Thailand’s constitutional crisis took an unexpected turn on Tuesday when the military declared martial law under a law that predates the first Thai constitution of 1932. The declaration came after six months of ugly street protests by electorally bankrupt, conservative political parties that brought the government of Prime Minister (PM) Yingluck Shinawatra to a standstill. Yingluck is the sister of former PM Thaksin Shinawatra, who was deposed in a coup in 2006 after allegations of corruption and mismanagement dogged his administration. She was dismissed from office earlier this month by a Constitutional Court established by Thailand’s 2007 Constitution. The military has not officially declared a coup and left the caretaker government of Niwatthamrong Boonsongpaisan in place, but said it has taken over all security arrangements from the government’s special security command. In a statement, the army said it would prohibit broadcasting of ‘distorting’ information that could instigate public disorder. Earlier, it ordered suspension of 10 satellite television channels. Thailand’s crisis is the result of a standoff over Thaksin Shinawatra, now living in exile, whose reforms a decade ago created a rift between the largely rural north and urban power-holders. The opposition, led by Suthep Thaugsuban, says Thaksin engineered recent elections to keep his sister in power, despite not being in the country. Ms Shinawatra came to power after an election victory in 2011 and her reforms have been especially popular with Thailand’s urban and rural poor. However, she has alienated traditional elites and the urban middle class, with many seeing their influence and wealth decline under her government. As far as military interventions go, Pakistan could consider itself lucky by comparison with Thailand. The Thai military has staged no less than 18 interventions since 1932, the last in 2006, and has either abrogated or promulgated 17 constitutional documents, the latest in 2007. The first Thai constitution was written by a group of western educated army officers and bureaucrats who deposed the king in a coup and forced him to accept a constitutional monarchy. That group was removed by another junta a year later, and before World War II, Thailand had already experienced three military interventions with one junta replacing another. Several prominent military leaders and politicians continued to control Thai politics until 1973, when popular demonstrations forced the military-backed government into exile. The military staged another, bloodier coup in 1976, but was forced into a compromise with civilian leaders. For most of the 1980s, Thailand was ruled by PM Prem Tinsulanonda, a democratically-inclined strongman who restored parliamentary politics. Thereafter the country remained a democracy apart from a brief period of military rule from 1991 to 1992 which saw another constitution promulgated. In 2001, Thaksin Shinawatra became PM in a landslide victory, when his Thai Rak Thai party won the first ever outright majority in Thailand’s 500 seat parliament. His opponents in the Democratic Party represent much of Thailand’s old landed elite. Mr Shinawatra gained tremendous popularity in the rural areas through reforms aimed at limiting inequality in landholding and revenues and by managing to clear all of Thailand’s external debt. After he was deposed in 2006, a new constitution was promulgated and elections were held in 2008. Ms Shinawatra came to power in 2011 after a series of protests between 2008 and 2010 led to the elected government being dismissed. She also won an outright majority in parliament. The conservative and predominantly royalist opposition came together under the banner of the People’s Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC) and began street agitation soon after. Despite a compromise agreement in 2012, agitation began again last year and finally resulted in Ms Shinawatra’s removal. While the military says it has acted ‘reluctantly’, observers familiar with Thai history see deeper motives at work. The Shinawatra family has such wide popular appeal, many believe the military promoted agitation in order to undermine the government and block its reforms. The PDRC is widely seen as unelectable because of their stance on giving the King broader, almost absolute authority. The situation remains tense and despite the military’s promise to hold elections in two weeks, it remains to be seen whether it will abide by the results if they bring Ms Shinawatra to power again. *