majority. However, The President of the House of Representatives; Chai Chidchob spoke against the plan. ^[12]

On December 15, 2008, the party elected Pracha Promnok as the party's candidate for Prime Minister in the next general election, and has since been in opposition to Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva's coalition government.

Abhisit Vejjajiva อภิสิทธิ์ เวชชาชีวะ 亞比昔

source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abhisit_Vejjajiva

Abhisit Vejjajiva ( English pronunciation (help·info); Thai: อภิสิทธิ์ เวชชาชีวะ (Thai pronunciation), RTGS: Aphisit Wetchachiwa, [à.pʰí.sìt wêːt.tɕʰāː.tɕʰīː.wáʔ],traditional Chinese: 亞比昔; simplified Chinese: 亚比昔; born 3 August 1964) is the leader of the Democrat Party and27th and current Prime Minister of Thailand.

Born in England, Abhisit attended Eton College and earned bachelors and masters degrees from the University of Oxford.^[5] He was elected to the Parliament of Thailand at age 27, and promoted to Democrat Party leader in 2005, after his predecessor resigned following the party's defeat in the 2005 general election.^[6]

Abhisit became Premier at a time of global economic turmoil and rising domestic political tensions.^[10] As prime minister, he promoted a "People’s Agenda," which focused primarily on policies affecting the living conditions of Thailand's rural and working class citizens.^[11] He administered two economic stimulus packages: a $40 billion, three-year infrastructure improvement plan, and a more than $3 billion program that featured cash subsidies and other initiatives to help the poor, elderly, farmers and students.^[12] By 2010, the stock market and the value of the baht had rebounded to their highest levels since the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis.

Mark A[bhisit] Vejjajiva^[20] was born in Wallsend, Newcastle upon Tyne, England, attended Eton College (where he was known as "Veggie" amongst his peers)^[21], and earned a bachelor's degree in philosophy, politics and economics (PPE), first class honors, and a master's degree ineconomics from St John's College, Oxford. He also earned a bachelor's degree in law from Thailand's Ramkhamhaeng University, and taught atChulachomklao Royal Military Academy.^[22] He is fluent in both his mother tongue and the English language, and has dual Thai and Britishcitizenship.^[23] His dual citizenship became a topic for the Thai parliamentary debates in early 2011. He is ethnically Han Chinese^[24][25] ofHakka^[26] origin.

Abhisit was preceded in public service by his father, Athasit (อรรถสิทธิ์) Vejjajiva, a former president of Mahidol University and the Royal Institute of Thailand^[27] and who is now director of Charoen Pokphand Foods, Thailand's largest agribusiness firm and part of the Charoen Pokphand Group, known throughout Thailand as CP.^[28]

Abhisit is married to Pimpen Sakuntabhai, his former classmate at the Chulalongkorn University Demonstration elementary school who is a former dentist and now a lecturer at the Department of Mathematics at Chulalongkorn University. They have two children: Prang Vejjajiva (daughter) and Pannasit Vejjajiva (son). Abhisit has two sisters: child psychiatrist Alisa Wacharasindhu and author Ngarmpun Vejjajiva.^[29]

Abhisit's ancestors are Hakka Chinese of the Yuan (surname) (袁) who moved from Vietnam to Thailand. The family name Vejjajiva was granted by King Rama VI to Abhisit's great-grandfather Dr. Long (หลง), together with Long's father Nai Jinsang (นายจิ๊นแสง), grandfather Nai Pong (นายเป๋ง) and great-grandfather Nai Go (นายก่อ) while Dr. Long was serving as an Army Medical Department sub-lieutenant (รองอำมาตย์ตรี)^[30] The Vejjajiva family came to prominence when Dr. Long, then styled Phra Bamrad Naradura, rose to public health minister, and founded the Bamrad Naradura hospital in Nonthaburi. The family name has the meaning, "medical profession."^[31]