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The Land and Its People
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Village Organization and Leadership
Beyond the family, the next
largest unit of society is the village.
Although there are regional variations
in house styles and methods of crop
cultivation, and the settings may vary. in
essence Thai villages are all remarkably
similar, revolving around well-defined
climatic, religious, and farming seasons.
A typical village contains around
100 to 150 households, or an average of
500 to 700 inhabitants. The houses are
nearly all simple wooden structures,
elevated on posts; a small wooden
granary, also elevated, is often found
beside the house, together with large
earthenware jars in which rainwater is
stored for drinking. Most villages now
have electricity, but water for washing
and cooking comes from canals, rivers,
or ponds, or, in the arid northeast, from
communal wells.
On the village outskirts are the
local school and the wat, or Buddhist
monastery, sometimes adjacent to one
another, sometimes at opposite ends of
the village. The school is generally a
wooden building, perhaps a single
room where several classes are held
simultaneously; an essential feature is
the flag-pole upon which the Thai flag
is ceremoniously raised each school
morning and lowered in the evening. The
monastery, constructed and maintained
largely through local donations and thus
reflecting the village's wealth, is oflen
separated from the community by an
open field to give the resident monks
maximum privacy and seclusion for
their religious aciivities. This grassy
expanse also serves as the village
common, a place where children play
kickball and where local fairs are
held. Though usually two or three of
the village women are experienced
midwives, there is no full-time medical
facility; in case of serious illness or
injury, villagers must go to the nearest
district hospital, sometimes a considerable distance away.
Temples are the centre of village life
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The village is self-governing, led
by an elected headman, or phu-yai ban,
who until 1983 was always a man; since
thai year. however, women were also
elected to the position. A candidate is
not affiliated with any political party but
must be a literate Thai householder who
has resided in the village at least six
months and be at least 25 years old.
If he retains the villagers' support, the
phu-yai ban can remain in the post
until retirement at 60 through repeated
re-elections; by the same token, he can
be removed if he forfeits their respect.
It is the job of the phu-yai ban to
preserve the social harmony valued so
highly by all Thais by diplomatically
settling minor disputes, taking care to
ensure that neither party feels cheated
or loses face. In addition, he keeps the
village birth and death records and acts
as a spokesman for the community in
negotiations with the government bureaucracy.
Neighbouring villages are organized into groups known as tambon. the
basic administrative unit of Thailand,
which depending on topography and
population density consists of two to 28 villages. Each is administered by a
Subdistrict Council, composed of all the
village headmen, one of whom is elected
to be the chairperson, or kamnan.
During the last decade, the government has made strong efforts to
decentralize government and administrative
power to the people. Not surprisingly.
the Subdistrict Council has been a prime
target in these efforts, which led to
the promulgation of the Subdistrict
Council and Subdistrict Administration
Organization Act in 1994, All Subdistrict
Councils were made legal bodies as of
March 1995, which enabled a majority
of them. whose average revenue over
three consecutive years amounted to
150,000 baht or more, to change their
status to Subdistrict Administrative
Organizations, or local self-government
authorities. By 1999. almost all the
subdistricts were expecied to have
been transformed into Subdistrict
Administrative Organizations.
A Subdistrict Administrative
Organization (SAO) is composed of a
legislative body (the Council) and an
executive body (the Executive Board).
The Council is composed of elected
members (two from each village), while
the Executive Board is composed of the
chairman and two committee members
selected by council members from
among themselves,
The SAO is responsible for the
economic, social, and cultural development
within its jurisdiction as indicated by law.
These activities include construction and
maintenance of roads and waterways.
garbage disposal and waste water
treatment, prevention and relief of public
disasters, promotion of local education,
religion, and culture, promotion of
development activities relating to women.
children, the elderly, anu disabled persons,
support of natural resources and
environmental development and other
duties as assigned by higher government
units. Moreover, the SAO may assume
other duties such as providing clean
water, providing and maintaining public
electricity, building recreation centres,
public parks, and sports centres, promoting
family industries, and creating jobs.
The SAO has the authority to
formulate its regulations, which have a
legal status and can be enforced within
its jurisdiction. It can perform these
duties only within its own territory.
though they may he undertaken outside
its territory with the agreement and
consent of other local government units
if they are necessary and related to the
tasks undertaken within the subdistrict area itself.
Besides the responsibilities and
authorities specified by the 1994 Act,
there are also duties specified by other
laws such as the Building Control Act
of 1979, the Public Health Act of 1992,
the Land Maintenance Tax of 1965, the
Land and Property Tax Act of 1932, the
Signboard Act of 1967, and the Rabies Act of 1992.
The SAO has three main sources
of revenue: (1) sources collected by the
SAO itself, including land and building
taxes, fees from licences, tines, and
those generated from the management
of public utilities and commerce of the
SAO; (2) sources collected by other
bodies of which a certain percentage is
passed on to the SAO, such as valued
added tax. specific business tax, liquor
tax, excise tax. and fees from motor
vehicles; and (3) grants in aid from the
central government.
In 1999. the SAG with the highest
revenue was Koo Kol in Paihum Thani Province;
its revenue, excluding grants,
was 74.51 million baht. The SAG with
the lowest revenue was Kranon in
Khon Kaen Province, which had 50,779 baht.
Buddhist teachings create strong values
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The wat is the focal point of the
village, symbolizing the Buddhist
religion and also acting as the major
unifying element, particularly during
festivals and merit-making ceremonies
when it also becomes a social centre for
young and old alike. Abbots and senior
monks frequently enjoy more prestige
and moral persuasion than the village
head, and in times of personal crisis
they are often the first whose advice
is sought. Within the wat the abbot
has absolute administrative, clerical,
custodial, disciplinary, and spiritual
authority, and he also determines the
monastery's relationship with the village.
It an abbot is scholarly, meditalive, and
retiring, the monastery is unlikely to
concern itself much with mundane village
affairs. On the other hand, if he is a
dynamic personality he may make the
wat a community centre with a subtle
but powerful influence on social action.
Every young man in the village, before
he starts his own family, is expected to
spend a period of study and reflection
in the wat, thus increasing the influence
of Buddhism. Ordination ceremonies on
such occasions, usually held at the
beginning of the rainy season after the
planting is completed, are attended by
most villagers, as well as friends and
relatives from nearby communities.
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