Guns, Girls, Gambling, Ganja: Thailand's Illegal Economy and Public Policy

by Pasuk Phongpaichit

Gambling, prostitution, drugs, arms trading, oil smuggling, and trafficking in people―these six illegal businesses are large and getting larger in Thailand. They distort the economy and victimize people. They are increasingly linked together through networks of protection and organized crime. They help to fund Thailand's corrosive "money politics" and to sustain corruption in the police. The authors argue that control of the illegal economy, especially through reform of the police, is vital for the development of a modern economy and functioning democracy.

Genres: Politics

296 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1998

About the author

Pasuk Phongpaichit (Thai:ผาสุก พงษ์ไพจิตร) is professor in the Faculty of Economics, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok.

Reviews

[Ethan Boyd]

A journalistic insiders look and supporting history of Thaniland and the history of vice both licit, illicit, and the harm reduction and corruption organizations's interactions and cooperation with law enforcement. A book I devoured after my forst month on the subcontinent, and a cathartic reread for any young man who has had the wild walk of a few sweltering nights in sleepless bangkok. The culture behind the culture, and the uniquely Thai Bhuddist acceptance of the City of Angles as a superorganism. Everybody a part of it; puritan, sex worker, addict, monk, tourist, teacher and cop. A bit prosaic and academic in style but wholly appreciable and a must read for anybody who has felt the tolerance to internal conflict ebbing away on the departure climb out of old Don Muang or Suvarnabhumi with the foolhardiness or bravery to have confirmed most things suspeted, and make sense of all the confounding, hot blooded, and occasionally terryfying interactons and suspicions held at bay by the culture shoc of the smells, sounds, sights, and temptations of the City of Angels.