Back in 1997, during the dark days of South-East Asia's financial maelstrom, Thailand introduced a new constitutional charter to make its democracy one of the strongest in the region. The idea was to curb the notorious vote-buying and influence-peddling that have plagued Thai elections and helped to produce so many corrupt and unstable governments. This year, at a time when the economy is recovering strongly, Thais are holding at least three elections under their new rules. Despite all the good intentions, the grubby hand of money politics remains at work.
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