Thammasat Edition

Motto: Be the finest, be fair, be the main engine of the society

Thammasat University, the second oldest university in Thailand, is one of the best known and respected institutions of higher learning in the country. Over the decades since its founding, Thammasat University has evolved from being an open university for law and politics to a prestigious international university offering all levels of academic degrees across a broad spectrum of fields and disciplines. It has graduated more than 300,000 undergraduate and graduate students who have greatly contributed to the development and progress of Thai society and the nation. The university's alumni have included Royal Family members, prime ministers and government figures, leading corporate figures and national artists.

Thammasat has two campus: Tha Prachan and Rangit. There are also several other branches across Thailand. I have classes at Tha Prachan campus located in Bangkok since it is the international campus. Most of the classes in this campus are taught in English while most classes are taught in Thai at Rangsit campus.

Over the years, Thammasat students have been known for their activism and have played a major role in Thai politics.

In 1973, Thammasat became the center of the protest movement that led to the bloody uprising on October 14th. A large crowd, led by university students, assembled at Thammasat University to protest against the arrest of thirteen pro-democracy student activists. The protest continued for several days before a bloody confrontation took place at Democracy Momument. When Thailand's military leaders fled into exile, Sanya Dharmasaki, then Thammasat rector, was appointed as the Prime Minister of Thailand.

Three years later, a brutal massacre took place on the Tha Phrachan campus on 6 October 1976. The event began with protests against the return of the exiled dictator Thanom Kittikachorn. Violence first appeared on 25 September when two EGAT employees who handed out protest literature in Nakhon Pathom were branded 'communists', beaten to death, and their bodies hung from a wall. This led to peaceful protests by labor groups, students, and other activists demanding the expulsion of Thanom.

On 4 October, students staged a play on the Thammasat campus to dramatize the hanging of the protesters in Nakhon Pathom. Several newspapers printed photographs of the mock hanging, however with one of the students retouched to resemble Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn and imply the students had committed lèse-majesté. Uniformed police and enraged right wing paramilitary groups promptly surrounded Thammasat University. At dawn of 6 October the police and paramilitary groups attacked the protestors. The mayhem continued for several hours. I've read some sources and each has various numbers as far as how many were killed. Newspaper sources gave the number killed around 45 but the actual figure may have been over a hundred, with several hundred more injured. Many student protestors escaped by jumping Chao Phraya River, where they were rescued by the sympathetic Royal Thai Navy.

6 October Memorial at Tha Phrachan

The man with the glasses is Dr. Puey Ungpakorn dean of the Faculty of Economics.

Following his protests regarding the 6 October 1976 attrocities - that is the brutaility and killings of students by the military and ultra right wing paramilitaries - Dr Puey was identified as "a communist" and "a destroyer of Thai unity."

He was lucky to escape from Thailand with his life after being met at Don Muang airport with a mob ready to kill him.

On the gray marble bordering to the red granite memorial is written...

"What is most regrettable is that young people now have no third choice. If they cannot conform to the government, they must run away. Those interested in peaceful means to bring about freedom and democracy must restart from square on."

- Dr. Puey Ungpakorn, "The Violence of the 6th October 1976"

I actually have not talk to many students about the massacre. I'm hesitant to because this might be a huge taboo. Also, some faculty members know of someone that died during the October 6th Massacre.

Basically, Thammasat is very well known all across Thailand. All the "high society" kids go to the Tha Prachan campus. Think of this school as the Harvard of Thailand.

There are several different way one can go to school from where I live. I usually walk 20 minutes to the ferry and then take the ferry across the river. BUT most Thai kids live with their parents so they have their drivers drop them off or they take a taxi, BTS, etc. A lot of them are appalled when they find out how the exchange students get to school. LOL

Taking the ferry to school