Colonized Or Not?

[Johpa]

Where do people get these facts from - Bangkok is 90% ethnically Chinese!

People never mention the mass Laos migration - which occured to a far greater extent - causing a very large part of the country to speak a different language.

Bangkok is estimated to be 60% Sino-Thai. The current borders of Thailand, which include the large irredentist popupation of Lao, conveninently referred to as Isaan folks, had nothing to do with modern migrations unless you want to talk about modern migrations of Isaan folks into Bangkok looking for work.

Clearly Thailand was never physically colonized by western powers, but those same western powers did force certain trade and border agreements upon the Palace, and later the slightly more modern Thai State. A great deal of geographical luck, being a buffer state between the UK and France, combined with a little bit of skilled diplomacy by the likes of Rama IV and Rama V, spared Thailand classic colonial occupation by troops and the imposition of a foreign bureaucracy.

But many have argued that Thailand was "colonized" internally by the Bangkok elite, a marriage between the Chinese, who do control 90% of the economy, and the old aristocracy, some of whom are rumored to be Chinese themselves. So, like many colonial states, we have a central metropole, Bangkok, supported by an agrarian hinterland, an export oriented economy, social and economic discrimination against the large majority of citizens who do not belong to the elite, and the flow of profits out of the country to other destinations.

So it all depends on how you want to define colonialism.

[lungbing]

Somebody much earlier in this thread mention Nana Plaza. How many of you know that the original Mr. Nana was an Indian immigrant who did well in the stationery business and bought land in Bangkok. 150 years later a good investment methinks.

Edited May 11, 2006 by lungbing

[Sing_Sling]

Somebody much earlier in this thread mention Nana Plaza. How many of you know that the original Mr. Nana was an Indian immigrant who did well in the stationery business and bought land in Bangkok. 150 years later a good investment methinks.

Except fir the fact that he's long dead and can't enjoy the fruits of his good investment.

[usatrader]

Oh yes, the Gin Jai topic of now four generations of loving family, I have learned to bypass. The we never been conquered response...

I never won in 27 years, thought I stopped saying anything in the second year but have heard it repeated now by 4 generations of family that I do dearly care of and love.

Nevertheless, on January 25 1942 - World War II: Thailand declares war on the United States and United Kingdom.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1942

Thailand was somehow full of Japanese who were moving toward India and Burma via a famous rail way and for some unexplicable reason it declared war on the UK and the US. I would not pretend to know why.

[astral]

I told my wife she looks Chinese and got the predictable response,

"Oh no, I am Thai!"

But she did admit later that only 3-4 generations back her family came down from China.

This is true for many Thais.

[Sing_Sling]

Strictly speaking - no, Thailand was never a colonial possession.