Far more Southeast Asians are now studying the culture and history of their neighbouring countries in preparation for the introduction of the Asean Economic Community in 2015. Thai historian Charnvit Kasetsiri has been doing it for more than four decades. And, at 72, he says he’s always learning something new.
“The more we study, the more we discover,” he says. “History isn’t just about the past – it also involves current situations.”
Misinformation and misperception about the medieval Preah Vihear temple on the Thai-Cambodian border resulted in armed conflict in recent years and the death of several soldiers on both sides. Professor Charnvit and fellow historians Pavin Chatchavanpongpan and Pou Sothirak, a Cambodian, are together writing a book in English about the World Heritage site that offers “a possible solution”.
White Lotus plans to publish it late this year to coincide with the World Court’s ruling as to which country owns the territory surrounding the temple. The book, “Preah Vihear: Thai-Cambodian Conflict and Possible Solution”, is expected to introduce new information about the site’s history, the result of the authors’ intense investigation.
“I’m particularly interested in the history of Southeast Asia because I was studying in the US during the 1960s, when the Vietnam War was underway and our region as a whole was a hot issue,” Charnvit says. With Westerners taking a keen interest in Southeast Asia and the roots of its cultures, he was dismayed to see the region’s citizens show so little.
After obtaining his PhD in Southeast Asian history at Cornell University in 1972, he came home to teach at Thammasat University. He first lectured in history, then became head of the department in 1981. He was also appointed deputy director of Thammasat’s Thai Khadi Institute in 1982 and vice president of the university in 1983.
He served as the school’s rector in 1994-95 before retiring.
Just before leaving, Charnvit founded the Programme for Southeast Asian Studies in Thammasat’s Faculty of Liberal Arts, the first such facility in Thailand. And he continues teaching in the History Department while writing numerous books about the region.
“Travelling through our neighbouring countries and learning about their cultures inspires me to write,” he says. What he’s discovered has become even more important with the advent of the AEC, in which history, culture and politics will converge to guide Southeast Asia’s economic planning in the years to come.
“We need to learn more about relationships among the various peoples,” says Charnvit, who bolsters his research via the Internet. The septuagenarian regularly shares his views of current politics, as well as fresh findings around the region, on the social media.
“If we learn about the root causes of the conflicts and the history behind them, we see how such conflicts stir intellectually debate and ultimately wisdom,” he notes.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY
Charnvit’s 72nd birthday on May 6 will have a late celebration this Saturday on the Suan Silp Lawn at Thammasat University’s Tha Prachan campus. Here’s the schedule of events:
4pm: Screening of a short documentary on his life and work
4.30: Keynote speech by Professor Emeritus Petcharee Sumitra, president of the Foundation for the Promotion of Social Sciences and Humanities Textbooks Project
4.45: Discussion on “The University of Moral and Political Sciences” with Panat Tasneeyanond, Nantana Nantawaropas, Warunee O-Satharom, Chatri Prakitnonthakarn, Akkharaphong Khamkhun, Surapong Raksachan
5.45: “Music for Ajarn” by students of Mahidol University’s College of Music
6: Cultural performances by his students at Southeast Asian Studies Program.
Charnvit in the eyes of other scholars
l Professor Thongchai Winichakul, president of the Association for Asian Studies and a former liberal-arts student at Thammasat University:
Ajarn Charnvit is an unusual character in Thai society. He’s among the most liberal-minded Thais I’ve ever known. He’s broad-minded and respectful about political and ideological differences, but more importantly he enjoys the differences between the generations.
He approaches these differences – the complexity of modern world and the rapid changes he has witnessed – like a child, with fun and inexhaustible curiosity. This is probably the source of his energy and passion as a scholar. He is a phu yai who never gets old, a senior teacher who remains friends with his students.
Ajarn Charnvit never, ever loses sight of common sense, meaning he always makes a good evaluation and has a balanced reaction to things, an attribute gained by experience of life, not scholastic reasoning or meditation.
I believe this character makes him a great teacher too, one who makes the pursuit of knowledge fun and keeps scholarship lively and never boring. He’s produced and supported several Thai scholars over several generations, but unlike some great scholars, he never makes them feel intimidated or less than respected.
He is one of the greatest teachers and scholars Thailand has ever had, but above all he’s an extraordinary human being.
l Kanokrat Lertchoosakul’s PhD thesis at the London School of Economics and Political Science was “The Rise of the Octobrists: Power and Conflict among Former Left-wing Student Activists in Contemporary Thai Politics”. She is currently a political scientist at Chulalongkorn University:
Chanvit Kasetsiri is one of the most influential and popular intellectuals in contemporary Thai intellectual history. His contributions enhanced a critical culture among Thai scholars and academic society.
However, if I wanted to play devil’s advocate, I would rather question whether his academic campaign during the last 20 years de-radicalised 1950s-1970s Thai political history. The outcome of his efforts to promote the works and history of Jit Phumisak and the 1970s Octobrist student activists seems to downplay many of their crucial radical elements. These include the leftist attributes of Jit and the 1970s student activist and their relationship with the Communist Party of Thailand.
And, from time to time, his campaign integrates and identifies them as a part of the liberal history of Thai politics. I assume he intentionally sought to expand the political space of these former leftists because there was little room left to breathe in Thailand for the Left and radicalism.
SUBHATRA BHUMIPRABHAS
SPECIAL TO THE NATION
