New Mandala

Senthang su fangfan nayokratthamontri khon thi 27: Aphisit Wetchachiwa (Road to the Dream, the 27th Prime Minister: Abhisit Vejjajiva ) (2009) by Thanomsak Chirayusawat (ISBN: 9789747306484). This modest volume provides an informative coverage of Abhisit’s private and political life. The first half is about his early life in Thailand and the UK, his time at Oxford, and his [...]

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Amata haeng pa prem: chak patiwat 19 kanya thung chutchop “thaksin” (The Eternal Pa Prem: From the September 19 Coup to the End of “Thaksin”) (2008) by Watsana Nanuam (ISBN: 9789743072734). A journalist for the Bangkok Post specializing in military affairs, Watsana has written a compelling account of the power and influence of General Prem, the so-called “invisible hand” [...]

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Khwamrunræng kap kanchatkan “khwamching” : Pattani nai rop kưg sattawat (Violence and managing the yruth: Pattani in the last half century) (2008) by Chaiwat Satha-Anand (ISBN: 9789749900390). This is another scholarly examination of Thailand’s southern violence by Chaiwat. The 365 page book discuss the narrative of violence in Pattani in literature and the press, with four [...]

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The National Library of Australia is currently acquiring copies of the Burma Law Reports (BLR) and Myanmar Law Reports (MLR) from 1948 to the present. The BLR running to 1962 contain Supreme Court and High Court rulings. From 1962 to 1973 they variously contain Chief Court rulings, Court-Martial Appeal Court rulings and Special Criminal Courts’ [...]

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Amnat phunthi lae attalak thang chatphan: kanmuang watthanatham khong rat chat nai sangkhom thai 2 (Power, space and ethnic identity: cultural politics  of the nation state in Thai society) (2008) by Yot Santasombat et al (ISBN: 9789740541387). Published by the Princess Sirinthorn Anthropology Center, this 339 page volume is the result of field work by a new generation of [...]

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Khwamsamphan chao muang nua lang kap thahan yipun samai songkhram lok khrang thi 2 (Relations Between Residents of the Lower North of Thailand and the Japanese Army During World War 2)  (2007) by Jiriporn Stapanawatana (ISBN: 9789749939550). The author studied history at Monash University. The present work reflects research in 2006 and 2007 at Naresuan University in Phitsanulok. Although [...]

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The National Library of Australia has recently acquired microfilm of the Lao Nhay newspaper (1941 to 1945). Lao Nhay was the first Lao language newspaper (in the first year it was hand written!). It was published fortnightly during WWII with Vichy French support. The historian Soren Ivarsson noted (in 2000) of its significance, “… 1) the historical narrative advanced to [...]

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Phaendin chintanakan (Imagined land: solving southern violence and the state in Thailand) (2008) edited by Chaiwat Sathaanan (ISBN: 9789740200789). This voluminous (596 pages), well researched and  well referenced text is a comprehensive contemporary study of the three southern provinces of Songkla, Narathiwat and Hat Yai. The text includes discussions of national security policy concerning the [...]

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Mong bang mum khong withi chiwit “maeying lao” phan mummong khong  “maeying lao” (Aspects of Lao women’s lives, through their own eyes) (2007) by “Nang Thaenkhun” (ISBN: 9789746722711). The book is a welcome contribution on a neglected topic: a study of family law, with special emphasis on divorce law, in Laos. The author is concerned [...]

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Salawin: Banthuk maenam lae chiwit nai krasae kanplianplaeng (Salween: record of river and life in the current of change) (2008) Montri Chanthawong (ed.) (9789740934). This comprehensive volume offers substantial coverage of issues in the Salween valley of Mae Hong Son province. Fisheries, farming, forestry, hydropower and history are discussed in great detail. The text is [...]

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