Jon Ungphakorn ( th, จอน อึ๊งภากรณ์, ; born 19 September 1947) is a

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

-born

Thai Thai or THAI may refer to: * Of or from Thailand, a country in Southeast Asia ** Thai people, the dominant ethnic group of Thailand ** Thai language, a Tai-Kadai language spoken mainly in and around Thailand *** Thai script *** Thai (Unicode block ...

non-governmental organization A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in h ...

(NGO) executive and former member of the

Senate of Thailand The Senate of Thailand ( th, วุฒิสภา, , ; formerly known as Phruetthasapha ( th, พฤฒสภา, , ) is the upper house of the National Assembly of Thailand, Thailand's legislative branch. In accordance with the 2017 Constitu ...

(2000–2006).

Life and career

Jon is the eldest of three sons of the economist Puey Ungphakorn, who was a

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

of the

Bank of Thailand The Bank of Thailand (BOT) ( Abrv: ธปท.; th, ธนาคารแห่งประเทศไทย, ) is the central bank of Thailand. History The Bank of Thailand (BOT) was first set up as the Thai National Banking Bureau. The Bank ...

and rector of

Thammasat University Thammasat University (Abbreviation, Abrv: TU th, มธ.; th, มหาวิทยาลัยธรรมศาสตร์, , ) is a public research university in Thailand with campuses in Tha Phra Chan area of Phra Nakhon District near the ...

, and Margaret Smith of London. His brothers are the journalist Peter Mytri Ungphakorn and the political scientist and Marxist activist

Giles Ji Ungpakorn Giles Ji Ungpakorn ( th, ใจ อึ๊งภากรณ์; ; IPA:; born 25 October 1953) is a Thai-British academic and Marxist political activist. He formerly worked as an associate professor on the Faculty of Political Science, Chulalon ...

. He completed a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering at the

University of Sussex , mottoeng = Be Still and Know , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £14.4 million (2020) , budget = £319.6 million (2019–20) , chancellor = Sanjeev Bhaskar , vice_chancellor = Sasha Roseneil , ...

and taught as a lecturer at

Mahidol University Mahidol University (Mahidol), an autonomous research institution in Thailand, had its origin in the establishment of Siriraj Hospital in 1888. Mahidol had an acceptance rate for Medicine of 0.4% as of the 2016 academic year. Becoming the Univers ...

in Bangkok for five years. Jon started his social activism during the 1970s. He initiated the ''Thai Volunteer Service'' in 1980, that facilitates development projects across Thailand. The network provides help to smaller, local NGOs to manage and fund their own projects. In 1991, Jon founded the non-governmental organisation ''AIDS Access'', raising awareness for HIV/AIDS in the country, supplying help and training to patients through a network of some 500 local offices. In 2000 Jon Ungphakorn was elected to the Thai Senate with the support of the NGO and HIV/AIDS communities. He was one of 18 senators representing the capital Bangkok for a six-year term. He served in the Senate's health committee and the committee on social development and human security. He worked to include HIV/AIDS patients in the "30-baht-per-visit" national healthcare scheme of the

Thaksin Shinawatra Thaksin Shinawatra ( th, ทักษิณ ชินวัตร; ; ; Chinese: 丘達新; cnr, Taksin Šinavatra; born 26 July 1949), is a Thai businessman, politician and visiting professor. He served in the Thai Police from 1973 to 1987, a ...

government. He also supported a lawsuit against

Bristol-Myers Squibb The Bristol Myers Squibb Company (BMS) is an American multinational pharmaceutical company. Headquartered in New York City, BMS is one of the world's largest pharmaceutical companies and consistently ranks on the ''Fortune'' 500 list of the lar ...

to allow for a critical anti-HIV drug being produced in Thailand at half the cost. In 2004, he co-founded the ''

Prachatai ''Prachatai'' ( th, ประชาไท, ''Free People'') is an independent non-profit online newspaper in Thailand. Focusing on news from and commentary on NGOs, social movements, and human rights issues, the website became an alternative sour ...

'' online newspaper and once served on its board. In 2005 he was awarded the

Magsaysay Award The Ramon Magsaysay Award (Filipino: ''Gawad Ramon Magsaysay'') is an annual award established to perpetuate former Philippine President Ramon Magsaysay's example of integrity in governance, courageous service to the people, and pragmatic idealis ...

for Governmental Services, exactly 40 years after his father won the award. Jon opposed the 2006 military coup. On 12 December 2007, he participated in a sit-in at the house of parliament, protesting against the junta-appointed National Legislative Assembly's rapid passing of laws on internal security and university privatisation without public participation. He was charged with trespassing, incitement to break the law, and leading an illegal gathering. After all stages of appeal, the

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

condemned him to a two-year suspended sentence. In 2009, he initiated the Internet for People's Laws Project (iLaw) to enable people to propose and amend laws through the process of collecting 10,000 signatures to the parliament under provisions of the 2007 constitution. Jon Ungphakorn is married and has three children.

External links

Short biography at senate.go.thRamon Magsaysay Award Citation

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ungphakorn, Jon Jon Ungphakorn Jon Ungphakorn Ramon Magsaysay Award winners Jon Ungphakorn Jon Ungphakorn Jon Ungphakorn Living people 1947 births