Biography of Thaksin SHINAWATRA

Thaksin Shinawatra (born July 26, 1949 in Chiang Mai, Thailand), Thai businessman and politician, is the former Prime Minister of Thailand, and the former leader of the dissolved populist Thai Rak Thai Party. He was in exile for 17 months until February 28, 2008, when he returned to Bangkok. During his exile, Shinawatra became a resident of London and owner of the English football club Manchester City. Thaksin started his career in the Thai police, and later became a successful entrepreneur, establishing Shin Corporation and Advanced Info Service, the largest mobile phone operator in Thailand. He became one of the richest people in Thailand prior to entering politics. Thaksin entered politics by joining the Phalang Dharma Party in 1994 and later founded the Thai Rak Thai (TRT) party in 1998. After a landslide election victory in 2001, he became Prime Minister of Thailand. At the time, the 2001 election was regarded by observers as the most open, corruption-free election in Thai history.

Thaksin Shinawatra's re-election in 2005 had the highest voter turnout in Thai history and was noted for the marked reduction in vote-buying compared to previous elections. His main support base was the rural poor in the north, northeast, east and central part of Thailand. Thaksin's policies were partly effective at alleviating rural poverty (poverty, subjected to manipulative mathematical forces, was alleged to have fallen by half in five years, but neutral measures were never provided to substantiate the TRT claims) and at providing near universal access to affordable health care.

Under Thaksin's government, Thailand's standing on major indication of corruption improved in some areas, but in human rights fell dramatically.

Soon after he took the office 'democratically', Thaksin became target of the freedom of press watch group. In 2002, the independent Committee to Protect Journalist charged Thaksin in its online article, 'Attacks on the Press - 2002', reporting the prime minister's 'assault' on constitutionally guaranteed free of expression, as journalists and mass media groups were threatened and investigated financially. It also mentioned the angry engagement of the premier with reporters.

In 2003, The Human Rights Watch issued statement, mentioning serious cases of human right abuses; war on drugs, killing thousands, and Thaksin relationship with Myanmar's junta. It also urged President George W. Bush's pressure on Thaksin on these cases.

Apparently, the Shinawatra government faced frequent allegations of corruption, authoritarianism, demagogy, treason, conflicts of interest, acting non-diplomatically, tax evasion, the use of legal loopholes and hostility towards a free press. Thaksin was accused of lèse-majesté, selling domestic assets to international investors and religious desecration. However, two years after he was ousted from power, the junta-led government failed to find or publicize any evidence to support the charges.

Independent bodies, including Amnesty International, who also expressed concern at Thaksin's human rights record. Human Rights Watch described Thaksin as "a human rights abuser of the worst kind", alleging that he participated in media suppression and presided over extrajudicial killings that left over 2,500 bodies in Thai streets and back alleys. A series of public forums and speeches, supplemented by rallies and various ASTV media reports in 2005 and 2006 by Sondhi Limthongkul and his People's Alliance for Democracy lent credence to doubts about Thaksin's name and reputation and his denials of wrongdoing, even of criminal nature.Subsequent court decisinos investigating Thaksin's actions in office and conflicts of interest, as well as significant income tax evasion evidence, has led to Thai courts tending to issue verdicts against Thaksin and the Shinawatra family. For these reasons it is assumed that rather than face music at home, Thaksin preferred asylum in England. He was also subject to several purported assassination attempts.

Thaksin has always been targeted by rumors and charges published by the press. Before he entered politics, Thaksin took over a television broadcaster, formerly known as ITV, at the request of a commercial bank, Siam Commercial Bank, partly owned by the Royal Family of Thailand. The former owner of this station is the Nation Newspaper owner who bid to run the station but failed financially. The media mogul, Sutthichai Yoon, chief editor and owner of several newspapers in Thailand; the Nation, Krungthep Turakij, Kom Chud Lug, was allegedly upset and according to pro-Thaksin sources used the takeover as excuse for a personal vendetta against Thaksin.

On 19 September 2006, a military junta known as the Council for National Security (CNS) overthrew Thaksin's government in a bloodless coup while he was attending a UN meeting in New York. His diplomatic passport was revoked after the CNS accused him of engaging in political activities. Many pro-Thaksin websites were also blocked or shut down. A junta-appointed panel dissolved the Thai Rak Thai party and banned Thaksin and the TRT's executive team of 111 politicians from engaging in politics for 5 years. The junta also appointed an Assets Examination Committee that froze Thaksin's bank accounts, claiming that he had become unusually wealthy during his term in government (Thaksin's secretive and authoritarian manner, however, prohibited serious investigations into his affairs until after he was ousted from power)and demanded that he return to Thailand to face charges of corruption. The deposed Thai Prime Minister returned to Thailand from 17 months of exile abroad on February 28, 2008 to fight corruption charges. Although Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont guaranteed his safety, CNS President Sonthi Boonyaratkalin reportedly ัwarned him that he could be assassinated if he returned to Thailand.There are doubts that this warning was indeed issued.

On 10 August 2008, Thaksin and his wife Pojaman were scheduled to return to Thailand to face court decisions regarding income tax evasion, corruption and other unlawful conduct. Pojaman had been sentenced the week before by the Criminal Court of First Instance to three years in prison for income tax evasion. Failing to return as scheduled, the Shinawatra family is, as of 11 August 2008, residing temporarily in London. They and Thai authorities are working to establish Thaksin's status and whether he can be extradited to Thailand. This is Thaksin's second flight from justice in his home country. Thaksin is married to Potjaman Shinawatra, and has one son, Panthongtae and two daughters, Pintongtha and Peathongtarn.

Family background
Thaksin's great-grandfather Seng Sae Khu (surname 丘）)was a Hakka Chinese immigrant from Meizhou, Guangdong who arrived in Siam in the 1860s and settled in Chiang Mai in 1908. His eldest son, Chiang Sae Khu, was born in Chanthaburi in 1890 and married a Thai woman, called Saeng Somna. Chiang's eldest son, Sak, adopted the Thai surname Shinawatra ("does good routinely") in 1938 because of the country's anti-Chinese movement and the rest of the family also adopted it.

Thaksin's father, Lert, was born in Chiang Mai in 1919 and married Yindi Ramingwong. In 1968, Lert Shinawatra entered politics and became an MP for Chiang Mai and deputy leader of the now-defunct Liberal party. Lert Shinawatra quit politics in 1976.

Thaksin's great-grandfather Seng Sae Khu made his fortune through tax farming. The Khu/Shinawatra later founded Shinawatra Silks and then by moving into finance, construction and property development. Lert Shinawatra opened a coffee shop, grew oranges and flowers in Chiang Mai's San Kamphaeng district, and opened two movie theatres, a gas station, and a car and motorcycle dealership. By the time Thaksin was born, the Shinawatra family was one of the richest and most influential families in Chiang Mai.

Early life
Thaksin was born in San Kamphaeng, Chiang Mai. Thaksin grew up in the village of Sankamphaeng until he was 15, after which he moved to Chiang Mai city to study at Montfort College. At 16, he helped run one of his father's cinemas.

Police career
Thaksin attended the 10th class of the Armed Forces Academies Preparatory School. He then attended the Thai Police Cadet Academy and upon graduation, he joined the Royal Thai Police Department in 1973. He later went on to obtain a master's degree in criminal justice from Eastern Kentucky University in the United States, in 1975. In 1978 he received a doctorate in criminal justice at Sam Houston State University in Texas with a dissertation on "An Analysis of the Relationship Between the Criminal Justice Educational Process and the Attitude of the Student Toward the Rule of Law." Returning to Thailand, he reached the position of Deputy Superintendent of the Policy and Planning Sub-division, General Staff Division, Metropolitan Police Bureau. He married Potjaman Damapong, the daughter of a police general, in 1980.

Business career

Early successes and failures
Thaksin and his wife ventured into several businesses while Thaksin was still in the police force. These included opening a silk shop, opening a movie theater, and developing an apartment building. All of these ventures were failures, and left him over 50 million Baht in debt. He established ICSI in 1982 which leased computers to government agencies and was a modest success. However, later ventures in security systems (SOS) and public bus radio services (Bus Sound) were failures. In April 1986, he founded Advanced Info Service (AIS), which started off as a computer rental business.

In 1987, after resigning from the police force, he marketed a Thai romance drama called "Baan Sai Thong", which became a popular success in theaters. In 1988 he joined with Pacific Telesis to operate and market the PacLink pager service, which was a modest success, although Thaksin later sold out his stake in PacLink to establish his own paging company. In 1989 Thaksin launched IBC, a cable television company, which lost money and was later merged with the CP Group's UTV. In 1989, Thaksin established a data networking service, Shinawatra DataCom, which was a failure. It is today known as Advanced Data Network, and is owned by AIS and the TOT. Thaksin quit the police force in 1987, having ascended to the rank of a Lieutenant-Colonel.

Advance Info Service and subsequent ventures
In October 1990, Advanced Info Service launched analog 900 MHz mobile phone services after receiving a 20 year concession from the Telephone Organization of Thailand in March and later being the first company allowed to operate on the GSM 900 frequency. The mobile phone boom in Thailand was just beginning, with Total Access Communications receiving a concession one month later to the GSM 1800 frequency. AIS grew rapidly and was listed on the Stock Exchange of Thailand in November 1991. It established a GSM network in 1994 and eventually became the largest mobile phone operator in Thailand.

The Shinawatra Computer and Communications Group was founded in 1987 and listed in The Stock Exchange of Thailand in 1990.

In 1990, Thaksin founded Shinawatra Satellite, which has developed and operated a total of four Thaicom communications satellites.

In 1999, the Shinawatra family spent approximately 1 billion baht establishing Shinawatra University in Pathum Thani's Sam Khok district. The private university offered international programs in engineering, architecture, and business management. After the 2006 military coup, half of the junior students dropped out, fearing repercussions in the job market. As of 2007, the University had an endowment of 300 million baht.

In 2000, Thaksin acquired the ailing iTV television station from the Crown Property Bureau, Nation Multimedia Group, and Siam Commercial Bank.

Entry into politics

Political debut as Foreign Minister in the first Chuan government
Thaksin entered politics in late 1994 through Chamlong Srimuang, who had just reclaimed the position of Palang Dharma Party (PDP) leader from Boonchu Rojanastien. In a subsequent purge of Boonchu-affiliated PDP Cabinet ministers, Thaksin was appointed Foreign Minister in December 1994, replacing Prasong Soonsiri. Years later, in 2006 after Thaksin was removed from power, his old sponsor Chamlong Srimuang expressed multiple regrets at getting "such a corrupt person" into politics. The PDP soon withdrew from the government over the Sor Por Kor 4-01 land reform corruption scandal, causing the government of Chuan Leekpai to collapse.

PDP leader and Deputy Prime Minister in the Banharn government
Chamlong, strongly criticized for mishandling internal PDP politics in the last days of the Chuan-government, retired from politics and hand-picked Thaksin as new PDP leader. Thaksin ran for election for the first time for the constitutional tribunal and lost.

Thaksin joined the government of Banharn Silpa-Archa and was appointed Deputy Prime Minister in charge of Bangkok traffic. In May 1996, Thaksin and four other PDP ministers quit the Banharn Cabinet (while retaining their MP seats), prompting a Cabinet reshuffle. Many have claimed that Thaksin's move was designed to help give Chamlong Srimuang a boost in the June 1996 Bangkok Governor elections, which Chamlong returned from retirement to contest. Chamlong lost the election - he and incumbent Governor former PDP-member Krisda Arunwongse na Ayudhya were defeated by Bhichit Rattakul, an independent.

Chamlong's failure to buttress the PDP's failing power base in Bangkok amplified internal divisions in the PDP, particularly between Chamlong's "temple" faction and Thaksin's faction. Soon afterwards, Chamlong announced he was retiring again from politics.

Thaksin and the PDP pulled out of the Banharn-government in August 1996. In a subsequent no-confidence debate, the PDP gave evidence against the Banharn government. Soon afterwards, Banharn dissolved Parliament in September 1996.

Fall of the PDP
Thaksin announced that he would not run in the subsequent November 1996 elections, but would remain as leader of the PDP. Some speculated that Thaksin wanted to resign from the party leadership. The PDP suffered a fatal defeat in the elections, winning only 1 seat in Parliament. The PDP soon imploded, with most members resigning.

Although there was much controversy about the root causes of the fall of the PDP, most agree that it was due to internal divisions in the party. Particularly divisive were conflicts between the Chamlong "temple" faction and subsequent generations of outsiders, including Thaksin.

Deputy Prime Minister in the Chavalit government
On 15 August 1997, Thaksin became Deputy Prime Minister in Chavalit Yongchaiyudh's government. This occurred soon after the Thai Baht was floated and devalued in 2 July 1997, sparking the Asian Financial Crisis. Thaksin held this position for only 3 months, leaving on November 14 after Chavalit resigned.

During a censure debate on 27 September 1997, Democrat Suthep Thaugsuban accused Thaksin of profiting on insider information about the government's decision to float the Baht. However, the subsequent Democrat party led government did not investigate the accusations.

Formation of the Thai Rak Thai Party and the 2001 elections
Thaksin founded the Thai Rak Thai ("Thais Love Thais" - TRT) party in 1998 along with Somkid Jatusripitak, PDP ally Sudarat Keyuraphan, Purachai Piumsombun, and 19 others.

With a populist platform often attributed to Somkid, TRT promised universal access to healthcare, a 3-year debt moratorium for farmers, and 1 million THB locally-managed development funds for all Thai villages.

After Prime Minister Chuan dissolved parliament in November 2000, TRT won a sweeping victory in the January 2001 elections, the first election held under the Constitution of 1997. At the time, academics called the 2001 election the most open, corruption-free election in Thai history. Thai Rak Thai won 248 parliamentary seats (more than any other party previously) and needed only 3 more seats to form a government. Nonetheless, Thaksin opted for a broad coalition to gain total control and avoid a vote of no confidence, with the Chart Thai Party (41 seats) and the New Aspiration Party (36 seats), while absorbing the smaller Seritham Party (14 seats).

Prime Minister of Thailand
As Prime Minister, Thaksin Shinawatra initiated many distinctive policies affecting the economy, public health, education, energy, drugs and international relations. He gained two landslide re-election victories. Thaksin's policies have been particularly effective at reducing rural poverty and at providing affordable health coverage to the people. Because of this, his main support base has been the rural poor.

His Cabinet was packed with academics, former student leaders, and former leaders of the Phalang Dharma party, including Prommin Lertsuridej, Chaturon Chaisang, Prapat Panyachatraksa, Surapong Suebwonglee, Somkid Jatusripitak, Surakiart Sathirathai, and Sudarat Keyuraphan. Traditional leaders of regional coalitions also became minor members of his Cabinet.

His government has been frequently challenged with allegations of dictatorship, demagogy, corruption, conflicts of interest, human rights offences, acting undiplomatically, the use of legal loopholes and hostility towards a free press. A controversial leader, he has also been the target of numerous allegations of lèse-majesté, treason, usurping religious and royal authority, selling assets to international investors, religious desecration, and siding with the forces of darkness.

Economic policies
Thaksin's government had designed its policies to appeal to the rural majority, initiating programs like village-managed microcredit development funds, low-interest agricultural loans, direct injections of cash into village development funds (the SML scheme), infrastructure development, and the One Tambon One Product (OTOP) rural small and medium enterprise development program.

Thaksinomics, Thaksin's economic policies helped to accelerate Thailand's economic recovery from the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis and substantially reducing poverty. The GDP grew from THB 4.9 trillion at the end of 2001 to THB 7.1 trillion at the end of 2006. Thailand repaid its debts to the International Monetary Fund 2 years ahead of schedule. Between 2000 and 2004, income in the poorest part of the country, the Northeast, rose 40 per cent while nation-wide poverty fell from 21.3 per cent to 11.3 per cent. The Stock Exchange of Thailand outperformed other markets in the region. After facing fiscal deficits in 2001 and 2002, Thaksin balanced the national budget, producing comfortable fiscal surpluses for 2003 to 2005. Despite a massive program of infrastructure investments, a balanced budget was projected for 2007. Public sector debt fell from 57% of GDP in January 2001 to 41% in September 2006. Foreign exchange reserves doubled from US$30 billion in 2001 to US$64 billion in 2006.

Critics claim that Thaksinomics is little more than a Keynesian-style economic stimulus policy re-branded as something new and revolutionary. Economists from the Thailand Development Research Institute argue that other factors, such as a revival in export demand, were the primary cause behind the economy's recovery. Others claimed that the policies got the rural poor "hooked on Thaksin's hand-outs."

Thaksin helped bring part of Thailand's massive underground lottery system into the legal fold by operating a successful numbers game (Thai: หวย) run by the Government Lottery Office. Lottery sales of approx. 70 billion THB (2 billion USD) are used for social projects, including the "One District, One Scholarship" program which provided one student from a low-income family in each district with a scholarship to study overseas. Mafias and military officers who usually received huge black money from illegal lottery sales were deprived of their wealthy income and believed to provide financial support to the mob and Sondhi Limtongkul to organised a street protest against Thaksin. Further, the junta accused Thaksin of pocketing funds from the legal lotto. But after investigation, it turned out that few billions Baht claimed to be taken by Thaksin was actually pocketed by various members of Royal Family. Soon after Thaksin was deposed, the junta banned the lottery, claiming it was a social vice, luring the poor to become addicted to gambling, instead of working. In addition, the Supreme Court ruled that the Cabinet did not have the right to introduce the lottery without due political process. The scholarship program was also stopped. The military junta also claimed that Thaksin's government "mischievously spent the proceeds in any way it saw fit".

The Thaksin government reduced the state's control of the media by privatizing MCOT, a large television and radio broadcaster. Interestingly, the owner of Nation newspaper, Sondhi Limtongkul (owner of Manager newspaper) and many Thai activists who received underground funding accused Thaksin's government of not supporting free media.

After the 2006 coup, many of Thaksin's economic policies were stopped, the OTOP program was rebranded, the Government Lottery Office's program was deemed illegal, and the government nationalized several media outlets and energy companies. Until the end of its term, the military-backed government cannot come up with any evidence to prove its various accusations against Thaksin.

Healthcare policies
Thaksin initiated two key healthcare policies: subsidized universal health care and low-cost universal access to anti-retroviral HIV medication (ARVs). Thaksin's 30-baht/visit universal healthcare program won the applause of the general public, but was criticized by many doctors and officials. Prior to the program's introduction, a large portion of the population had no health insurance and limited access to healthcare. The program helped increase access to healthcare from 76% of the population to 96% of the population. The program also increased workloads for healthcare employees, and caused many doctors to switch to higher paying careers. It has been criticized for being underfunded. The program led some hospitals to seek alternative sources of income, leading to a boom in the medical tourism industry, with 1.3 million foreign patients earning Thailand 33 billion THB (approx. 800 million USD) in 2005.

Post-coup Public Health Minister Mongkol Na Songkhla called the 30-baht program a "marketing gimmick" and claimed that the government would "very soon" stop charging patients any fees for visits to state hospitals.

During the Thaksin government, the number of people living with HIV/AIDS as well as the overall prevalence rate noticeably declined. Although successful in expanding access to HIV medication, there have been concerns that a free trade agreement with the US could endanger Thailand's ability to produce generic HIV treatments.

Thaksin allowed the estimated 2.3 million migrant workers in Thailand to register and seek health coverage under the Thai national healthcare system. They were also eligible for work permits at the end of the registration period, entitling them to full labor protection. Democrat Party Labour Group Committee Pongsak Plengsaeng criticized the move, claiming that it would lead to unemployment amongst Thais. Pongsak also claimed that alien workers in Thailand have a higher tendency to commit crimes. Thailand's unemployment rate at the time was 1.9%.

Anti-drug policies
Thaksin initiated several highly controversial policies to counter a boom in the Thai drug market, particularly in methamphetamine. After earlier anti-drug policies like border blocking (most methamphetamine is produced in Myanmar), public education, sports, and promoting peer pressure against drug use proved ineffective, Thaksin launched a multi-pronged suppression campaign that aimed to eradicate methamphetamine use in 3 months. The policy consisted of changing the punishment policy for drug addicts, setting provincial arrest and seizure targets, awarding government officials for achieving targets, targeting dealers, and "ruthless" implementation.

In the first three months, the Human Rights Watch reports that 2,275 people were killed. The Government claimed that only around 50 of the deaths were at the hands of the police. Human rights critics say a large number were extrajudicially executed. The government went out of its way to publicize the campaign, through daily announcements of arrest, seizure, and death statistics.

Thaksin's anti-drug approach was effective and extremely popular. According to the Narcotics Control Board, the policy was extremely effective in reducing drug consumption, especially in schools, at least until the 2006 coup.

King Bhumibol, in his 2003 birthday speech, supported Thaksin's anti-drugs approach, although he did request the commander of the police to categorize the deaths between those killed by police and those killed by fellow drug dealers. Police Commander Sant Sarutanond reopened investigations into the deaths, and again found that few of the deaths were at the hands of the police. A Bangkok university poll conducted in February 2003 revealed 92% of respondents backed Thaksin's approach. Nevertheless, his anti-drug approach was widely criticized by international community. Thaksin requested that the UN Commission on Human Rights send a special envoy to evaluate the situation, but said in an interview, "The United Nations is not my father. I am not worried about any UN visit to Thailand on this issue."

A year after the 2006 coup, the military junta ordered another investigation into the anti-drug campaign. Former Attorney General Kanit Na Nakhon chaired the special investigative committee. "The special committee will be tasked with an investigation to find out the truth about the deaths as well as to identify remedial measures for their relatives," said Justice Minister Charnchai Likhitjittha.

The committee found that as many as 1400 of the 2500 killed had no link to drugs. However, while giving the opinion that orders to kill came from the top, the panel failed to establish sufficient evidence to charge Thaksin directly with the murders. The Nation (an English-language newspaper in Thailand) reported on November 27, 2007:

"Of 2,500 deaths in the government's war on drugs in 2003, a fact-finding panel has found that more than half was not involved in drug at all. At a brainstorming session, a representative from the Office of Narcotics Control Board (ONCB) Tuesday disclosed that as many as 1,400 people were killed and labeled as drug suspects despite the fact that they had no link to drugs. ... Senior public prosecutor Kunlapon Ponlawan said it was not difficult to investigate extra-judicial killings carried out by police officers as the trigger-pullers usually confessed."

Corruption
Transparency International reported that Thailand's reputation for transparency among business executives improved during the years of the Thaksin government. In 2001, Thailand's Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) was 3.2 (ranked 61), whereas in 2005, the CPI was 3.8 (ranked 59). However the a study of Worldwide Governance Indicators by World Bank gave lower score on Control of Corruption during 2002-2005, Thaksin's government, compared to 1998-2000 of earlier government. Thaksin himself has consistently denied any wrongdoing by himself or his Thai Rak Thai party, although corruption under his incumbency was rife. The former premier was known to have the country's police organization totally obedient to his calls, and any serious investigations of criminal misconduct were quickly brushed aside, dismissed, or 'dealt with' to ensure that Thaksin's reputation remained intact.

Education policies
Thaksin implemented a major series of educational reforms during his government. Chief among those reforms was school decentralization, as mandated by the 1997 People's Constitution. The policy was designed to delegated school management from the over-centralized and bureaucratized Ministry of Education to Tambon Administrative Organizations (TAOs). The plan met with massive widespread opposition from Thailand's 700,000 teachers, who would be deprived of their status as civil servants. There was also widespread fear from teachers that TAOs lack the skills and capabilities required to manage schools. In the face of massive teacher protests and several threats of school closure, Thaksin compromised and gave teachers whose schools were transferred to TAO management two years to transfer to other schools.

Other reforms included learning reform and related curricular decentralization, mostly through greater use of holistic education and less use of rote learning.

To increase access to universities for lower income people, Thaksin initiated the Student Loan Fund (SLF) and Income Contingency Loan (ICL) programs. The ICL granted loans regardless of financial status, and required recipients to start repayments when their salaries reach 16,000 Baht a month, with an interest rate equivalent to inflation from the day the loan was granted. The SLF had an eligibility limit on family income but carried interest of 1%, starting one year after graduation. The programs were merged and the income limit modified after Thaksin's government was overthrown.

Thaksin also initiated the controversial "One District, One Dream School" project, aimed at developing the quality of schools to ensure that every district has at least one high-quality school. The project was criticized, with some claiming that the only beneficiaries were Thaksin and companies selling computers and educational equipment. Many schools also fell deeply into debt in implementing the project, receiving less than adequate financial support from the central government.

In addition, Thaksin altered the state university entrance system. Whereas the former system relied exclusively on a series of nationally standardized exams, Thaksin pushed for a greater emphasis on senior high-school grades, claiming this would focus students on classroom learning rather than private entrance exam tutoring.

Thaksin initiated the Income Contingency Loan program to increase access to higher education. Under the program, needy students may secure a loan to support their studies from vocational to university levels. Thai banks had traditionally not given education loans. Thaksin made Thailand one of the first supporters of Nicholas Negroponte's One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) project, with the Thai Ministry of Education committing to purchase 600,000 units. However, the military junta later cancelled the project.

Energy policies
In energy policy, the Thaksin government continued the Chuan Leekpai government's privatization agenda, but with important changes. Whereas the Chuan government's post-Asian financial crisis policies sought economic efficiency through industry fragmentation and wholesale power pool competition, Thaksin's policies aimed to create national champions that could reliably support stronger economic growth and become important players in regional energy markets. Thaksin also initiated a policy to encourage renewable energy and energy conservation. Many Thaksin-era energy policies were reversed following the 2006 coup.

South Thailand insurgency
A resurgence in violence began in 2001 in the three southernmost provinces of Thailand which all have a Muslim, ethnic Malay majority. There is much controversy about the causes of this escalation of the decades long insurgency. Attacks after 2001 concentrated on police, the military, and schools, but civilians have also been targets. Thaksin has been widely criticized for his management of the situation, in particular the storming of the Krue Se Mosque, the deaths of civilian protesters at Tak Bai in Army custody, and the unsolved kidnapping of Muslim-lawyer Somchai Neelapaijit.

In October 2004, 84 Muslim human rights protesters were killed at Tak Bai when the Army broke up a peaceful protest. The many detainees were forced at gunpoint to lie prone in Army trucks, stacked like cordwood. The trucks were delayed from moving to the detainment area for hours. Many detainees suffocated to death due to gross mishandling by the military. After the 2006 coup, the Army dropped all charges and investigations into Army misconduct related to the Tak Bai incident. Thaksin announced an escalation of military and police activity in the region. In July 2005, Thaksin enacted an Emergency Decree to manage the three troubled provinces. Several human rights organizations expressed their concerns that the decree might be used to violate civil liberties.

In March 2005, Thaksin established the National Reconciliation Commission, chaired by former Prime Minister Anand Panyarachun to oversee efforts to bring peace to the troubled South. In its final report released in June 2006, the commission proposed introducing Islamic law and making Pattani-Malay (Yawi) an official language in the region. The Thaksin administration assigned a government committee to study the report, while Muslims urged the government to act faster in implementing the proposals.

Administrative reform

Ministerial restructuring
One of the most visible of Thaksin's administrative reforms was the restructuring of government department and ministries, labeled the "big bang." It was hailed as a "historic breakthrough" and "the first major reorganization of ministries since King Chulalongkorn set up Thailand’s modern system of departmental government in 1897." Such a restructuring had been studied for years as a means of undermining the perceived rigidities and inertia of the old system, but was never implemented until the Thaksin government.

The restructuring was designed to streamline the bureaucracy and focus it on performance and results. New ministries were carved out in Social and Human Security Development, Tourism and Sports, Natural Resources and Environment, Information and Communication Technology, and Culture.

CEO-governors
Thaksin transformed the role of provincial governors from ceremonial supervisors of ministry officials to active managers of government policy. Historically, central government ministries operated in the provinces through field offices headed by senior officials, who reported back to Bangkok. The Ministry of Interior appointed provincial governors whose role was largely ceremonial.

A key component of Thaksin's administrative reform policy, "CEO-governors" epitomized Thaksin's "transformation of the operating style of the traditional bureaucracy into a more results-oriented instrument that would be responsive." Piloted in 2001 and introduced in all provinces in October 2003, CEO-governors were put in charge of planning and coordinating provincial development and became accountable for overall provincial affairs. The "CEO governors" were assisted by "provincial CFOs" from the Ministry of Finance who reported directly to each governor. The CEO-Governors were authorized to raise funds by issuing bonds and were given an intensive training course. After the coup, the junta reverted the role of governors.

Foreign policies
Thaksin was fiercely attacked for tasking diplomats with supporting domestic economic programs, e.g., promoting OTOP products. Surapong Jayanama, former ambassador to Vietnam claiming that Thaksin's policies were "demeaning" and would do little to enhance Thailand's international stature.

Thaksin also initiated negotiations for several free trade agreements with China, Australia, Bahrain, India, and the US. This policy was also criticized, with claims that high-cost Thai industries could be wiped out.

Thailand joined George W. Bush's multinational coalition in the invasion of Iraq, sending a 423-strong humanitarian contingent. It withdrew its troops on 10 September 2004. Two Thai soldiers died in Iraq in an insurgent attack.

Thaksin has also announced that Thailand would forsake foreign aid, and work with donor countries to assist in the development of neighbors in the Greater Mekong Sub-region.

Thaksin has also been attacked by influential former diplomats for acting undiplomatically with foreign leaders. Kasit Pirom, former Thai ambassador to Japan and the United States, noted at an anti-Thaksin rally "When Khun Thaksin went to the United Nations to attend a joint UN-Asean session, he did not behave properly when addressing the session, which was co-chaired by the UN secretary-general and the Malaysian premier. In his address Thaksin did not mention the name of the Malaysian premier". Noted that Kasit Pirom is a member and has a long time close tie with Democratic Party, a major political party opposing Thaksin as it lost few elections to Thai Rak Thai Party.

However, he established close, friendly ties with the Burmese dictatorship, including extending the neighboring country a Bt. 4 billion credit line so it could conclude a satellite telecom deal with his family business. Noted that during the time Thaksin was in his office as Prime Minister, he was ambitious to put Thailand as region leader. He proposed, and received with welcome from other South East Asian countries, economic treaty at sub-region level, to promote economic, technology and infra-structure development. Thai government has provided support funding and economic assistance program to her neighbouring country such as Laos, Cambodia. Other Prime Ministers such as Chuan Leekpai, Banharn Silpa-acha or even military appointed like Surayuth Julanond did approve the same economic assistance package but never been charge. Further, Surakiart Sathirathai, Deputy Prime Minister, did speak out to support Thaksin's decision in this case that Thaksin did not instruct him to agree to any request of Burmese government if it is illegal. However, after the coup and in order to be released from the investigation, Surakiart turned his back against Thaksin. Thaksin has also been attacked for his support of Deputy Prime Minister Surakiart Sathirathai's failed campaign to become UN Secretary General.

2005 re-election campaign
Under the slogans "Four Years of Repair — Four years of Reconstruction" and "Building Opportunities", Thaksin and the TRT won landslide victories in the February 2005 elections, sweeping 374 out of 500 seats in Parliament. The election had the highest voter turnout in Thai history and was noted for the marked reduction in vote-buying compared to previous elections.

Suvarnabhumi Airport
After more than 30 years of planning and debate, the Thaksin government completed the construction of the new Suvarnabhumi Airport. The airport was officially opened a week after the overthrew of the government. It is one of the world's largest airports.

Some members of Thaksin's government were accused of corruption while overseeing the construction of Suvarnabhumi Airport, although the charges were never proven, even after the 2006 military coup.

Other criticisms
There have also been complaints that Thaksin appointed relatives to senior positions in the civil service and independent commissions, for example by elevating his cousin, General Chaiyasit Shinawatra, to Army commander-in-chief. In August 2002, he was promoted from Deputy Commander of the Armed Forces Development Command to become Deputy Army Chief. Both General Chaiyasit and Defense Minister General Chavalit Yongchaiyudh denied charges of nepotism at the time. General Chaiyasit replaced General Somthad Attanan as Army commander-in-chief. However, General Chaiyasit was replaced by General Prawit Wongsuwan in August 2004, after only a year in office. His replacement was in response to an escalation of violence in southern Thailand. Prawit was succeeded by Sonthi Boonyaratglin in 2005.

Thaksin was also accused of interference after the Senate appointed Wisut Montriwat (former Deputy Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Finance) to the position of Auditor General, replacing Jaruvan Maintaka.

Respected former Thai ambassador to the UN Asda Jayanama, in an anti-Thaksin rally, claimed that Thaksin's two state visits to India were made in order to negotiate a satellite deal for Thaksin's family-owned Shin Corporation. The accusation was countered by Foreign Minister Kantathi Suphamongkhon, who attended the state visits with Thaksin.

Thaksin's government has been accused of exerting political influence in its crackdown on unlicensed community radio stations.

Thaksin has also been accused of being superstitious.

Thaksin often faced harsh comparisons. Social critic Prawase Wasi compared him to AIDS, Privy Council President Prem Tinsulanonda and Senator Banjerd Singkaneti compared him to Hitler, Democrat spokesman Ong-art Klampaibul compared him to Saddam Hussein, and the newspaper The Nation compared him to Pol Pot.

Thaksin has been engaged in a series of lawsuits brought by American businessman William L Monson regarding a cable-television joint venture the two partnered in during the 1980s.

Political crisis of 2005-2006

Accusations by Sondhi Limthongkul
The political crisis was catalyzed by several accusations published by media mogul Sondhi Limthongkul, a former Thaksin supporter. These included accusations that Thaksin:

Restricted press freedom by suing Sondhi after Sondhi printed a sermon by a controversial monk (see Luang Ta Maha Bua incident)
Masterminded the desecration of the Erawan shrine (see Phra Phrom Erawan Shrine incident)

Sale of Shin Corporation
On January 23, 2006, the Shinawatra family sold their entire stake in Shin Corporation to Temasek Holdings. The Shinawatra and Damapong families netted about 73 billion baht (about US$1.88 billion) tax-free from the sale, using a regulation that made individuals who sell shares on the stock exchange exempt from capital gains tax.

The transaction made the Prime Minister the target of accusations that he was selling an asset of national importance to a foreign entity, and hence selling out his nation. The Democrat party spokesman compared him to Saddam Hussein: "Saddam, though a brutal tyrant, still fought the superpower for the Iraqi motherland".

Anti-Thaksin rallies
Thaksin faced pressure to resign following the sale of Shin Corporation to Temasek Holdings.

Anti-Thaksin protestors, led by the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD), consisted mainly of middle-class Bangkokians. They also included prominent social figures.

Media mogul Sondhi Limthongkul was a prominent leader of the protests. These were joined by academics, students, and the middle class.

House dissolution and the April 2006 Legislative Election

House dissolution
Thaksin announced a House dissolution on 24 February 2006. General elections were scheduled for 2 April.

Thaksin was criticized for calling the snap elections. In an editorial, The Nation noted that the election "fails to take into consideration a major fallacy of the concept , particularly in a less-developed democracy like ours, in which the impoverished, poorly informed masses are easily manipulated by people of his ilk. And Thaksin's manipulation has been well documented.."

Election results
Thaksin's TRT Party won a victory in the boycotted elections, with 462 seats in Parliament with ratio of voters to no-voters of 16-10.

However, by-elections were needed for 40 TRT candidates (mostly from the Democrat-dominated south) who failed to win the minimum required 20% in an uncontested vote. The Democrat Party refused to contest the by-elections and, along with the People's Alliance for Democracy, petitioned the Central Administrative Court to cancel them. Chamlong Srimuang declared that the PAD would ignore the elections and "go on rallying until Thaksin resigns and Thailand gets a royally-appointed prime minister".

By-elections
Boycotted by-elections in 40 constituencies on 25 April resulted in the TRT winning 25 of the constituencies and losing in 2 constituencies. Yet another round of by-elections on 29 April was scheduled for 13 constituencies. The Thai Rak Thai Party was later accused of and later found guilty of hiring smaller parties to contest the election, while the Democrat Party was later accused of hiring smaller parties to not contest the election. According to the 1997 Constitution, uncontested election winners must win at least 20% of registered voters. These by-elections were suspended by the Constitution Court while it deliberated whether or not to disqualify the elections.

Invalidation of the April elections
In 8 May 2006, the Constitutional Court ruled 8-6 to invalidate the April elections based on the awkward positioning of voting booths. The ruling was called a landmark case in judicial activism. The Democrat Party, which had boycotted the April elections, said they were now ready to contest an October election.

A new election was ordered, later set for 15 October. The Court found the Election Commissioners guilty of malfeance in their management of the April election and jailed them. The 15 October election was cancelled when the military seized power on 19 September.

After the April 2006 election

Break from politics
Thaksin announced on April 4, 2006 that he would not accept the post of Prime Minister after the Parliament reconvenes, but would continue as Caretaker Prime Minister until then.

He then delegated his functions to Caretaker Deputy Prime Minister Chidchai Wannasathit, moved out of Government House, and went on vacation.

September 2006 Coup
In the evening of 19 September 2006, while Thaksin was visiting New York City, USA to attend a United Nations summit and to speak at the Council on Foreign Relations, the army took control of Bangkok. Inside Government House, close to 50 soldiers ordered approximately 220 policemen in the complex to lay down their weapons. Troops also surrounded the Thaicom satellite receiving station and state-run television station Channel 11. By the morning of 20 September, tanks and military vehicles armed with machine guns were stationed at Government House, the Royal Plaza and government units along Rajdamnoen Avenue.

Troops participating in the coup were from the 1st and 3rd Army Regions, the Internal Security Operations Command, the Special Warfare Centre and Army units in Nakhon Ratchasima and Prachin Buri provinces and sections of the Navy. According to coup leader Army Commander General Sonthi Boonyaratglin, the coup leaders had arrested Deputy Prime Minister Chitchai Wannasathit and Defense Minister Thammarak Isaragura na Ayuthaya. Troops who refused to take part in the coup took mainly a neutral stance and did nothing to prevent the coup.

The military, originally calling itself the Council for Democratic Reform under the Constitutional Monarch (CDRM), issued a statement citing the government's alleged lèse majesté, corruption, interference with state agencies, and creation of social divisions as reasons for the coup. It declared the king of Thailand the head of state, and said elections will be held soon to return democracy to the country. Shinawatra later arrived in Britain, where he has family and stayed at the Dorchester Hotel in London. Later he lived in Woking, Surrey.

Thai Rak Thai party
Many Thai Rak Thai party members were reported to have resigned from the party in the aftermath of the coup. These included Somsak Thepsuthin and 100 members of the Wang Nam Yom faction. It was not clear whether Suriya Jungrungreangkit, another influential member of the faction would also resign. Sonthaya Kunplome also was reported to have led 20 members of the Chonburi faction in resigning from the party. Fear that the party would be dissolved by the junta and its members banned from politics fueled the defections.

On 2 October 2006 Thaksin Shinawatra and his former deputy Somkid Jatusipitak resigned from the Thai Rak Thai Party. Chaturon Chaisang took over as party head.

Meanwhile, court cases against the Thai Rak Thai and Democrat parties regarding election fraud in the April 2006 elections continued.

2006 Bangkok New Year's Eve bombings
On 31 December 2006 and 1 January 2007, several bombs exploded in Bangkok. Thaksin later went on CNN to deny any involvement in the bombings.

Thaksin was assaulted while eating at a Thai restaurant in London. A Thai woman threw a glass at him - it was not known whether he was injured.

His diplomatic passport was revoked in 31 December 2006 after the junta accused him of engaging in political activities while in exile. Thai embassies were ordered not to facilitate his travels.

In a subsequent trip to Russia to receive an honorary degree in science from the Plehanov Academy of Economics, Thaksin's passport and suitcase were stolen when he was eating at a McDonalds. The Thai Embassy in Moscow was willing to provide him a new travel document.

In January 2007, the Financial Institutions Development Fund complied with an Assets Examination Committee request to file a charge against Thaksin and his wife over their purchase of four 772 million baht plots of land from the FIDF in 2003. The charge was based on alleged violation of Article 100 of the National Counter Corruption Act, which specificies that government officials and their spouses are prohibited from entering into or having interests in contracts made with state agencies under their authorisation. As in truth, this particular law, has been proposed before the Thaksin's regime, by the Democrats.

The Assets Examination Committee also accused Thaksin of issuing an unlawful cabinet resolution approving the spending of state funds to buy rubber saplings. However, it did not accuse him of corruption.

In March 2007, the Office of the Attorney-General charged Thaksin's wife and brother-in-law of conspiring to evade taxes of 546 million baht (US$15.6 million) in a 1997 transfer of Shin Corp shares.

The Assets Examination Committee rules that Thaksiin was guilty of malfeasance for obstructing competition by passing an executive decree that imposed an excise tax for telecom operators. Thaksin's Cabinet approved an executive decree in 2003 that forced telecom operators to pay an excise tax of 10% on revenues for mobile phone operations, and 2% for fixed-line operations.

Purchase of Manchester City Football Club
While Prime Minister, Thaksin offered to buy the English Premiership football club Fulham from owner Mohamed al-Fayed. After al-Fayed rebuffed his offer for the club, Thaksin unsuccessfully bid to buy fellow Premiership club Liverpool. It is argued that Thaksin is using this sudden football interest as a publicity stunt in response to his political problems.

On June 21, 2007 Thaksin Shinawatra lodged, and had accepted, an £81.6 million bid for another Premiership club, Manchester City. On 6 July he completed purchase of the required 75% of the club's shares to take the company off the Stock Exchange and became Chairman of the club. Sven-Göran Eriksson was appointed the new club manager. However Eriksson was ultimately released by Manchester City on June 2, 2008.

Manchester City supporters have nicknamed him Frank, after the singer Frank Sinatra. However, Manchester City supporters have soon turned against their new chairman after it appeared he was ready to fire manager Sven-Göran Eriksson, despite him taking City to their joint 2nd highest finishing position in the Premier League since it began in 1992, with their highest being 8th in the 2004-2005 season, and also finishing 9th in the 2002-2003 season. Eriksson was ultimately released, by Manchester City, from his contract on June 2, 2008.

Apparently in fear of bringing embarrassment to the Club following his skipping of bail from Thai courts, Thaksin has decided to offer to step down from his position on August 23, 2008.

Dissolution of the Thai Rak Thai Party
On 30 May 2007, the Constitutional Tribunal dissolved the Thai Rak Thai Party and banned over 100 of its executives, including Thaksin, from politics for 5 years. The ruling was based on charges that two Thai Rak Thai party executives (Defense Minister Thammarak Issarangkura na Ayudhya and Pongsak Raktapongpaisarn) bribed a smaller party to stand in the April 2006 election. It is also noted that the Democrat party, under the same type of accusation, charges were lifted. Furthermore, article 309 of the 2007's constitution has given full pardon towards any 'Wrong' action taken by the Junta.

Return to Thailand
In May 2007, Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont said Thaksin was free to return to Thailand, and he would personally guarantee Thaksin's safety, heavily conflicting Sonthi's statements. In January 2008 Thaksin's wife Pojaman Shinawatra was arrested on arrival at Bangkok, but was released on bail of 5m baht ($149,000, £75,600) after appearing at the Supreme Court with order not to leave the country. She was set to be tried for alleged violation of stock-trading and land sale laws, but only two relatively minor cases had been successfully filed in court against her.

In February 2008 Thaksin arrived in Bangkok, aboard a Thai Airways flight from Hong Kong, after 17 months in exile. He was arrested on arrival, but was soon was released by the Supreme Court, on bail. Thaksin stated that "he would not re-enter politics and wished to focus on his football interests." In March Thaksin pleaded not guilty before chief judge Thongloh Chom-ngam, Supreme Court in one of his 2 criminal corruption cases. Thaksin was excused to appear on April 29 and at every hearing. The court ordered him to report back on April 11 after granting his monthlong travel to England.

In June the Supreme Court denied Thaksin's request to travel to China and Britain, since his corruption case was set for trial, saying there were not enough reasons for him to travel. He was ordered to surrender his passport after arraignment. In July the Court assumed jurisdiction over the fourth corruption charge against Thaksin. It was alleged that he arranged soft loans to Burma to buy telecoms equipment from his Shin Corp. conglomerates, causing the Thai state-owned bank loss of $20 million. The court also agreed to hear allegations that Thaksin, his former cabinet, and three members of the current government, broke anti-gambling laws by setting up a new state lottery in 2003.

Thaksin's wife Pojaman Shinawatra, was found guilty on July 31, and sentenced to three years imprisonment, but was released on $149,000 bail. Bangkok Criminal Court Judge Pramote Pipatpramote also convicted her adopted brother Bhanapot Damapong, and her secretary: "The three defendants have high economic and social status. But, they were working together to avoid taxes, even though the taxes amounted to little compared to their assets."

Request for asylum in Britain
On August 10, 2008, Thaksin and his wife Potjaman Shinawatra flew to London from Beijing, where they had been attending the 2008 Summer Olympics Opening Ceremony. In doing so he violated the terms of his bail. Thaksin said that it was his wish to return to Thailand someday, but claimed it was not currently safe enough for him and his family, not specifying who exactly is threatening his life. Thaksin announced his intention to seek political asylum in Britain. His 3 children had reportedly flown ahead to Britain. Meanwhile, Thailand's Supreme Court issued an arrest warrant for both Thaksin and his wife for jumping bail. When Thaksin justified his escape by claiming the Thai judiciary was being meddled with by his political enemies, Thai Supreme Commander Gen. Boonsrang Niempradit and opposition leader Abhisit Vejjajiva accused Thaksin of hurting Thailand and damaging its reputation: "His Majesty the King recognizes highly the importance of the judiciary … The public should follow him."

Source: Wikipedia

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Introduction

Here are some character traits from Thaksin SHINAWATRA's birth chart. This description is far from being comprehensive but it can shed light on his/her personality, which is still interesting for professional astrologers or astrology lovers.

N.B.: As this celebrity's birth time is unknown, the chart is drawn for 12:00 PM - the legal time for his/her place of birth; since astrological houses are not taken into account, this astrological profile excerpt is less detailed than those for which the birth time is known.

The dominant planets of Thaksin SHINAWATRA

When interpreting a natal chart, the best method is to start gradually from general features to specific ones. Thus, there is usually a plan to be followed, from the overall analysis of the chart and its structure, to the description of its different character traits.

In the first part, an overall analysis of the chart enables us to figure out the personality's main features and to emphasize several points that are confirmed or not in the detailed analysis: in any case, those general traits are taken into account. Human personality is an infinitely intricate entity and describing it is a complex task. Claiming to rapidly summarize it is illusory, although it does not mean that it is an impossible challenge. It is essential to read a natal chart several times in order to absorb all its different meanings and to grasp all this complexity. But the exercise is worthwhile.

In brief, a natal chart is composed of ten planets: two luminaries, the Sun and the Moon, three fast-moving or individual planets, Mercury, Venus and Mars, two slow-moving planets, Jupiter and Saturn, and three very slow-moving planets, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto. Additional secondary elements are: the Lunar Nodes, the Dark Moon or Lilith, Chiron and other asteroids such as Vesta, Pallas, Ceres or Juno. There are also special features such as the Arabic Parts, the Vertex, the Black Sun, hypothetical planets, etc. They are all posited on the Zodiac wheel consisting of twelve signs, from Aries to Pisces, and divided into twelve astrological houses.

The first step is to evaluate the importance of each planet. This is what we call identifying the dominant planets. This process obeys rules that depend on the astrologer's sensitivity and experience but it also has precise and steady bases: thus, we can take into account the parameters of a planet's activity (the number of active aspects a planet forms, the importance of each aspect according to its nature and its exactness), angularity parameters; (proximity to the four angles, Ascendant, Midheaven, Descendant and Imum Coeli or Nadir, all of them being evaluated numerically, according to the kind of angle and the planet-angle distance) and quality parameters (rulership, exaltation, exile and fall). Finally, other criteria such as the rulership of the Ascendant and the Midheaven etc. are important.

These different criteria allow a planet to be highlighted and lead to useful conclusions when interpreting the chart.

The overall chart analysis begins with the observation of three sorts of planetary distributions in the chart: Eastern or Western hemisphere, Northern or Southern hemisphere, and quadrants (North-eastern, North-western, South-eastern and South-western). These three distributions give a general tone in terms of introversion and extraversion, willpower, sociability, and behavioural predispositions.

Then, there are three additional distributions: elements (called triplicity since there are 3 groups of signs for each one) - Fire, Air, Earth and Water - corresponding to a character typology, modality (or quadruplicity with 4 groups of signs for each one) - Cardinal, Fixed and Mutable - and polarity (Yin and Yang).

There are three types of dominants: dominant planets, dominant signs and dominant houses. The novice thinks astrology means only "to be Aries" or sometimes, for example, "to be Aries Ascendant Virgo". It is actually far more complex. Although the Sun and the Ascendant alone may reveal a large part of the character- approximately between 30 and 60% according to the chart, a person is neither "just the Sun" (called the sign) nor just "the first house" (the Ascendant). Thus, a particular planet's influence may be significantly increased; a particular sign or house may contain a group of planets that will bring nuances and sometimes weaken the role of the Ascendant, of the Sun sign etc.

Lastly, there are two other criteria: accentuations (angular, succedent and cadent) which are a classification of astrological houses and types of decanates that are occupied (each sign is divided into three decanates of 10° each). They provide additional information in this first general part.

These eleven (or six, if the birth time is unknown) general character traits must not be taken literally; they are, somehow, preparing for the chart reading. They allow to understand the second part of the analysis, which is more detailed and precise. It focuses on every area of the personality and provides a synthesis of all the above-mentioned parameters according to sound hierarchical rules.

Warning: when the birth time is unknown, which is the case for Thaksin SHINAWATRA, a few paragraphs become irrelevant; distributions in hemispheres and quadrants are meaningless, so are dominant houses and houses' accentuations. Therefore, some chapters are removed from this part.

For all paragraphs, the criteria for valuation are calculated without taking into account angles and rulerships of the Ascendant and of the Midheaven. The methodology retains its validity, but it is less precise without a time of birth.

Elements, Modalities and Polarities for Thaksin SHINAWATRA

Thaksin SHINAWATRA, here is the graph of your Elements, Modalities and Polarities, and Decanates, based on planets' positions and angles in the twelve signs:

Thaksin SHINAWATRA, Fire is dominant in your natal chart and endows you with intuition, energy, courage, self-confidence, and enthusiasm! You are inclined to be passionate, you assert your willpower, you move forward, and come hell or high water, you achieve your dreams and your goals. The relative weakness of this element is the difficulty to step back or a kind of boldness that may prompt you to do foolish things.

The predominance of Water signs indicates high sensitivity and elevation through feelings, Thaksin SHINAWATRA. Your heart and your emotions are your driving forces, and you can't do anything on Earth if you don't feel a strong affective charge (as a matter of fact, the word "feeling" is essential in your psychology). You need to love in order to understand, and to feel in order to take action. Since it may be detrimental to your vulnerability, you should learn to fight against it.

Air is under-represented in your natal chart, with only 4.58% instead of the average 25%. Air symbolizes the values of communication, exchanges with others, but also adaptability and flexibility abilities: if you don't get out of your cocoon to talk, to show interest in others, and to socialize, you may have problems understanding others. Because of your lack of flexibility or of your refusal to adapt yourself, you may be suddenly overwhelmed by events. You should get into the habit of talking, of phoning, and of thinking in terms of "mobility, flexibility, adaptability, change" in every circumstance. It will spare you so many troubles!

The twelve zodiacal signs are split up into three groups or modes, called quadruplicities, a learned word meaning only that these three groups include four signs. The Cardinal, Fixed and Mutable modes are more or less represented in your natal chart, depending on planets' positions and importance, and on angles in the twelve signs.

The Fixed mode corresponds to a majority of elements in your chart and represents the desire for security and durability: you are able to concretely appreciate a situation and its stability. You definitely prefer to play the role of a loyal, obstinate and hard-working person, rather than to try new and risky experiences - beware, however, not to confuse obstinacy with intransigence. You structure, cement, and strengthen everything you find on your way: it is your nature, although you are not especially interested in swiftness: slow and steady...

The twelve signs are divided into two polarities, called active or passive, or sometimes masculine and feminine, positive and negative, Yang and Yin. This classification corresponds to two quite distinct tonalities, the first one bringing extraversion, action, self-confidence and dynamism, the second one, introversion, reactivity, reflection and caution. None is superior to the other, each group has its own assets and shortcomings. Odd signs - Aries, Gemini, Leo, Libra, Sagittarius and Aquarius - belong to the first group, whereas even signs - Taurus, Cancer, Virgo, Scorpio, Capricorn and Pisces - belong to the second group.

According to the disposition and qualities of your planets and angles, you are rather influenced by YANG energy, the active polarity: more concerned about actions than reflection, you sometimes rush without standing back and without the deepness that is needed. However, your spontaneity prompts you to take fresh starts, even after repeated failures caused by your rashness.

Each sign contains 30 degrees and can be divided into three equal parts: the decanates. The Tradition indicates that specific meanings can be associated to each of the three decanates. Their sphere of activity is usually limited to the Sun sign, however, it is even more interesting to observe the distribution of all the planets in the chart to get an idea of the respective importance of the three decanates, which can complement the description of the personality.

These meanings must be considered with the greatest caution. Indeed, they are minor characteristics that can only underline other outstanding traits of character.

Traditionally, the first decanate highlights the characteristics of the sign where a planet is located. The two other decanates correspond to sub-dominant planets, depending on the nature of each sign. This system leads to a multiplication of meanings and it is impossible to have a clear understanding: here, we prefer to give only the meaning of one decanate in comparison with the other two, within the birth chart as a whole. Again, the greatest caution is needed with regard to this minor indication as it is not always reliable.

The first decanate, which means the part between 0° and 10° of any zodiacal sign, prevails in your natal chart: this decanate is traditionally linked to vitality and physical constitution, and may indicate that you efficiently express your concrete energy on the material and sensual planes.

Dominants: Planets, Signs and Houses for Thaksin SHINAWATRA

The issue of dominant planets has existed since the mists of time in astrology: how nice it would be if a person could be described with a few words and one or several planets that would represent their character, without having to analyse such elements as rulerships, angularities, houses, etc!

The ten planets - the Sun throughout Pluto - are a bit like ten characters in a role-play, each one has its own personality, its own way of acting, its own strengths and weaknesses. They actually represent a classification into ten distinct personalities, and astrologers have always tried to associate one or several dominant planets to a natal chart as well as dominant signs and houses.

Indeed, it is quite the same situation with signs and houses. If planets symbolize characters, signs represent hues - the mental, emotional and physical structures of an individual. The sign in which a planet is posited is like a character whose features are modified according to the place where he lives. In a chart, there are usually one, two or three highlighted signs that allow to rapidly describe its owner.

Regarding astrological houses, the principle is even simpler: the twelve houses correspond to twelve fields of life, and planets tenanting any given house increase that house's importance and highlight all relevant life departments: it may be marriage, work, friendship etc.

In your natal chart, Thaksin SHINAWATRA, the ten main planets are distributed as follows:

The three most important planets in your chart are Sun, Mercury and Uranus.

One of the dominant planets in your natal chart is the Sun. He symbolizes will, magnetism, sense of honour and dignity. You are a Solar being, and you often display charismatic and leadership qualities. Your warmth and your persuasive power lead you far away from pettiness. You enjoy thinking big and, consequently, you move forward according to what you decide.

Your Solarian weakness may be related to the sin of pride or to excessive authority. The frontier between pride and vanity is tenuous: be careful not to overstep it and to keep the nobleness of heart that is part of your charm.

With Mercury among your dominant planets, you are certainly cerebral, nervous, swift, curious, quick-witted, and you love to communicate. Your psychological pattern is intellectual, all the more so since Mercury is important, with its whole set of assets but also of weaknesses, obviously.

Your sensitivity, emotions, and heart's impulses give precedence to thinking, which can lead people to believe that you are a playful and witty but heartless person, intellectualizing situations and juggling with words and numbers whilst ignoring human aspects of things. Of course, it is said that cats always land on their feet - this is your Mercurian strength and your trump card!

Your weakness lies in your nervousness, and you may miss your goal because of your "over-intellectualization" that may be detrimental to other kind of energies such as instinct, spontaneity, heart, sensitivity, etc.

Uranus is among your dominant planets: just like Neptune and Pluto, Uranian typology is less clearly defined than the so-called classical seven planets that are visible to the naked eye, from the Sun to Saturn. However, it is possible to associate your Uranian nature with a few clear characteristics: Uranus rhymes with independence, freedom, originality, or even rebelliousness and marginality, when things go wrong...

Uranus is Mercury's higher octave and as such, he borrows some of its traits of character; namely, a tendency to intellectualize situations and emotions with affective detachment, or at least jagged affectivity.

Therefore, you are certainly a passionate man who is on the lookout for any kind of action or revolutionary idea, and you are keen on new things. Uranians are never predictable, and it is especially when they are believed to be stable and well settled that... they change everything - their life, partner, and job! In fact, you are allergic to any kind of routine, although avoiding it must give way to many risks.

In your natal chart, the three most important signs - according to criteria mentioned above - are in decreasing order of strength Leo, Cancer and Capricorn. In general, these signs are important because your Ascendant or your Sun is located there. But this is not always the case: there may be a cluster of planets, or a planet may be near an angle other than the Midheaven or Ascendant. It may also be because two or three planets are considered to be very active because they form numerous aspects from these signs.

Thus, you display some of the three signs' characteristics, a bit like a superposition of features on the rest of your chart, and it is all the more so if the sign is emphasized.

With Leo as a dominant sign, you naturally shine brightly. Your dignity, your sense of honour, and your generosity can almost turn you into a solar mythological hero, a knight or a lord from the ancient times. People may blame you for your selfishness, your pride or your somewhat loud authority, but if you are self-confident, kind-hearted and strong-willed, it surely makes up for your little flaws, as long as they remain moderate...

Cancer is one of your dominant signs and endows you with imagination and exceptionally shrewd sensitivity. Although suspicious at first sight - and even at second...- as soon as you get familiar with people and let them win your confidence, your golden heart eventually shows up, despite your discretion and your desire for security that make you return into your shell at the slightest alert! Actually, you are a poet and if you are sometimes blamed for your nostalgia and your laziness, it is because your intense inner life is at full throttle...

Capricorn is one of your dominant signs and endows you with a grave and serious style that seems to stick to you constantly. But if you have that reserved and cold side - as some extrovert people may think - on the other hand, you possess sturdy qualities: you are strong-willed and tough. Your long-term vision, your sense of duty, and your ambition are not affected by the derisory and erratic motions that seem to upset most mortals less steady than you. Besides, you are like a good wine, you age well and your natural solemnity or serious side paradoxically turns into an almost cheerful appearance, as you grow older. You are actually very sensitive when it comes to love. Faithful, caring, sweet, and sensitive, your behaviour is very different in your everyday, sentimental life. A golden heart beats under your tough and austere appearance...

After this paragraph about dominant planets, of Thaksin SHINAWATRA, here are the character traits that you must read more carefully than the previous texts since they are very specific: the texts about dominant planets only give background information about the personality and remain quite general: they emphasize or, on the contrary, mitigate different particularities or facets of a personality. A human being is a complex whole and only bodies of texts can attempt to successfully figure out all the finer points.

Your sensitivity

You seek other people's attention and approval, Thaksin SHINAWATRA, you need to exteriorize your emotions, to interpret them, and even to dramatically enact them because it is essential for you to shine at the front of the stage. You always try to achieve more and better than anyone else and, whatever the situation may be, you strive to remain warm, generous, loyal, honest, straightforward and courageous. You are always available when your assistance or your advice is needed and you are glad and proud to help. However, you must be wary not to overdo, as you may be domineering! You are not indispensable and people might think that you are self-centered and authoritarian when you handle things with no regard for your entourage's views. It would be regrettable that you project such an image because it may only reveal a lack of self-confidence and you are only trying to reassure yourself...

Your intellect and your social life

Your intellectual and nervous energy is considerable, Thaksin SHINAWATRA, with good concentration abilities and a strong determination. You have plenty of planning and organization skills and enthusiasm. Your helpfulness is deep and you never hesitate to solve other people's problems. You are thought of as a reliable person and you enjoy it very much. You believe in your own capacities and you tend to speak with a dramatic pomposity because you want to attract attention. People who do not share your opinion are in trouble! Your determination is strongest and you may show stubbornness and inflexibility because you do not easily accept it when your ideas or your actions are criticized. Some people believe that you assert yourself in an authoritarian and condescending way, but you are not aware of it and therefore, you keep on thinking that you are right.

Your affectivity and your seductiveness

In your chart, the Sun and Venus are both in Leo. You are a Leo to the tips of your claws, you resolutely take a conquering attitude, and you do not allow anybody to tarnish your public image. You are sensitive to people’s opinions. You strive to give a dramatic character to your sentimental life, otherwise, love would seem very dull to you. Your weaknesses? An obvious touchiness, the vulnerability to people’s judgments: when your charm works, you are at your best but you feel all the more powerless or distraught when your subtle enchanting mechanism gets jammed by a glitch. Your abilities to seduce are unquestionable. Does it mean that you are inconstant? Nothing is less certain. You are able to show that you are almost absolutely faithful. Faithfulness to your friends, your loves… and your rivals. Your nature is possessive and you seldom forgive blows to your pride. This is a consequence of your unlimited generosity towards persons who consider you and keep you in high esteem. No doubt, one never gets bored in your company. Unless your partner gets tired of always looking for reasons to admire you, to sustain a passionate, unyielding and uncompromising relationship. Some tyrannies are pleasant, whereas some others are more difficult to bear!

You are so proud and generous, Thaksin SHINAWATRA, that the power of your love contains in itself your vulnerability. However, this is precisely what makes you charming and original. You are loyal and straightforward and you need to love as much as you need to be loved. Both feelings are tightly linked and there is a real danger that love is broken up by trivial misunderstandings, just because your touchiness is affected. You are demonstrative, brilliant, and even dramatic, with a legendary generosity. For you, everything is, or must be, excessive: gestures of love towards your partner, your presents, your comfort and the luxury, which marks your outings and your travels. You are physically a lion, at least, you have its sexual appetite; you are voluptuous and passionate. Flexibility is the only thing that is out of your reach, in the ways you show your love, as well as in your responses to annoying events.

Your will and your inner motivations

Psychologically speaking, your nature is powerful and self-assured. You are a leader whose strength and nobleness naturally arouse your entourage’s respect and adherence and your legitimacy is unquestioned. Your sense of commandment, the honour your person constantly exudes, your prestige and your charisma is a whole which puts you into the spotlight wherever you go.

As you are born under this sign, you are proud, determined, wilful, loyal, solemn, generous, ambitious, courageous, heroic, full of vitality, creative, confident, seductive, happy, daring, proud, majestic, honest, magnanimous, charismatic, responsible, noble, brilliant, radiant, dramatic, affectionate, full of humour, demonstrative, swaggering and self-confident.You can also be domineering, conceited, touchy, authoritarian, stubborn, intolerant, self-centered, irascible, violent, and nonchalant.

In love, Sir, you are very demanding. You are a powerful and loyal lover. Your partner must be the most beautiful and the most brilliant person and she must make you feel that she admires you. In such a case, your generosity has no limit and you give your love without reservation, with nobleness, liberalities and luxury. You set up a stable and brilliant home where children have the essential part.
The main danger is that you value trust to the extent that you grant it generously but too hastily: if you happen to find out that your trust is misplaced, the whole world around you crumbles and the relationship is forever damaged. In this regard, you are cut-and-dried and you feel so hurt and humiliated that you seldom can forgive.
Another similar danger comes from the fact that your expectations are very high and it is very unlikely that real life offers such unconditional and lasting love: for this reason, it is not unusual that you never marry, all the more so because your self-centered character is not prone to self-questioning…

Your ability to take action

It is difficult to find a more sensitive person than you, Thaksin SHINAWATRA. You are able to contain your aggressiveness and it may be hard for you to exteriorize your feelings. You are usually passive and you draw your strength from inertia and resistance more than from the will to take action. Your mood is changing, you show little of yourself and you may surprise with your inopportune reactions that come late, when people have forgotten what it was all about. The only area where you express yourself with zeal and where your actions are successful is the area of home or, more symbolically, in the fields where you can achieve security. In other words, you need to feel comfortable before you can move, in concrete matters as well as in sexuality.

Conclusion

This text is only an excerpt from of Thaksin SHINAWATRA's portrait. We hope that it will arouse your curiosity, and that it will prompt you to deepen your knowledge of astrology, as well as to visit and use the wide range of free applications at www.astrotheme.com.

Astrological studies describe many of the character traits and they sometimes go deeper into the understanding of a personality. Please, always keep in mind that human beings are continuously evolving and that many parts of our psychological structures are likely to be expressed later, after having undergone significant life's experiences. It is advised to read a portrait with hindsight in order to appreciate its astrological content. Under this condition, you will be able to take full advantage of this type of study.

The analysis of an astrological portrait consists in understanding four types of elements which interact with one another: ten planets, twelve zodiacal signs, twelve houses, and what are called aspects between planets (the 11 aspects most commonly used are: conjunction, opposition, square, trine, sextile, quincunx, semi-sextile, sesqui-quadrate, quintile and bi-quintile. The first 5 aspects enumerated are called major aspects).

Planets represent typologies of our human psychology: sensitivity, affectivity, ability to undertake, will-power, mental process, aptitude, and taste for communication etc., all independent character facets are divided here for practical reasons. The twelve signs forming the space where planets move will "colour", so to speak, these typologies with each planet being located in its particular sign. They will then enrich the quality of these typologies, as expressed by the planets. The Zodiac is also divided into twelve astrological houses. This makes sense only if the birth time is known because within a few minutes, the twelve houses (including the 1st one, the Ascendant) change significantly. They correspond to twelve specific spheres of life: external behaviour, material, social and family life, relationship, home, love life, daily work, partnership, etc. Each planet located in any given house will then act according to the meaning of its house, and a second colouration again enriches those active forces that the planets symbolize. Finally, relations will settle among planets, creating a third structure, which completes the planets' basic meanings. A set of ancient rules, which has stood the test of experience over hundreds of years (although astrology is in evolution, only reliable elements are integrated into classical studies), are applied to organize the whole chart into a hierarchy and to allow your personality to be interpreted by texts. The planets usually analysed are the Sun, the Moon, Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto, which means two luminaries (the Sun and the Moon) and 8 planets, a total of 10 planets. Additional secondary elements may be taken into account, such as asteroids Chiron, Vesta, Pallas, Ceres (especially Chiron, more well-known), the Lunar nodes, the Dark Moon or Lilith, and even other bodies: astrology is a discipline on the move. Astrological studies, including astrological portrait, compatibility of couples, predictive work, and horoscopes evolve and become more accurate or deeper, as time goes by.

Precision: According to the Tradition, a planet near the beginning (called cuspide) of the next house (less than 4 degrees for the Ascendant and the Midheaven, and less than 3 degrees for all other houses) belongs to this house: our texts take this rule into account in this interactive natal chart and in every astrological programme.

Warning: In order to avoid any confusion and any possible controversy, we want to draw your attention upon the fact that this sample of celebrities is very complete - to our knowledge, it is the most important one in the astrology world, with more than 36,000 celebrities on line, interactive charts and interpretation excerpts - and therefore, it also includes undesirable people, since every category is represented: beside artists, musicians, politicians, lawyers, professional soldiers, poets, writers, singers, explorers, scientists, academics, religious figures, saints, philosophers, sages, astrologers, mediums, sportsmen, chess champions, famous victims, historical characters, members of royal families, models, painters, sculptors, and comics authors or other actual celebrities, there are also famous murderers, tyrants and dictators, serial-killers, or other characters whose image is very negative, often rightly so.

Regarding the latter, it must be remembered that, obviously, even a monster or at least a person who perpetrated odious crimes, such as Nazi criminals for example, has some human qualities, often noticed by his/her close entourage: these excerpts come from computer programmes devoid of polemical intentions and may seem too soft or lenient. The positive side of each personality is deliberately stressed. Violent and negative sides have been erased here because it could hurt the families of such people. We are hoping that it will not rebound on the victims' side!