Resumen

TOLEDO BELTRAN, J. Daniel. Thaksin Shinawatra y el sistema político tailandés, 2001-2006. Méx.cuenca pac [online]. 2014, vol.3, n.9, pp.47-76. ISSN 2007-5308.

The irruption of Thaksin Shinawatra on the maximum national political stage, to succeed in the general election of January 2001, represented a true milestone in the political history of contemporary Thailand, not only because it exemplifies a combination successful among business and political, so characteristic of Thailand, but above all because, by way of the institutionality and democratic schedule, he promoted a "National Agenda" that on the one hand, it generated expectations and support on the part of the popular, both rural and urban sectors, but on the other hand, aroused suspicions and frankly distrust by the traditional Thai political class about his leadership and unique style of governing that, very soon, they began to tick of populist.

Indeed, with the idea of overcoming the ravages of the Asian crisis of 1997, detonated precisely in Thailand, and position and promote Thailand as a regional power and active protagonist on the global economic stage, Thaksin called for a "new social pact" where the welfare State and welfare should play a central role, had a central role, both for ensuring the viability of a socio-political reforms aimed at its own modernization package so as to promote the realization of enterprise business, cough after that "politics and business are inseparable". In this context and rested on a stable and comfortable parliamentary majority, Thaksin Shinawatra rushed reforms conducive to the construction of a "new social order" to favour the social sectors traditionally affected by crises, particularly small and medium-sized urban businesses as well as large rural enterprises; he introduced the new economy or Thaksinomia, reformed the civil service, he modernized the old bureaucracy, undertook "national clean up campaigns", fought "wars" against drug trafficking and corruption, etc., but it was also evident that he used and managed the country as a personal and family business; he was reluctant and intolerant to criticism, particularly with those who accused him of authoritarian and exert an "irresponsible populism". By this way, it fractured and polarized Thai society.

In short, although Thaksin Shinawatra has been the only Thai politician who has won four consecutive and by a wide margin general elections; he has also been the only Prime Minister who has been in office more than five years, completing a "constitutional four-year period," which no one had achieved, was overthrown by a coup on 19 September 2006, which condemned him to exile and interrupted the democratic process that lasted more than 15 years, something unprecedented in Thailand's political history.

Palabras llave : populism; State reform; Thaksinomia; parliamentary dictatorship; coup d'etat.