Thai Slavery


Figure 1.-- This wax museum scene shows a Thai child being sold as slave . It was quite common that peasant families sold some of their children in difficult times and to to pay off debts. King Rama V abolished slavery (1905). He was not able, however, to end the conditions thatled to this practice. Source: The Thai Human Imagery Museum. This is a wax museum about Thai life. It is located in Nakhon Chai Si, Thailand.

We are just beginning to collect information on slvery in Southeast Asia. Although vert substantial, reaching lkevels of classical civiliztions, it is very poorly documented and studied. Some information has been developed in the Khmer Empire. The Khmers had a substantial slave class. It was used to build the magnificent monuments in Angkor Wat, doing muxh of the heavy work. Many of these slaves were captives taken from the mountain tribes. Debt slavery was also important. Since ancient days it was quite common for peasant families to sell off some of their children in difficult times or to pay off debts. This system was prevalent throughout Asia, including Thailand and the rest of Southeast Asia. Peaants unble to repay debt to landlords and the ruling class could be sentenced to work as slaves. We believe that the same processes were at work in neigboring states like Thailand. The numbers of people involved were very substantial. One historian estimates that 25-35 percent of the population of Thailand and Burma were slaves (17th - early-20th centuries). War was endemic in Southeast Asia before the colonia era. A major source of Thai slaves were war catives. They became property of the king. The Thais not only enslaved war captives and foreign populations, but were subject the same actions by neigboring forces. Historins recount a Burmese seige of Ayudhya, the Thai capital(1765-67). The Burmese took away some 30,000-100,000 city residents as slaves, resettling them around Mandalay. {Nay Thien and James.] City residents made for valuable slves because many had useful skills. Virtually no data is available before the arrival of the Europeans, but we do have some data on more modern times. One report indicates that KIng Rama III (1824–51) amassed some 46,000 war slaves. And slave raiders continued to target the mountain people. The Siamese, the Anamites, and the Cambodians reportedly 'hunted incessantly' among the independent mountain people. [Colquhoun, p 53] The Thai monarchy launched a reform movement in an effort to avoid European colonial control. One of the justifications used by the Europeans was to abolish lsvery. European colonization gradually eliminated the intra-state warfare that ha dominted Southeast Asia for centuries. Slavery became increasingly a matter of debt bondage (19th century). [Crulkshank] Rama V (1869-1910) continued his father's reform effort, abolishing slaverya(1905). Debt slavery was also important and unlike slave raiding continued to be important after slavery was officially abolishd. Since World War II, Thailand has been criticised for human traficking. Child prositution based on debt slavery has been a problem. Another issue has been slavery in the fishing industry.

Ancient History

An ancient practice throughout Asia is slavery. This included Thailand the rest of Southeast Asia. Not a lot is known about slavery in ancient Thialand. And this is complicated by changng boundaries and migrations. Much of modern Thaoland was once pat of the Great Kymer Empire. Slavery was an important economic institutin in the Kymer Empire. Historians report a substantal slave class in the Khmer Empire. It is believed that slaves did much of the work in building the mny Kymer monuments like Angkor Wat. hey are believed to have done much of the heavy work. Less clear is who were the artusans that carved the beutiful relief sculptures. The source of the slaves is not known with any certainty, but raids of the mountain tribes are likely. The same is true of war captives.

Southeast Asia

We are just beginning to collect information on slvery in Southeast Asia. Although vert substantial, reaching lkevels of classical civiliztions, it is very poorly documented and studied. Some information has been developed in the Khmer Empire. The Khmers had a substantial slave class. It was used to build the magnificent monuments in Angkor Wat, doing muxh of the heavy work. Many of these slaves were captives taken from the mountain tribes. Debt slavery was also important. Since ancient days it was quite common for peasant families to sell off some of their children in difficult times or to pay off debts. This system was prevalent throughout Asia, including Thailand and the rest of Southeast Asia. Peaants unble to repay debt to landlords and the ruling class could be sentenced to work as slaves.

Thailand

We believe that the same processes were at work in neigboring states like Thailand. The numbers of people involved could be very substantial, but information on anchient times is very limited.

Modern Times

More recent information is available on modern Thailand (Siam). Indivduals unable to pay back debts might be tken as slaves, or they might sell their children depending on the size of the debts. One source suggests that this was the fate of those owing dbts to the ruling class. We are not sure just low the laws were applied to different classes. Nor or we sure these invididual became slave or indentured servants. Since ancient days it was quite common for peasant families to sell off some of their children in difficult times or to pay off debts. More information becomes abilable in modern times. One historian reports that between one-quarter to one-third of the population in some areas of Thailand and Burma were slaves (17th-early 20th century). Siam war captives became the personal property of the king. One source reports that during the reign of Rama III (1824–51) there were an estimated 46,000 war-caoptive slaves. These may have been primarily enemy sldiers, but it is likely that civilians were also taken captive. Several sources report that the Siamese intensly targeted the Hill Tribes. They were considered primtive people and also raided Thai villages. One historian reports, that the Thais and the other advanced kingdoms raided the villages of hill tribes along the borderlands, writing that they were "hunted incessantly and carried off as slaves by the Siamese, the Anamites, and the Cambodians." [Colquhoun, p. 53.] Many widely quoted sources suggest that both war captives and debt slaves were treated relatively well. One historian suggests that Thai slavery needs to be reassessed. [Bowie, p. 41.] One historian estimates that 25-35 percent of the population of Thailand and Burma were slaves (17th - early-20th centuries). War was endemic in Southeast asia before the colonia era. A major source of Thai slaves were war catives. They became property of the king. The Thais not only enslaved war captives and foreign populations, but were subject the same actions by neigboring forces. Historins recount a Burmese seige of Ayudhya, the Thai capital(1765-67). The Burmese took away some 30,000-100,000 city residents as slaves, resettling them around Mandalay. {Nay Thien and James.] City residents made for valuable slves because many had useful skills. Virtually no data is available before the arrival of the Europeans, but we do have some data on more modern times. One report indicates that KIng Rama III (1824–51) amassed some 46,000 war slaves. And slave raiders continued to target the mountain people. The Siamese, the Anamites, and the Cambodians reportedly 'hunted incessantly' among the independent mountain people. [Colquhoun, p 53] European colonial powers attempted to end this practice in the 19th century. Thailand was, however, never colonized. The Thai monarchy launched a reform movement in an effort to avoid European colonial control. One of the justifications used by the Europeans was to abolish lsvery. European colonization gradually eliminated the intra-state warfare that ha dominted Southeast Asia for centuries. Slavery became increasingly a matter of debt bondage (19th century). [Crulkshank] Rama V (1869-1910) continued his father's reform effort, abolishing slaverya(1905). He did not, however, fundamdntally change the economic conditions that led to ebt slavery.

Current Situation

Debt slavery was also important and unlike slave raiding continued to be important after slavery was officially abolishd. Since World War II, Thailand has been criticised for human traficking. Child prositution based on debt slavery has been a problem. Another issue has been slavery in the country's fishing industry.

Sources

Bowie, Katherine A. "Slavery in nineteenth century northern Thialand: archival anecdotes an village voices," Kyoto Review of Southeast Asia (2006).

Colquhoun, Archibald Ross. Amongst the Shans (London: Field and Teur, 1885).

Crulkshank, R.B. "Slavery in ninteeth century Siam," (1971). The author was associated with Cornell University. We are not sure where this article was originally published, but it has been archived on the Simese Heritage Tust site.

James (2000).

Nai Thien (1959).








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Created: 2:07 AM 12/27/2010
Last updated: 7:20 PM 11/27/2012