Giles Ji Ungpakorn ( th, ใจ อึ๊งภากรณ์; ;

IPA IPA commonly refers to: * India pale ale, a style of beer * International Phonetic Alphabet, a system of phonetic notation * Isopropyl alcohol, a chemical compound IPA may also refer to: Organizations International * Insolvency Practitioners ...

:; born 25 October 1953) is a Thai-

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

academic and Marxist political activist. He formerly worked as an associate professor on the Faculty of Political Science,

Chulalongkorn University Chulalongkorn University (CU, th, จุฬาลงกรณ์มหาวิทยาลัย, ), nicknamed Chula ( th, จุฬาฯ), is a public and autonomous research university in Bangkok, Thailand. The university was originally fo ...

, before he fled to the United Kingdom in 2009 after facing a lèse majesté charge in Thailand.

Early life and education

Giles Ji Ungpakorn is the youngest son of former Bank of Thailand governor and

Thammasat University Thammasat University ( 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 Grand Pala ...

rector Puey Ungpakorn ( th, ป๋วย อึ๊งภากรณ์; ) and his wife Margaret Smith of

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, 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 dow ...

. He holds both Thai and British citizenship. He has two older brothers, former senator Jon Ungphakorn and Peter Mytri Ungphakorn. Giles Ungpakorn was educated in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

at Sussex and Durham Universities and the

School of Oriental and African Studies SOAS University of London (; the School of Oriental and African Studies) is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the federal University of London. Founded in 1916, SOAS is located in the Bloomsbury a ...

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...

before returning to Thailand in 1997.

Political role

In 2006, after the military staged a coup and revoked the

constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When these princ ...

, Ungpakorn led a demonstration by university students in downtown Bangkok. In February 2007, his English-language academic work ''A Coup for the Rich'' was refused distribution by the Chulalongkorn University bookstore. His use of the controversial ''

The King Never Smiles ''The King Never Smiles'' is an unauthorized biography of Thailand's King Bhumibol Adulyadej by Paul M. Handley, a freelance journalist who lived and worked as a foreign correspondent in Thailand. It is published by Yale University Press and was ...

'', which he has reviewed and criticised, as a reference was the explanation given by the store manager. Ji was formally charged with ''lese majeste'' in Bangkok on 20 January 2009. He had 20 days to respond to the charges, after which the Thai authorities would decide whether his case would be given to the Thai courts for prosecution. Ji said he was being charged because of the contents of his book ''A Coup for the Rich'', which points out the reasons the coup in Thailand two years prior took place. He fled Thailand in February 2009, returning to the United Kingdom. He stated, "I did not believe I would receive a fair trial." Ji is a self-declared

republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

and a vocal opponent of the Thai monarchy and the military. While fleeing Thailand, he wrote ''Red Siam Manifesto'', which explicitly criticised 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 Great ...

. He has criticised King Bhumibol for being a "weak, unprincipled" monarch who has never supported democracy, and holds the army, the elites, and the king responsible for supporting the

Thammasat University Massacre The 6 October 1976 massacre, or the 6 October event ( th, เหตุการณ์ 6 ตุลา ) as it is known in Thailand, was a violent crackdown by Thai police and lynching by right-wing paramilitaries and bystanders against leftist ...

of 1976. He has denounced the king's much-touted sufficiency economy, branding it an arrogant commandment for the poor to know their place, while the king is the richest monarch in the world. Ji also declares himself a Marxist. He is a member of the Thai socialist group Turn Left Thailand, which is part of the Trotskyist

International Socialist Tendency The International Socialist Tendency (IST) is an international grouping of unorthodox Trotskyist organisations espousing the ideas of Tony Cliff (1917–2000), founder of the Socialist Workers Party (SWP) in Britain (not to be confused with ...

. Ji is also a Red Shirt and member of Kon Thai UK, a Red Shirt organization in the UK. In an opinion piece written for the

Asia Sentinel The ''Asia Sentinel'' is a web-based publication focused on Asian regional news, business, arts and culture. The site was launched in August 2006. Its "About Us" page stated that "''Asia Sentinel'' was created to provide a platform for news, an ...

website he discounted the prospects of a successful social and political reform, and has aligned himself with those who are calling for a social revolution to occur in Thailand. Giles has also criticised those who advocate armed struggle. His latest English language book, ''Thailand's Crisis and the Fight for Democracy'', published in early 2010, is Ji's attempt to explain the present situation in Thailand before the Red Shirt demonstrations and clashes with the military in April and May 2010. A blog with the name "Ugly Truth Thailand" is run under Ji's name. It talks about many controversial topics of Thailand's politics.

Honours

Academic rank

* Associate Professor of

(resigned)

References

External links

Review of Ungpakorn's book ''Crimes Committed by the State: Transition in Crisis''Uglytruth-Thailand
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ungpakorn, Giles Ji 1955 births Alumni of Durham University Alumni of the University of Sussex British people of Chinese descent British people of Thai descent Giles Ji Ungpakorn Living people Giles Ji Ungpakorn Political scientists on Thailand Giles Ji Ungpakorn Giles Ji Ungpakorn Giles Ji Ungpakorn Giles Ji Ungpakorn Giles Ji Ungpakorn Giles Ji Ungpakorn Giles Ji Ungpakorn