Thailand has had 22 coups – and could be heading toward a 23rd

Thailand’s Constitutional Court suspended Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra over ethics violations July 1, as a weekslong border spat with Cambodia roils fears of a coup d’état.

Whatever the outcome in the weeks ahead – coup or no coup – the crisis has bolstered support for Thailand’s popular military, surfacing deep questions over the army’s role in one of the world’s most coup-prone countries. Since 1932, there have been 22 coups in Thailand. Most were bloodless, and 13 succeeded in establishing military rule. The most recent was in 2014, when the army ousted Prime Minister Paetongtarn’s aunt Yingluck Shinawatra. A military junta ruled until 2019, when Thailand transitioned into a “military-dominated, semi-elected government,” according to Freedom House. The army maintained considerable political influence until more open and fair elections were held in May 2023.

The current political crisis now threatens to undercut two years of fragile democracy, reinforcing what experts describe as a “coup culture” in Thailand.

“Thai democratic institutions have been so systematically weakened that opposition to coups seems futile,” says Thitinan Pongsudhirak, director of the Institute of Security and International Studies, a think tank in Washington.

While the Cambodia conflict is fanning “patriotism tinged with nationalist feelings,” such feelings are “not to be conflated with support for military intervention in Thai politics,” he adds.

Leaked phone call sparks political crisis

Cambodia and Thailand have always had a contentious relationship, dating back centuries to a time when they were competing empires. In late May, a brief clash at a disputed border area known as the Emerald Triangle (with Laos making up the third part) left one Cambodian soldier dead, and reignited old tensions.

Then, on June 19, Cambodia’s Senate President Hun Sen posted on his Facebook page a private conversation with Prime Minister Paetongtarn, in which she addressed him warmly as “uncle” and criticized a senior Thai officer who had weighed in on the border dispute, saying the officer “just wanted to look cool.” This attempt at back-channel diplomacy backfired, unleashing a fury of frustration in Thailand – and worries of Coup 23.