Puey Ungphakorn

Puey Ungphakorn MBE
ป๋วย อึ๊งภากรณ์
Governor of the Bank of Thailand
In office 11 June 1959 – 15 August 1971
Preceded by	Jote Guna-Kasem
Succeeded by	Bisudhi Nimmanhaemin
Rector of Thammasat University
In office 30 January 1975 – 8 October 1976
Preceded by	Adul Wichiencharoen
Succeeded by	Nongyao Chaiseri (acting)
Personal details
Born	(1916-03-09)9 March 1916 Siam
Died	28 July 1999(1999-07-28) (aged 83) London, United Kingdom
Spouse	Margaret Smith ​ (m. 1946)​
Children	Jon Ungpakorn Peter Ungpakorn Giles Ji Ungpakorn
MBE , Military Division

Puey Ungphakorn,

in Thailand.

Born to a

on a reconnaissance mission.

Puey completed his studies after the war, receiving a doctorate in 1948.

in the field of government service in 1965.

An active academic, Puey was simultaneously

. Tarred by nationalists as a leftist subversive, he was subsequently forced to flee the country for fear of his safety, residing in the United Kingdom until his death in 1999.

Early life and education

Puey was born the fourth child of an immigrant Chinese fishmonger and a second generation

in 1938.

Free Thai movement

. He was captured almost immediately, and remained technically a prisoner of war until the Japanese surrender in September 1945, though he in fact made contact with Free Thai members of the Thai police and was able to work with them from his jail cell.

After the war, Puey was promoted to the rank of

Government service

Ministry of Finance

In 1949 Puey became an economist in the Ministry of Finance. In 1953 he was appointed managing director of the National Economic Council.[4]

Bank of Thailand

In 1953, Puey was appointed Deputy Governor of the Bank of Thailand.^[4] Upon becoming governor in 1959, Puey quickly attracted the attention of international agencies, foreign governments, and the international financial community for the integrity of his financial planning and management. His international stature was recognised ceremoniously in 1964 when he became the first Thai to receive the Magsaysay Award for public service. Equally important, this international recognition gave him an influence with Field Marshals Sarit Thanarat, Thanom Kittikachorn, and their cohorts which far exceeded his bureaucratic position. They sought his aid and advice as a troubleshooter for Thailand's monetary interests, particularly in matters they had botched or in which they were suspected to have their own private interests, such as remedying Sarit's mishandling of Thailand's participation on an international tin council and preventing a kickback scandal over the foreign printing of Thailand's currency.

Other positions

After stepping down as central bank governor, Puey was appointed to the un-elected National Legislative Assembly established under the

.

Academic career

In 1966 Puey became the dean of the Faculty of Economics at his alma mater, Thammasat University, where his work with the

.

Puey played an instrumental role in the establishment of the Bangkok-based Asian Institute of Technology (AIT),^[6] previously the Graduate School of Engineering of the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO)^[7] in 1967. Dr Puey became the first chairperson of the AIT Board of Trustees from 1968 to 1973.

After the ousting of Thanom's regime in October 1973, Puey was catapulted into political prominence and, along with M.R.

. However, after a great deal of self-examination, Puey disavowed all interest in such a candidacy and returned to Thammasat, where he was appointed rector. Puey's explanation was that when he had joined the Free Thai Movement he had taken an oath never to seek or accept political appointment until after reaching the age of retirement. Some have argued, however, that Puey's withdrawal was based upon his mature understanding of the nature of society and that he had accurately foreseen that the upcoming democratic period would be inherently unstable, dangerous, and short-lived.

Exile

6 October 1976 Massacre Memorial, Thammasat University, Bangkok

Despite his service, honesty and international reputation, Puey was branded a communist and "destroyer of unity" by the political right of Thailand. Although he spoke out against the unending student demonstrations of 1975–76 as being both ineffective and self-destructive, and even denied his students any use of the Thammasat campus as a base for mounting public demonstrations, he was nevertheless assigned blame for their occurrence.

On the evening of the bloody

While living abroad, Puey met with Thais and influential figures in several countries, including those in the United Kingdom, the United States, France, Germany, Sweden, Denmark, Japan, and Australia to speak about the incident and to call for a peaceful transition to democracy in Thailand. In 1977, Puey gave testimonials before the

6 October 1976 Massacre

.

In September 1977, Puey suffered a

Legacy

In 2015 he was recognised by UNESCO for his high ethical standards.[10]

Honours

Military rank

• Major of the British Army^[1]

Academic rank

• Professor of Thammasat University^[11]

See also

• Giles Ji Ungpakorn
  , his sons with his English wife, Margaret Smith
• Prachuap Ungpakorn, nephew^[12]

References

Notes

1. ^ Known as the University of Moral and Political Sciences (Thai: มหาวิทยาลัยวิชาธรรมศาสตร์และการเมือง; RTGS: Mahawitthayalai Wicha Thammasat Lae Kanmueang) until 1952.

External links

• Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation
• The Quality of Life of a South-East Asian: A Chronicle of Hope from Womb to Tomb by Puey Ungphakorn, 1980
• Goodbye to Thailand,
  Sir Anthony Rumbold
  to Mr. Brown, 18 July 1967 : In Paragraph 9, a departing UK ambassador's advice to his successor in re Dr. Puey
• Violence and the Military Coup in Thailand, From the Bulletin of Concerned Asian Scholars, v. 9, No 3, July–September 1977 Special Supplement – October 1976: The Coup in Thailand
• A Letter from Dr Puey Ungpakorn: The Violence and the October 6, 1976 Coup, Intention and Brutality
• Puey Ungphakorn was the model of a great citizen