"Under China’s shadow: Authoritarian rule and domestic political divisions in Thailand" - by CWP alum Enze Han

This article examines the relationship between public perception of China in Thailand and the domestic political divisions in the country that reflect people’s orientation towards either democratic or authoritarian values. Utilizing data from an original survey, we explore the alignment between individuals’ political values and their perceptions of China’s impact on Thailand and Southeast Asia. We argue that there is an entanglement of the ‘China factor’ in Thailand, which is mediated through polarized domestic politics. First, there is a close correlation between people’s ideological values and their perceptions of China. Different political dispositions condition people’s judgement of China’s public image. Furthermore, there are notable political divisions within the country that view China’s regional influence and its impact on Thailand differently. As a result, opposing political forces in the country have strategically used China and its perceived influence or alignment as a political tool in domestic debates and power struggles.

Published: 26 February 2025  -  Wilfred Chow, Sirada Khemanithathai, Enze Han  -  International Relations of the Asia-Pacific, Volume 25, Issue 2, 2025, lcaf002, https://doi.org/10.1093/irap/lcaf002

Professor Enze Han is Associate Professor at the Department of Politics and Public Administration. His research interests include international relations of East Asia, China's relations with Southeast Asia, Southeast Asian politics, and ethnic politics in China. Professor Han received a Ph.D in Political Science from the George Washington University in the United States in 2010. Afterwards he was a postdoctoral research fellow in the China and the World Program at Princeton University. During 2015-2016, he was a Friends Founders' Circle Member of the School of Social Science at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, USA. In 2017, he was a fellow at the East Asia Institute in Seoul, South Korea. During 2021-2022, he was Lee Kong Chian Fellow on Contemporary Southeast Asia at the National University of Singapore and Stanford University. His research has been supported by the Leverhulme Research Fellowship and British Council/Newton Fund. Prior to HKU, Professor Han was Senior Lecturer in the International Security of East Asia at SOAS, University of London, United Kingdom.

Photo Credit: By P Phongsakon - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=115335513