Loyalty Demands Dissent [Illustrated] [Hardcover]

Sulak Sivaraksa (Author), Susan Offner (Editor), Alan Senauke (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1998

Biography/ Sulak Sivaraksa, Nobel Peace Prize nominee and winner of the prestigious Right Livlihood Award, is a prominent and outspoken Thai Buddhist social critic and activist. In his memoirs, LOYALTY DEMANDS DISSENT, Sulak recounts his life as a "radical conservative" -- both contemplative and activist, traditionalist and modernist, loyalist and dissident. Sulak was born 65 years ago, the same year that Thailand emerged from absolute monarchy into democracy, and his life has been intimately bound up with his country's modern history. In this inspiring autobiography, we see Sulak's indefatigable efforts to bring people together into community, common work, and a shared vivion of a more enlightened world.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Sulak and I share a conviction that if we are to solve human problems, economic and technological development must be accompanied by an inner, spiritual growth. If we succeed in fufilling both of these goals, we will surely create a happier and more peaceful world." -- His Holiness the Dalai Lama, from the foreword

Product Details

• Hardcover: 253 pages
• Publisher: Parallax Press; First Edition edition (June 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1888375108
• ISBN-13: 978-1888375107
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.4 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,538,057 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Not Only A Buddhist, But A Humanist., January 26, 2000

By 

Pei-Hsiu Chen (Taipei, Taiwan.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Loyalty Demands Dissent (Hardcover)

On 26 April 1995, the eminent Thai social critical and writer, Sulak Sivaraksa, wes declared innocent of charges of lese majeste and defaming the former military strongman, Suchinda Kraprayoon. The final decision by the court to hear this case was almost simultaneously followed by Sulak's nomination for the Bobel Peace Prize, inviting obnoxious but inevitable comparisons between Thailand and the military junta's suppression of Nobel Peace Prize recipient Aung San Suu Kyi in Burma (Myamar). This book is Sulak's autobiography as well as memories. From my viewpoint, nevertheless, this book deserves to be an important reference for those who explore the socio-political changes and democratisation in modern Thailand.

Also recommended: David Streckfuss, ed.,1996. Modern Thai Monarchy and Cultural Politics - The Acquittal of Sulak Sivaraksa on the Charge of Lese Majeste in Siam 1995 and Its Consequences, Bangkok, Santi Pracha Dhamma Institute.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sulak gives a very honest account of Thai politics, August 1, 2000

By 

Parinand Varnasavang (Madison, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Loyalty Demands Dissent (Hardcover)

This is one of the best books by Sulak. It is not only exciting to learn about his narrow escape from the threat from the military dictatorship in 1991, but also interesting to learn about this man's fight for social justice and democracy both domestically and globally. Daring to criticise the revered monarchy, he is undoubtedly the most frank and outspoken among the Thai social critics.

The foreword is given by His Holiness the Dalai Lama.