Monday, November 29, 2010

Volentary Sector Managment PA 281


    
    

    
Laura Hann
    

Thailand 2010 political protests and conflict
Theories on the negatives of social capitol applied

Introduction

This paper has been written with an extremely focused perspective of a highly complex and lengthy situation in Thailand.  The following pages focus and analyze the actions of the Red Shirt protestors during their spring 2010 protests. This paper is not all encompassing of Red Shirt actions, nor does it analyze surrounding circumstances and actions of the other actors. As you read this paper I ask that you keep in mind several factors.
First those in power in Thailand are anti democratic. They have taken power by force, ousting a democratically elected Prime Minister in order to install their leadership. This is not the first time that they have done this, it is in fact the second time in the past 5 years. Both of these times have been following the democratic elections of Red Shirt aligned leadership. While in power the military and elites have essentially removed all traditional forms of resistance against the government, by limiting freedoms and restricting livelihood activities.  To use a metaphor they have pushed the marginalized into a corner, with no clear escape.
Second is that all sides have been acting violently. Between 2005 and 2010 the Yellow Shirt group has used mass protests and mob violence to gain political objectives on several occasions causing equal if not greater damage to social capitol and democracy with less noble motivations than the Red Shirts. If there was a formula for violence the violence of the Yellow Shirts and military overwhelmingly cancels out the violence of the Red Shirts. During the spring 2010 protests and conflict is has become widely accepted that the military was the first to use force and violence triggering the Red Shirts response and retaliation.
Third with a deep examination of the underlying reasons and causes for the violence it is overwhelmingly easy to find support for Miguel Darcy De Oliveira and Rajesh Tandons findings that “Peace and democracy are not compatible with ever-increasing poverty and exclusion”. History has shown that revolution expands democracy. The Red Shirt movement is a revolutionary movement and sometimes you need to shed blood to achieve democracy. It is apparent that the increasing poverty and exclusion have resulted in violence as a means to democracy. Violence itself is not democratic, however for the excluded in Thailand no other option appears to exist.
Keeping these three factors in mind the following examination looks to categorize the Red Shirts spring 2010 political protests and conflict within the discourse of the third sector while analyzing if their actions during these spring protests promoted democracy.
To address the three complex and somber situational factors I have presented the question is raised how do we end violence if election set the stage for conflict? I believe that the solution would be the use of a neutral third party to engage to seek resolution and forward movement among the military, elite and the poor. Thailand could gain stability through UN mediation if all sides approached the mediations with an open mind.

History

A basic understanding of Thai history is necessary in this discourse. In 1238, the kingdom now known as Thailand made an official declaration of independence from the Khmer Kingdom. Many developments in the Thai kingdom occurred over the subsequent 700 years leading to the development of a constitutional monarchy in 1932. The parliamentary government was designed to be ruled by a prime minister, while the king retained the functions as head of state. In 1946 the first direct elections for parliament occurred, creating a democratic parliament with a hereditary head of state. In 1997 an unprecedented election of a constitutional drafting assembly was held. This drafting assembly successfully created the 1997 constitution and gained the name of the people’s constitution.
From 1932 till the present; Thailand has had incessant internal turmoil accented with regional conflict. Since the first direct parliament elections in 1976 the Kingdom of Thailand has experienced 18 coup d’états. During these years the country has had a total of 18 different constitutions, the current constitution being created in 2007. The protests and conflicts that occurred during the spring of 2010 grew out of this history and are closely linked with the internal developments since 2005.

2005 till spring 2010

In 2005 Prime Minister (P.M.) Tahksin[1] was re-elected as P.M. In 2006 the turmoil began when General Sondhi Boonyaratkalin[2], staged a bloodless coup, overthrowing P.M. Tahksin and instituting martial law. Following the coup Surayd Chulanont[3] was appointed interim P.M.  It was announced that general elections would be held in 2007 following the completion of a new constitution. In May of 2007 the political party Thai Rak Thai[4] was found guilty of election fraud by the constitutional court and banned from participating in politics for the next five years. Many Thais saw this ban as the military eliminating their top political competition[5]. In August 2007 Thailand voted on a new constitution, this constitution was developed to bring Thailand back to a democracy however it was significantly different from the previous 1997 constitution. In December Thailand held parliamentary elections. 233 of the 480 seats in parliament were won by the Peoples Power Party, strong supporters of former P.M. Tahkisn. The Peoples Power Party of 2007 was lead by Samak Sundaravej[6] who became the P.M. after the 2007 elections.
2008 experienced 192 day protests from the People Alliance for Democracy Party (PAD)[7]. PAD called for and eventually gained the removal of Samak Sundaravej from P.M. These protests ended in December when the courts ruled to dissolve the Peoples Power Party. Following this ruling parliament elected Abhist Vejjajiva[8] as the new P.M. This election held hope for Thailand, based on the widespread acceptance of P.M. Vejjajiva drawing from his clean reputation.
2009 put a crack in that hope when protestors loyal to former P.M. Thaksin interrupted a meeting of Asian leaders that was being held in Thailand. The protestors surrendered to the army at that time. As 2009 continued demonstrations for and against Thaksin grew, reaching their height in December. Around 20,000 Thaksin supporters, the Red Shirts, demanded new elections in Bangkok. New elections were not held and 2010 began with a growing crack in the hope that P.M. Vejjajiva would restore stability to Thailand.

spring 2010 political protests and conflict

Events unfolded quickly during 2010. In February the Thai Supreme Court found Thaksin guilty of abuse of power and ruled to seize his assets. On March 14th tens of thousands of Red Shirt protestors appeared on the streets on Bangkok demanding new elections. At the end of March P.M. Vejjajiva met with Red Shirt leadership, however, no agreement was reached. In early April 1,000+ Red Shirt anti-government demonstrators stormed parliament. P.M. Vejjajiva responded by declaring a state of emergency in Bangkok. Following the declaration of a state of emergency, protestors attempted to break into military barracks. The police and military responded by use of tear gas and rubber bullets. 25 people die during this exchange. A week later, P.M. Vejjajiva turned all security operations over to the military. The military positioned over 1,500 troops near a Red Shirt protestor occupied downtown shopping district. The Red Shirt protestors threatened to expand into the finical district. By April 20th it was glaringly clear that the hope in P.M Vejjajiva was gone.
On May 19th security forces clashed with protestors leaving over 80 people dead. By the conclusion of May the majority of the protests had concluded. The issues that are behind the protests are still unresolved. A new election, one of the key demands of the Red Shirts, has been postponed as long as there is disorder in the country.

What is promoted?

In this paper democracy will be defined by the Merriam Webster Dictionary as
a government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly or indirectly through a system of representation usually involving periodically held free elections”. 
This leads to the question; do associations promote social capitol and democracy? The answer is sometimes. Associations can promote many other forms of government that are not democracy. Associations have negative effects on democracies when they undermine existing democratic structures. Terrorist groups and drug cartels are the prominent examples of associations undermining democracy in today’s world. They have gained power though force, taking away supreme power being vested in the people.
Associations will create social capitol. The social capitol associations create is as likely be negative as positive. Discussions have been presented about the negative side of associations. The IMF wrote that social capitol can lead to bad results such as hate groups, including the white supremacy groups in the United States, and inbred democracies.
In 1994 Yamigishi and Yamigishi developed several trust categories. They found the presence of “particularized trust”. Particularized trust is when a person engages in association and builds trust within that association, however is unwilling to interact outside that association and has no trust for those outside their immediate network.
Associations that negatively impact social capitol and democracy can be termed the “dark side[9]”. Considering the events in Thailand in the spring of 2010 the possibility exists that the Red Shirt protestors are the dark side of the third sector.

Academic views applied to the spring 2010 political protests and conflict.

The political protests and conflicts that occurred in Thailand during the spring of 2010 provided an example that combines an array of research findings and theories on the broad arena of the third sector.  Prominent thinkers such as Robert Putnam, Isagani R Serrano, Ledivina V Carino, Mark Lyons, and Alex B Brillantes Jr, as well as, Miguel Darcy De Oliveira, Rajesh Tandon, Helmut K Anheier, Partha Dasgupta, and Ismail Serageldin have all published work that directly correlates with the developments in Thailand.  Examining how the Red Shirt protests reflect the third sector discourse creates a mixed concept, where elements build social capitol and promote democracy while other destroy.
Robert Putnams influential article "Bowling Alone: Americas declining social capital” discusses the idea that trends can develop overtime that lead to disconnectedness creating distrust and unstable relationships. Putnam believed several factors to be causing this disconnectedness. Two of those factors he identified have been occurring in Thailand over the last decade. First is the movement of women into the workforce. Putnam argues that this movement of women into the workforce has “reduced the time and energy available for building social capital”. Second is the transformation of leisure with technology. Putnam presents the idea that as the concept of leisure transforms with the use of television and computer as methods to fulfill a person’s leisure, there becomes a decline in the desire to seek out human interaction as a method of leisure.
Isagani R Serranos articles “Re-Imaging Civil Society” and Developing a fourth generation NGO strategy” discuss the idea of paradigms and the questions as well as realities they raise.  Serrano in his article Re-Imaging Civil Society writes
“In the modern world the idea of civil society has arisen in response to some general breakdown in social paradigms and social order, Its emergence also indicates a certain striving to resolve seemingly unending contradictions in social life, such as those between individuals and society, the private and public, egotism and altruism, between a life governed by reason and one driven by passion.”
The “general breakdown of social paradigms and social order” can be seen in Thai history as well as the within the spring protests in 2010. The 1997 Thai constitution was able to provide s semblance of social order in a nation that has strived for democracy while forcefully creating change. The “life governed by reason” can be seen as the force behind the 1997 constitution. The 1997 constitution has been the longest active governing constitution in Thai history. The 2006 military coup followed by martial law was “driven by passion” overturning the seemingly stable social order. In the same article Serrano writes;
“View civil society as a set of entitlements that would equate … with the notion of citizenship in a democracy. These entitlements span a whole range, like freedoms of association and expression, the right to vote and be voted into public office, a free or alternative press and so on.”
How do people understand these entitlements? What happens when they feel that these entitlements are restricted? What occurs when the entitlements are taken away? How are these entitlements provided in mixed democracy settings? Looking at Thailand, one set of answers to these questions is available. People living in mixed democracies, in this case, a parliamentary monarchy will understand and perceive these entitlements as they gain awareness of them either though outside actors, such as the growth of the internet, or through internal support and developments, including the voting and assembly rights provided in the 1997 constitution. When these elements are limited or taken away people will take the opportunity to protest.  During martial law in 2009 restrictions were placed on all forms of media. These restrictions have continued and become more widespread up to this writing. P.M. Vejjajiva has said that these restrictions are necessary since the media can be used to stir violence. Recently another entitlement has been restricted; P.M. Vejjajiva has installed 400 mobile checkpoints around the city of Bangkok[10], reducing the freedom of movement.
This distrust of citizens expressed by P.M. Vejjajiva reflects a question Serrano raised. The question of whether men (and women) are by nature good or evil. It would seem as if the current government in Thailand distrusts its citizens, implying they are evil. It also appears as if the citizens of Thailand distrust the intentions of the government, insinuating that it too is evil. Serrano gives only two options, good or evil, in the spring 2010 protests and conflict people in Thailand respond to one another as if people are by nature evil.
Within discussions of the third sector, categories of generations have been presented and used. These categories reflect the type of work or focus a group occupies in the third sector. Initially only three were developed. As time and research has progressed a fourth sector has begun to develop. Serrano in his article “Developing a fourth generation NGO strategy” raises the idea that
“For the alternative development paradigm to succeed in replacing the mainstream development model it would require a kind of strategic leadership of a fourth generation orientation.”
What creates strategic leadership? Is it possible that what occurred in Thailand was a movement to replace the mainstream development model? These two questions could comprise a research project all their own. Internet chat and blog sites are sprinkled with opinions that what happened during spring 2010 in Thailand is deeper and more complex than merely an extension of conflict over political power and leadership. These internet voices strengthen these questions. Categorizing the Red Shirt protests of 2010 as part of the third sector, they fall exclusively in the fourth generation, seeking to transform the existing intuitions in order to create a new framework.
Ledivina V Carino in her piece “Drawbacks and Challenges” addresses how globally there has been a decline in volunteerism. Carino’s findings in the Philippines reflect those of Putnam in the United States. The decline in volunteering signifies the potential shift in the composition of the third sector. Carino writes that;
“Human beings need a means of expressing their political and economic concerns free from the compulsion of government and the requirements of supply and demand.”
With a decline in traditional voluntary roles as a medium to express these concerns people will seek out an alternative means of expression. Social observers have identified that people often used media outlets as a form of expression. In Thailand the government has been regulating this option of media. The need of expression has been fulfilled in Thailand by mass political protests and conflict. These protests and conflicts can find similarities with EDSA I in the Philippines.  A nation enjoying relatively high degrees of democracy, put under martial law and having their form of expression limited, select to gather in masses to protest the situation with an end result of a conflict.
Mark Lyons asked the question “Nonprofit Sector or Civil Society: Are They Competing Paradigms?”. His answer essentially was not yet, however in formulating this conclusion he made several applicable observations.
First, the third sector is fragmented in to various fields of activity. In the spring of 2010 Thailand saw three main third sector representatives. The protestors themselves who aliened with the Red Shirts, Red Shirt leadership who essentially directed the developments within the protests and the final civil society actor would be the Yellow Shirts who considered themselves the third sector representatives of the King[11].
The second observation Lyons makes is the early definitions of both components of the third sector.
“Civil society was seen as a sphere of action that was in some way distinct from family, state and economy or market, but for the most part, the philosopher’s proceeded to conflate it with one of the other of its more readily grasped partners of state or market. For some, it was a sphere which was separate from the state where economic relationships of the market could flourish; for others it was synonymous with the state.”
“Non profit organizations exist because of market failure caused by information a-symmetry”
Thinking about the events in Thailand during sprint 2010 these early understanding would lead to the conclusion that the Red Shirt demonstrations were not part of the third sector. As Lyons continues in his analysis he arrives at a revised definition of civil society.
“Civil society is a category in an all encompassing theory, rather than an object of study in its own right”
“…civil society organizing to provide people opportunity to organize, discover shared views and to advance those views to provide facilities or services to be used by themselves or others. It is focused on organizations that would be classed as providing membership benefit rather than public benefit”
Within the framework of these revised definitions the Red Shirts actions during spring 2010 can be categorized as a movement within the realm of civil society. The Red Shirt protests provided membership, gave a medium to discover shared views and organized to allow others to organize within. From this context Lyons arrives at the conclusion that civil society has been important in organizing people’s movement in Latin America and Asia over the last several decades. Thailand can be seen as another country where a civil society people’s movement grew with the potential for fundamental change to happen at a systematic level.
Alex B Brillantes Jr, in his articles “Sate-Civil Society Relations in Policy-Making Civil Society and the Executive” & “Civil Society Making Civil Society” raises two timely thoughts. First he writes that civil society groups play a key role in government accountability. The Red Shirt protestors were fulfilling just such role, demanding elections to fill the government positions that had been gained in an undemocratic method. Secondly, Brillantes identifies four areas that differ within civil society. These areas are the nature of organization, organization level, organizational origin and perspectives/ ideology. Applying the Red Shirt 2010 protestors to these categories an insightful and comparable explanation of the Red Shirts emerges.
Red Shirts Thailand Spring 2010
These four areas highlight the organic free form of the spring 2010 protests. The organic free form that the protests took successfully raised the issue of the unaccountability of the Thai government.
Miguel Darcy De Oliveira and Rajesh Tandon co authored, “An emerging Global Civil Society”.  Through this piece they put forth the statement that
“Peace and democracy are not compatible with ever-increasing poverty and exclusion”
What occurred on the streets of Bangkok in the spring of 2010 was not peace, while the government controlling the political landscape of Thailand was not democratic. In the country side and off the main streets of Bangkok poverty and exclusion are daily realities for around 30% of Thais[12]. Giles Ungpakor, an independent social commentator wrote “What we have been seeing in Thailand since late 2005 is a growing class war between the poor majority and the old elites[13].”These factors confirm the statement that poverty and exclusion do not create peace and democracy.
 Olivera and Tandon reflected the popular discourse third sector, and that is how to categorize and label third sectors. They found that if one first identifies what kind of state, than what kind of market one will find what kind of third sector is being observed and interacted with. In Thailand there was a weak[14] state, backed by a strong military, a polarized competing market[15], and in the spring of 2010 a unified volatile third sector gathered on the streets. Recent Thai history suggests that the third sector is ever changing since the market and state are in continuous fluctuation.
Helmut K Anheier in the article “Nonprofit Organizations: Theory, Managemnt, Policy” contributes to the discussion of the third sector by defining civil society as shorthand for the broader context of civic actions for the common good and of values such as tolerance, respect for others and philanthropy. Within Anheiers discussion what occurred in Thailand is not civil society, causing the need for a new definition within the third sector that the political protestors can be placed in order to create a medium for discussion and understanding.
Partha Dasgupta, and Ismail Serageldin complied an extensive book titled Social Capitol a multifaceted perspective”. This book;
“…presents theoretical and empirical studies of social capital[16] by a roster of leading sociologists, economists, and political scientists… described by the editors as "a reasoned account of our current understanding of the concept."
The essay by Kenneth J. Arrow, from Stanford University title “observations on social capital” writes on the effects of social interactions. He draws the conclusions that good and bad behaviors are influenced by those around a person, their neighbors or network. From these findings he concluded that “good behavior spreads; so does bad”. This concept can be supported by Thailand Spring 2010. Over the previous 5 years an increasing amount of people had been involving themselves in political protests. Spring 2010 had the greatest participation to date. Using this concept, the conclusion is that those protesting in 2005 impacted their network creating a great and greater number of participants in the protests. In a small time and space observation during the protests one person engages in “bad” behavior such as violence or damaging property. Those people physically near this person will be impacted by their choice and then choose to engage in similar behavior, as they did when those in their network began to protest, so they did also. This impact of those around explains why some areas of the Bangkok protestors saw no violence or vandalism while others experienced high levels.
Ismail Sergeldin and Christiaan Grootaert from the World Bank co authored an essay titled “Defining Social Capital: An Integrating View”.  In their paper they base much of their article on the writings of James Coleman. Sergeldin and Grootaert write that Colemans statement of social capital facilitating actions explains current social structures as well as the norms governing interpersonal behavior. During the spring of 2010 in Thailand it appears that the norms governing interpersonal[17] behavior were derived from social capitol demanding change in social structure within the poor and marginalized sector of Thailand. Sergeldin and Grootaert wrote “that social relationships affect and are affected by economic outcomes”.  Observes in Thailand noted that the masses of the Red Shirts came from the poor. The poor had received some level of economic gain during the P.M. of Tahksin. The court ruling on the guiltiness of Tahksin may have caused a rise in feelings of future negative economic outcomes increasing the motivation to alter the social structure and relationships. Sergldin and Grootaer found that social relationships create potential for improving development outcomes but also hold the possibility that these same relationships can have negative effects. They found that the outcome depends on several factors; the nature of the relationship, preexisting norms and values, the political and legal context, and finally land rights and economic policies. How the spring 2010 protests will impact the long term developments remains to be seen. It is distinctly possible that no permanent change in social structure and relationships will occur causing the protests to be seen as only having negative effects. That in mind however it is equally plausible that the outside factors Sergldin and Grootaer presented are the appropriate mix and the spring 2010 protests will ultimately improve development outcomes.
Joseph E Stiglitz of the World Bank contributed an essay titled “Formal and Informal Institutions”. Stiglitz wrote that;
The outcome of participation depends on the incentives of participants and the issues in question. And the structure of participation is a factor as well.”
In the spring 2010 case ultimate outcome remains unknown. The incentives appear to be a desire for real change on the government level. The structure is more complex, due to the variety of roles and dedication the Red Shirt protestors had. Red Shirt leadership presented the most organized and prolonged interactions as well as developing and communicating intention and purpose. Red Shirt police acted an unofficial protectors and peace keepers during the protests. Red Shirt protestors came and participated in all imaginable mixes, with the common denominator being their desire to participate.
Anirudh Krishna from Corness University contributed an essay titled “Creating and Harnessing Social Capital”. Krishna presents two types of motivation for participation. Krishna demonstrates the potential for identical end results with greatly different motivation. First motivation is through well recognized leadership within the group of people, this can be described as institutional action. Second is for people to act/ behave because of norms; what is appropriate, right and proper behavior. This second motivation can be categorized as cognitive. The majority of the Red Shirt protestors engaged in an institutional way.  Red Shirt leadership is strong, once supported by the Thai Rak Thai party and has championed the case of Tahksin, both drawing popularity.
Jonathan H. Turner of the University of California authored “The Formation of Social Capital”. In this work he examines the negative positive emotional interaction within social capital. Turner found that more positive emotions are generated when individuals sense that others can be trusted and will behave in a predictable and reliable way.
“(T)he emotional mood of an interaction can turn toward the negative side and quickly unravel: if negative emotions such as anger, fear, or disappointment are aroused, they swiftly escalate into negative externalities unless corrective repair rituals are immediately offered. And if negative emotions rise, they deplete the more positive emotional capital that had been accumulated.”
Utilizing Turners findings the Red Shirt protestors did not behave in a predictable or reliable way, causing the government to respond negatively leading to the emotional mood of the interplay to turn negative. This escalated into physical conflict between the two sides, neither being able to correct or repair the negative spiral causing continued distrust and greater conflicts. While the conflicts and protests have ended Turners findings would suggest that any social capitol between the two groups has gone into the negative and will take substantial effort to repair[18].

Applied

The ongoing examination of how to classify to in order to create the most effective conversation, understanding and comparisons within the third sector is not omitted from the discourse on the spring 2010 Red Shirt protests in Thailand. The overall definition of the third sector today is that it has two elements, those of non profits and those of civil society.  The definition and framework of non profit is not that of the Red Shirt protestors. Red Shirts spring 2010 Thailand could be the fourth generation of civil society. There space in the civil society is debated as Ahmer excludes the Red Shirts while Serrano includes them. The Red Shirt movement might be forming its own category within the third sector something that is not non profit or civil society.   Is it possible that the protests in Thailand were not even part of the third sector?
The question of classification leads to the question of legitimacy. Taking the definitions of civil society that exclude the spring 2010 political protests and conflicts in Thailand generates the potential that what happened was a long term mob riot, that has no space in the discourse of the third sector. The occurrence of similar activities in countries such as the Philippines and Venezuela suggests legitimacy to the spring 2010 political protests and conflicts as well as giving argument to their place in the third sector. The pre and post conditions in Thailand are different than what occurred in the Philippines and Venezuela, however the protests themselves draw similarities. I would suggest that these similarities and connection to the discourse removes the potential of the protests being outside of the realm of the third sector.
Returning to one of the original questions, did this association promote social capitol and democracy? The answer is some. Particularized trust was fostered, and democracy was demanded. The ends are that the Red Shirt Spring 2010 protests and conflict are part of the dark side of the third sector. Intentions aside, methods were forceful, damaging and undemocratic.

Summary

To summarize these academic applications to Thailand several questions must be answered. How do we define the Red Shirt protest of 2010? Was the social capitol developed sustainable? Was the change sustainable? Do the ends justify the means; what are the ends? Is Thailand in a place to be more democratic than before?
How do we define the Red Shirt protest of 2010?
The political protests and conflict in spring 2010 are part of the third sector. It would appear that they are part of a developing fourth generation of civil society as discussed by Serrano. The debate about the definition of civil society draws questions if fourth generation civil society is where these belong. Space in the discourse would suggest that they do.
Was the social capitol developed sustainable?
Within the Red Shirt movement social capitol was created as they shared experiences and common goals. The recent conversation about the potential development of an underground civil society reflecting the goals and ideologies expressed during the spring 2010 protests, confirms that sustainable social capitol was developed over the spring protests in Thailand.
Social capitol was destroyed by the negative emotions as well as the unreliable actions of those involved during the protests and conflict. Between the Red Shirts and the government there is a negative amount of social capitol that will require focused efforts to rebuild allowing the two groups to be able to successfully work together in the future.
Was the change sustainable?
Things in Thailand have changed. The tourist image is damaged. The mindset that if a group is unhappy with the political situation mass protests and violence are tolerated has been further enforced. The Red Shirts have developed a strong network that has begun to be carried over into daily life as well as going underground. The government is aware of the strong feelings of discontent among the rural and urban poor.
Things have also remained unchanged. Abhist Vejjajiva is still the Prime Minister. Elections have not happened nor are dates set. The wealthy elite still control the majority of Thailand’s finances, with the rural still seeing a large discrepancy in wealth.
The change or lack of has been sustained for the past four months. Thai history has demonstrated that the division between wealthy and poor is sustainable while political change occurs regularly and is not sustainable. The Red Shirts are an evolution of former political actors and will most likely remain till they no longer have utility, allowing the social capitol between members to expand to that point and potentially carry over into their next form.
Do the ends justify the means; what are the ends?
A common question when looking at the morality of a situation is to ask if the ends justify the means. In the spring 2010 political protests and conflict in Thailand only partial information is available to answer this question.  An evaluation of the negative consequences includes;
·         Loss of life 85+ died during the three months
·         Damage to tourism industry
·         1 billion + infrastructure damage
·         Raised the question of ‘democracy or failed state?’
 An evaluation of the positive consequences includes;
·         Social capitol was built
·         The poor gained power and voice
·         Un democratic power was challenged
At this time it appears to be neutral or perhaps even in the negative. The future will truly answer this question. At this time the objectives of the protestors remain un-fulfilled and the likelihood for democracy to flourish in the near future remains questionable, giving greater weight to the conclusion that the ends do not justify the means.
Is Thailand in a place to be more democratic than before?
The Red Shirts were seeking an increase in the level of democracy, they wanted elections not a military coup installed P.M. Their method was prolonged mass protest. There is a necessity for citizens to keep power in check. This necessity raises the question of at what cost; bring back the idea does the end justify the means? At this time is would appear as if the Red Shirts have failed, Thailand is still under a coup installed government and has experienced increased limitations on former freedoms, such as media control. Despite these indicators of failure a message was sent to those who wish to seek power through force. This message is that taking power by force will not go un-noticed. Forceful rise to power will create internal disruption causing difficulty in governing a successful nation.
In Venezuela and the Philippines similar mass protests have brought about a more democratic state raising the question of why Thailand appears less democratic now than before the spring 2010 Red Shirt Protest. Did the Red Shirt protestors quit too soon? Not have enough power? Or perhaps is the role of origin and ideology at work?
A common factor through much of this examination is the element of particularized trust, building and destroying trust due to tightly formed associations has created the dark side of the third sector to be strong in the spring 2010 political protests and conflict.
As one final thought, taking the outside and historical factors into account, particularly those raised in the introduction, it appears as if the Red Shirts intentions are to create democracy. In this one event they Red Shirt Spring 2010 Political Protests and Conflict, they have not achieved this intention. Most who are observing Thailand believe that the situation has not been resolved, and more actions on both sides will occur in the future.

Future work opportunities

This preliminary analysis of the spring 2010 protests and conflict in Thailand supported and reflected the theoretical work of many academics within the field of the third sector. By applying their work to a current case study several areas for future work and exploration arose. There are four areas I have identified that would greatly enhance the discourse on the third sector.
First is in regards to Thailand Specifically a substantial amount of information exists suggesting that variations in civil society coincide with changes in the media. A comprehensive examination of the interplay between Thailand's civil society and the Thai media would greatly improve understanding of civil society and its development in Asia.
Secondly, would be an examination of faith. Around 94% of Thais are Buddhists, a faith that teaches simplicity and moderation has been able to act as a backdrop for such intensive and prolong conflict. How these two seemingly opposite systems of belief coincide within the individual as well as the community would have far reaching implications.
Third is an exploration of the concept of strategic leadership. Identifying what creates strategic leadership as well as exploring if what occurred spring 2010 in Thailand was a movement to replace the mainstream development model?
The Asian Barometer (ABS) is an applied research program on public opinion on political values, democracy, and governance around the region.  ABS conducted a study focusing on participation in civil society in 2001. They found that only 52% of Thais were involved in any form of civil society, that number dropping drastically in terms of multiple group participation. This finding leads to my final set of questions. Is the unrest and conflict in Thailand since 2005 a product of this previous lack of associations, given that associations directly correlates with increased trust in others as well as the government, that associations prepare individuals to be active members of a democracy, given that the more urban the setting the lower levels of participations?

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[1] Former Prime Minister Tahkisn is a millionaire who made his fortune in telecommunications, formulated the Thai Rak Thai party and gained power in 2001
[2] Gen. Sondhi Boonyaratkalin is a combat veteran and the first Thai Muslim to head the Army.
[3] Former Genearl Surayd Chulanont, is known for his un-corruptibility while in the army. He is a former monk as well as a senior advisor to the king.
[4] This is the party founded by former prime minister Tahkisn
[5] The Party is Over.
[6] Samak Sundaravej a well known television chef, slash government employee, holding a variety of government posts since 1968, believed to be a proxy of former PM Tahksin
[7] PAD is the political group of the wealthy in Thailand
[8]Prime Minister Abhist Vejjajiva is the Eton educated, head of the Democratic Party He is the youngest P.M. in Thailand’s history, most of his support is from the educated Thai middle class 
[9] Term found in: Smith, David Horton, and Robert A. Stebbins. Forthcoming. "A Grounded Theory about the Origins Phase of Deviant Nonprofit Groups: Exploration of the "Dark Side' of the Nonprofit Sector. Unpublished paper submitted for editorial review. Snow, Robert L. 2003
[10] Bangkok Post Online
[11] The Government  and the military are not part of the third sector
[12] Based on the UN poverty line of 1USD per day
[13] Ungpakorn, Giles, ji
[14] In regards to the continuation of Coups and new constitutions
[15] Wealthy, successful, international corporations in the same sphere with struggling independent businesses.
[16] The concept of social capitol is deriving from the idea that social relationships are resource was initially proposed by James Coleman in the 1970’s.

[17] In the time and space of the protests in Bangkok
[18] At this writing repair has not begun with elections being put off by the government and talk of underground rebellion being presented by the Red Shirts.