Asian Crime and Society Review

LOCALIZING JUSTICE: VERNACULAR LEGAL LANGUAGE AND SOCIAL ORDER IN PRE-MODERN CHAIYA CITY-STATES

2025-05-09T13:56:23+07:00

This study examines the interplay of legal language, local adaptation, and social order in the Chaiya city-states of southern Thailand prior to the late 19th-century reforms. Employing documentary research, it analyzes vernacular legal texts ("books of law") and compares them to the central Siamese Three Seals Law. The research identifies four distinct styles of legal language in the Chaiya texts, including Thai, Southern Thai dialect, and mixed forms, which reflect the local language, customs, and moral principles integrated into legal interpretation and enforcement. Exploring how the vernacularization of legal language shaped local legal practices and maintained social order, the study underscores the significance of understanding the relationship between legal language, cultural context, and justice administration in pre-modern Southeast Asia. It challenges the concept of uniform legal application. It highlights the agency of local communities in adapting legal principles to their specific circumstances, contributing to a deeper understanding of legal pluralism and its role in shaping social order within a regional context.

HUMAN RIGHTS DUE DILIGENCE IN THAILAND'S CONSTRUCTION: PROTECTING MYANMAR MIGRANT WORKERS

2025-05-27T15:45:50+07:00

This study examines the effectiveness of Human Rights Due Diligence (HRDD) and grievance mechanisms in Thailand's construction sector, focusing on the experiences of Myanmar migrant workers in Bangkok. Employing a qualitative research design, data were gathered through document analysis and interviews with key stakeholders. The findings reveal significant gaps in HRDD implementation, leading to unethical recruitment, undocumented labor, limited access to social welfare, and exploitation within the subcontractor system. Despite policy rhetoric on Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) impacts, there is an apparent disconnect between governmental commitments and on-the-ground realities. Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) play a crucial role in stakeholder engagement and driving change. The research suggests sustainable reforms, aligned with Thailand's National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights, to ensure corporate responsibility is an ethical and legal obligation. It calls for enhanced enforcement, streamlined documentation processes, and improved collaboration between government, businesses, and civil society to protect the rights and well-being of migrant workers in the Thai construction industry.

BEYOND STEREOTYPES: AN INTERDISCIPLINARY FRAMEWORK FOR UNDERSTANDING FEMALE LEADERSHIP IN ASIAN TERRORIST ORGANIZATIONS

2025-08-25T12:01:06+07:00

The participation of women in leadership roles within Asian terrorist activities is critically underexplored, often reduced to simplistic binaries of coercion or deviance. This article introduces a novel interdisciplinary framework that integrates trauma theory, social identity theory, feminist security studies, and relational leadership to transcend these stereotypes and enhance understanding of women’s influence in extremist organizations. Utilizing a robust mixed-method qualitative design, the study combines Delphi consensus panels, expert interviews, comparative case studies of four ideologically diverse groups (LTTE, Abu Sayyaf, BRN, Aum Shinrikyo), and discourse analysis of 72 propaganda pieces, to triangulate complex psychosocial dynamics. Findings illuminate six interlinked psychosocial domains—ranging from trauma-based cognitive reframing to strategic gendered instrumentalization—that underpin women's leadership. This research challenges traditional male-centric models of radicalization by emphasizing the relational, emotional, and symbolic aspects of female power. Theoretically, it offers a context-sensitive model of female terrorist leadership, significantly contributing to both gender and security studies. In practice, the study advocates trauma-responsive deradicalization programs, gender-informed risk assessment tools, and culturally specific reintegration and Counter-Violent Extremism (CVE) approaches, underscoring the ineffectiveness of initiatives that overlook women's symbolic and relational authority.

DIGITAL VOICES, LEGAL SILENCES: EXAMINING LGBTQ+ ONLINE POLITICAL EXPRESSION UNDER THE THAI CONSTITUTION

2025-09-30T14:40:57+07:00

This study critically examines the online political expression rights and freedoms of gender-diverse individuals (LGBTQ+) within the framework of the Thai Constitution and related legal statutes. While the 2017 Constitution unequivocally guarantees freedom of expression and prohibits sex-based discrimination, the article highlights a significant tension: subordinate laws, particularly the Computer-Related Crime Act 2007, contain ambiguous provisions on "public order" and "good morals" that are broadly interpreted to restrict LGBTQ+ voices. Through documentary qualitative research, the study analyzes Thai and international legal texts, court rulings, and academic literature to compare Thailand's situation with international human rights standards and foreign democratic systems. Findings reveal that despite constitutional protections, LGBTQ+ individuals encounter substantial legal and structural barriers to their online political participation, often leading to censorship and self-censorship. These restrictions undermine the full realization of constitutional rights and equality. The study concludes by proposing concrete recommendations, including amending vague legal provisions, explicitly safeguarding constructive LGBTQ+ online expression, and promoting inclusive legal research and civil society engagement, to foster a truly democratic and equitable digital environment in Thailand.

NULLITY AND LEGAL DEFECTS: SEVERELY UNLAWFUL ADMINISTRATIVE ORDERS IN THAI LAW AND COMPARATIVE JURISPRUDENCE

2025-10-06T02:30:39+07:00

This research provides a comprehensive examination of the theoretical underpinnings and legal concepts surrounding administrative orders issued unlawfully by state officials, particularly those with severe and manifest defects. Focusing primarily on the Thai legal framework, the study integrates comparative analyses with foreign jurisdictions, employing documentary research and legal analysis of statutory provisions, judicial precedents, and scholarly works. Findings reveal that administrative orders characterized by a blatant violation of statutory law or an incontrovertible factual contradiction are devoid of legal effect (null and void ab initio), and administrative authorities lack the competence to enforce them. The Administrative Court in Thailand is shown to possess the authority to raise issues of severe illegality ex officio. The study highlights the gradual judicial recognition of the doctrine of nullity in Thailand, drawing parallels with doctrines such as nichtige Verwaltungsakt in Germany and acte administratif inexistant in France. It argues for the adaptation of principles from foreign administrative law to enhance fairness, legal certainty, and efficiency within the Thai administrative adjudication system. The research proposes legislative and judicial reforms to clarify the distinction between void and voidable administrative acts, thereby strengthening the rule of law and ensuring greater alignment with international administrative law standards.

EQUAL BEFORE THE LAW? UNMASKING DISPARITIES IN REAL-WORLD JUSTICE

2025-10-25T09:41:56+07:00

Equality before the law—a cornerstone of democratic governance—faces persistent challenges in the real world, undermining public trust and social cohesion. This article addresses the critical question: To what extent is equality before the law truly realized, and what factors perpetuate disparities in justice systems? Synthesizing two decades (2005-2024) of theoretical and empirical research, this study unmasks disparities in criminal justice, migration, and economic policy, demonstrating how discretion, institutional design, and structural factors interact to shape access, protections, and legal outcomes. Our analysis reveals that independent oversight, diversified decision-making, procedural fairness, and addressing fundamental social determinants are crucial for advancing equality. Drawing on cross-national comparisons and diverse case studies, we identify policy pathways that promote equality, including targeted reforms in adjudication and risk assessment, governance frameworks that minimize bias, and integrated policies that address social and economic disparities. This research contributes novel insights into the persistent gap between formal legal protections and substantive equality, offering evidence-based strategies to enhance fairness and accountability in justice systems. The findings underscore the ongoing need for vigilance and reform, even in seemingly egalitarian contexts like Sweden and the United Kingdom, and highlight the importance of context-sensitive, policy-coherent approaches to promote real-world equality. These insights have significant implications for policymakers, legal practitioners, and researchers seeking to advance justice and reduce inequalities, particularly in the Asian context.

CRIMINOGENIC GOVERNANCE: SYSTEMIC CORRUPTION RISKS AND CRIME IN THAILAND'S PROVINCIAL ADMINISTRATION

2025-09-01T22:07:45+07:00

Corruption in provincial governance is increasingly recognized as a systemic mechanism that enables crime, rather than merely an ethical or administrative failure. This study investigates how corruption risks function as crime-enabling structures within Thailand's provincial administration, situated within a broader Asian context marked by persistent governance weaknesses. Integrating Enterprise Risk Management (ERM), the Governance-Risk-Compliance (GRC) model, and Stakeholder Participation Theory, this research conceptualizes corruption as systemic vulnerabilities with direct crime-enabling effects. A qualitative comparative case study was conducted across four Thai provinces, utilizing 28 semi-structured interviews, documentary analysis, and field observations. Thematic coding, guided by ERM's structural, procedural, and behavioral risk dimensions, revealed that centralized authority and patronage networks foster limited oversight. Manipulation of procurement and discretionary regulations sustain collusion, while cultural tolerance of bribery normalizes corruption in bureaucratic routines. These interconnected risks transform corruption into a systemic mechanism facilitating fraud, money laundering, and organized crime. Comparative insights from Indonesia, Vietnam, and the Philippines confirm this pattern across Asia, underscoring the urgency of integrated provincial governance reforms that combine risk-based monitoring, participatory oversight, and cultural change to prevent crime effectively.