Suchart Sawatsi ( th, สุชาติ สวัสดิ์ศรี; born June 24, 1945) is a Thai editor and writer. He has been described as "the single most influential figure in the contemporary Thai literary world". The son of Sae Sawatsi, a doctor in the Thai army medical corps, he was born in Tha Ruea District, Ayutthaya province. At the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, his parents returned to

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai language, Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estima ...

and he received his primary and secondary school education at Wat Don Muang. Sawatsi went on to study history at

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 ...

. After graduating in 1966, he taught history and geography at a private school for a short time. He was then able to secure a position as assistant to Sulak Sivaraksa, editor of the literary journal ''Sangkhomsat Parithat''. When Sivaraksa left two years later, Sawatsi became editor. Under his editorship, the journal became more active politically, often criticizing the government. In 1977, when a new military regime took power, he was removed from the post of editor after the journal was brought back to a purely academic orientation. A number of stories by Sawatsi appeared in ''Sangkhomsat Parithat''. In 1972, these stories were published as ''Khwam Ngiap'' (Silence). In 1977, he became editor of a new literary journal ''Lok Nangsu’''. That publication was not profitable and ceased publication in 1984. He next was editor for ''Ban Mai Ru Roi'' and ''Samoso’n Thanon Nangsu’''. In 1989, he was co-founder of the literary group Samnak Chang Wannakam, which published a quarterly short story magazine ''Cho’ Karaket'' until 2000. In 1997, he received the

Sriburapha Award {{unreferenced, date=September 2017 The Sriburapha Award is a Thai award, established in 1988 in honor of Kulap Saipradit, whose pen name was Sriburapha ( th, ศรีบูรพา). The award recognizes excellence in journalism, writing, and/or ...

and, in 2005, the Pittisin Prize. He married Thai writer Wanna Thappanon, who uses the

pen name A pen name, also called a ''nom de plume'' or a literary double, is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name. A pen na ...

Sidaoruang. The Thai Ministry of Culture honoured him as the

national artist National Artist is an honorary title issued by some states as a highest recognition of artists for their significant contributions to the cultural heritage of the nation. An equivalent title, People's Artist, has been known in countries of the f ...

in 2011 and removed him from the post in 2021 after he criticized the government of General

Prayut Chan-o-cha Prayut Chan-o-cha (sometimes spelled Prayuth Chan-ocha; th, ประยุทธ์ จันทร์โอชา, ; born 21 March 1954) is a Thai politician and retired Royal Thai Army, army officer who has served as the Prime Minister of T ...

for its poor response to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sawatsi, Suchart 1945 births Living people Thai editors Suchart Sawatsi Suchart Sawatsi Suchart Sawatsi