Rajabhakti Park ( th, อุทยานราชภักดิ์, ) is a historically themed park honouring past Thai kings from the Sukhothai period to the current royal house of
Chakri. It is in
Hua Hin
Hua Hin ( th, หัวหิน, ) is one of eight districts (''amphoe'') of Prachuap Khiri Khan province in the northern part of the Malay Peninsula in Thailand. Its seat of government, also named Hua Hin, is a beach resort town. The district ...
,
Prachuap Khiri Khan Province,
Thailand
Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is b ...
. It was built by the
Royal Thai Army
The Royal Thai Army or RTA ( th, กองทัพบกไทย; ) is the army of Thailand and the oldest and largest branch of the Royal Thai Armed Forces.
History
Origin
The Royal Thai Army is responsible for protecting the kingdom's ...
, on Thai Army property, with approximately one billion baht (US$28 million) in funds donated by the public and private sectors. King
Bhumibol Adulyadej
Bhumibol Adulyadej ( th, ภูมิพลอดุลยเดช; ; ; ( Sanskrit: ''bhūmi·bala atulya·teja'' - "might of the land, unparalleled brilliance"); 5 December 192713 October 2016), conferred with the title King Bhumibol the Grea ...
gave the historical park the name "Rajabhakti Park", which means 'the park that has been built with people's loyalty to the monarchs'.
The park occupies an area of 222
rai
RAI – Radiotelevisione italiana (; commercially styled as Rai since 2000; known until 1954 as Radio Audizioni Italiane) is the national public broadcasting company of Italy, owned by the Ministry of Economy and Finance. RAI operates many ter ...
(355,200 m
2 or 36
ha).
Background
The Rajabhakti Park project was launched as a
Royal Thai Army
The Royal Thai Army or RTA ( th, กองทัพบกไทย; ) is the army of Thailand and the oldest and largest branch of the Royal Thai Armed Forces.
History
Origin
The Royal Thai Army is responsible for protecting the kingdom's ...
(RTA) initiative by General
Udomdej Sitabutr
Udomdej Sitabutr ( th, อุดมเดช สีตบุตร, born 15 August 1955) is a Thai military officer. He served as Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Thai Army from 2014 to 2015.
Education
Udomdej studied at Saint Gabriel's College ...
when he was the army chief prior to his retirement at the end of September 2015. The Rajabhakti Park Foundation was established to raise funds for the project and to manage it.
Crown Prince Maha
Vajiralongkorn
Vajiralongkorn ( th, วชิราลงกรณ; , ; born 28 July 1952) is the King of Thailand. He is the only son of King Bhumibol Adulyadej and Queen Sirikit. In 1972, at the age of 20, he was made crown prince by his father. After his ...
, accompanied by his daughter, Princess
Bajrakitiyabha
Princess Bajrakitiyabha Narendira Debyavati, the Princess Rajasarini Siribajra ( th, พัชรกิติยาภา นเรนทิราเทพยวดี, , also known as Princess Pa or Patty, born 7 December 1978) is a Thai diplom ...
, presided over the park's opening ceremonies on 26 September 2015.
Park layout
The park consists of three distinct areas. The first, covering an area of five rai (8,000 m
2), is dominated by the statues of seven notable Thai kings. They are King
Ram Khamhaeng
Ram Khamhaeng ( th, รามคำแหง, ) or Pho Khun Ram Khamhaeng Maharat ( th, พ่อขุนรามคำแหงมหาราช, ), also spelled Ramkhamhaeng, was the third king of the Phra Ruang Dynasty, ruling the Sukhoth ...
(reigned 1279-1298) of the
Sukhothai period
The Sukhothai Kingdom ( th, สุโขทัย, , IAST: , ) was a post-classical Thai kingdom (mandala) in Mainland Southeast Asia surrounding the ancient capital city of Sukhothai in present-day north-central Thailand. The kingdom was fou ...
, King
Naresuan
King Naresuan the Great (( th, สมเด็จพระนเรศวรมหาราช, , ) or Sanphet II ( th, สรรเพชญ์ที่ ๒), ( my , နရဲစွမ် (သို့) ဗြနရာဇ်); 1555/1556 – ...
(1590-1605) and King
Narai
King Narai the Great ( th, สมเด็จพระนารายณ์มหาราช, , ) or Ramathibodi III ( th, รามาธิบดีที่ ๓ ) was the 27th monarch of Ayutthaya Kingdom, the 4th and last monarch of the P ...
(1656-1688) of the
Ayutthaya period
The Ayutthaya Kingdom (; th, อยุธยา, , IAST: or , ) was a Siamese kingdom that existed in Southeast Asia from 1351 to 1767, centered around the city of Ayutthaya, in Siam, or present-day Thailand. The Ayutthaya Kingdom is consid ...
, King
Taksin
King Taksin the Great ( th, สมเด็จพระเจ้าตากสินมหาราช, , ) or the King of Thonburi ( th, สมเด็จพระเจ้ากรุงธนบุรี, ; ; Teochew: Dên Chao; April 17, ...
(1767-1782) of the
Thonburi period
The Thonburi Kingdom ( th, ธนบุรี) was a major Siamese kingdom which existed in Southeast Asia from 1767 to 1782, centered around the city of Thonburi, in Siam or present-day Thailand. The kingdom was founded by Taksin the Great, ...
, and King
Rama I
Phra Phutthayotfa Chulalok Maharaj (, 20 March 1737 – 7 September 1809), personal name Thongduang (), also known as Rama I, was the founder of the Rattanakosin Kingdom and the first monarch of the reigning Chakri dynasty of Siam (now T ...
(1782-1809), King
Mongkut
Mongkut ( th, มงกุฏ; 18 October 18041 October 1868) was the fourth monarch of Siam (Thailand) under the House of Chakri, titled Rama IV. He ruled from 1851 to 1868. His full title in Thai was ''Phra Bat Somdet Phra Menthora Ramathibo ...
(1851-1868), and King
Chulalongkorn
Chulalongkorn ( th, จุฬาลงกรณ์, 20 September 1853 – 23 October 1910) was the fifth monarch of Siam under the House of Chakri, titled Rama V. He was known to the Siamese of his time as ''Phra Phuttha Chao Luang'' (พร ...
(1868-1910) of the
Rattanakosin period. Each statue is made of
bronze
Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals, such as phosphorus, or metalloids suc ...
, with an average height of 13.9 meters. They were designed by Thailand's
Fine Arts Department
The Fine Arts Department ( th, กรมศิลปากร, ) is a government department of Thailand, under the Ministry of Culture. Its mission is managing the country's cultural heritage.
History
The department was originally established ...
. Casting of the statues and construction of the multi-purpose plaza took 10 months, from November 2014 to August 2015. There are plans to add statues of two additional kings in the future.
The base of the statues is 134 m long, 43 m wide, and 8 m high.
It houses the park's second component, a museum of Thai history, focusing in particular on the biographies and achievements of the seven kings on display.
The park's large plaza of 91 rai (145,600 m
2), is to be used by the
Royal Thai Armed Forces
The Royal Thai Armed Forces (RTARF) ( th, กองทัพไทย; ) are the armed forces of the Kingdom of Thailand.
The nominal head of the Thai Armed Forces (จอมทัพไทย; ) is the King of Thailand. The armed forces are ...
for parades, ceremonies welcoming foreign dignitaries, and other special events. The park's peripheral area of 126 rai (201,600 m
2) consists of the surrounding landscape and support facilities.
Controversy
In early-November 2015, anonymous Royal Thai Army officials complained to the Thai media about allegedly dodgy dealings related to park funding and procurement, followed by official denial that any public funding was involved. Of concern were seemingly high prices for land, equipment, and construction. There were also rumours of a middleman, later identified as Watcharapong Radomsittipat,
who cited his connection to "people in authority" to demand commission fees from the owners of the foundries contracted to fabricate the statues. He was said to have demanded 10 percent kickbacks from each of the foundries commissioned to cast the bronze statues, reported to cost about 40 million baht (US$1.1 million) each.
What followed was a deluge of stories about the park and questioning official efforts to derail the controversy.
"The
ark
Ark or ARK may refer to:
Biblical narratives and religion Hebrew word ''teva''
* Noah's Ark, a massive vessel said to have been built to save the world's animals from a flood
* Ark of bulrushes, the boat of the infant Moses
Hebrew ''aron''
* ...
has been a public relations disaster for the junta, which said cleaning up corruption was one of its major reasons for seizing power."
Allegations
What was alleged in the Thai press focused primarily on the substantial kickbacks solicited for foundry contracts, but soon other shady dealings were alleged:
* Irregularities in the production and sale of 27,000 fundraising "Rajabhakti Bike & Concert" tee shirts. The shirts are alleged to have been sold for 11.9 million baht while costing 6 million baht. The remaining 5.9 million baht was allegedly transferred to the private bank account of an army officer.
* Palm trees planted at the park cost as much as 100,000 baht each
and one donor was charged 300,000 baht to have his name placed on a tree.
* Park fundraising events included a Chinese banquet which charged 500,000 baht (US$15,625) a table and seating at the VIP table for one million baht (US$31,250).
* Overall lack of fiscal transparency including official denial that state funds were spent on the park, when in reality 63.57 million baht (US$2 million) from the treasury was used "...on levelling land at the construction site,...".
Key players
* Amulet trader: Watcharapong Radomsittipat, who allegedly demanded and received kickbacks from statue foundries. He was thought to have fled to Hong Kong.
He was cleared of wrongdoing in February 2016.
* Col Khachachart Boondee: Named deputy commander of the
King's Guard
The King's Guard and King's Life Guard (called the Queen's Guard and the Queen's Life Guard when the reigning monarch is female) are the contingents of infantry and cavalry soldiers charged with guarding the official royal residences in the ...
by Gen Udomdej following the 2014 coup. Col Khachachart was tasked by Gen Udomdej with retrieving commissions from the amulet trader. Linked to alleged park corruption, he is thought to have fled to Myanmar.
* Defence Minister
Prawit Wongsuwan
Prawit Wongsuwon ( th, ประวิตร วงษ์สุวรรณ, , ; born 11 August 1945) is a Thai politician who is serving as the First Deputy Prime Minister and previously served as Minister of Defence from 2008 to 2011 during th ...
: Ordered a defense ministry probe after the army's review "...proceeded too quickly and facilely, was entirely opaque on every important point and failed to answer key questions."
* Maj Gen Suchart Prommai: Named commander of the King's Guard by Gen Udomdej shortly after the 22 May 2014 coup, and later to an executive position in the park foundation. His whereabouts are unknown.
* Deputy Education Minister Gen Surachet Chaiwong: Deputy Chairman of the Rajabhakti Park Foundation. He represented the foundation in its dealings with the six foundries that cast the statues.
* Gen
Theerachai Nakvanich
General Thirachai Nakawanich PC ( th, ธีรชัย นาควานิช, born 15 November 1955) is a Thai military officer who served as Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Thai Army from 2015 to 2016. He succeeded Udomdej Sitabutr, with ...
: Assumed the role of Royal Thai Army (RTA) commander on 1 October 2015 following the retirement of his predecessor, Gen Udomdej Sitabutr. Gen Theerachai admitted that more than one billion baht had been donated to fund the project, but declared that no military officers were involved in the alleged corruption.
* Gen
Udomdej Sitabutr
Udomdej Sitabutr ( th, อุดมเดช สีตบุตร, born 15 August 1955) is a Thai military officer. He served as Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Thai Army from 2014 to 2015.
Education
Udomdej studied at Saint Gabriel's College ...
: Deputy Defense Minister and former army chief, served as Chairman of the Rajabhakti Foundation.
Statues and
kickbacks
A kickback is a form of negotiated bribery in which a commission is paid to the bribe-taker in exchange for services rendered. Generally speaking, the remuneration (money, goods, or services handed over) is negotiated ahead of time. The kickbac ...
Chronology
References
External links
"Prayut's 'war on corruption' will kick off soon". ''The Nation'', 2015-05-28. "Thailand's Junta to Declare War on Corruption". ''The Diplomat'', 2015-05-29."Thailand: Detention of anti-corruption protesters shows increasing repression by military junta". Amnesty International, 2015-12-07."Thai park exposes corruption claims and murky politics". BBC, 2015-12-11."Unease Builds in Thailand Amid Royal Tribute". ''Wall Street Journal'', 2015-12-11"Rajabhakti Park: The corruption case the Thai junta doesn’t want you to talk about". Saiyasombut, Saksith. ''Asian Correspondent'', 2015-12-17
{{coord, 12, 30, 3.6, N, 99, 57, 59.8, E, type:landmark_region:TH, display=title
Parks in Thailand
Corruption in Thailand
Hua Hin District
Thai monarchy
2015 in Thailand
Monarchism in Thailand