Surayud Chulanont

Surayud Chulanont (สุรยุทธ์ จุลานนท์,, ; born 28 August 1943) is a Thai politician.

From 1972 to 1978, he was an instructor at the Special Warfare School.

He commanded troops during Bloody May, the violent 1992 crackdown on anti-government protesters, but he denied giving his men the order to shoot protesters.

1. Communication Arts in 1995 by Wongchavalidkul University, Thailand.

2. Liberal Arts (Rural Planning and Development) in 2000 by Maejo University, Thailand.

He was promoted to army commander during the government of Chuan Leekpai and was promoted to supreme commander in 2003, under the government of Thaksin Shinawatra.

Upon his retirement from the army, he was appointed by King Bhumibol Adulyadej to the Privy Council of Thailand.

Surayud and Privy Council President Prem Tinsulanonda played a key role in the promotion of General Sonthi Boonratklin to the position of army commander.

3. Liberal Arts (Political Science) in 2004 by Prince of Songkla University, Thailand.

He was the Prime Minister of Thailand and head of Thailand's interim government between 2006 and 2008.

He is a former supreme commander of the Royal Thai Army and is currently Privy Councilor to King Vajiralongkorn.

Surayud came from a military family, but his father defected from the Royal Thai Army to the Communist Party of Thailand when Surayud was a boy.

Surayud joined the Thai Army and rose to power as an aide to General Prem Tinsulanonda.

Sonthi overthrew the government of Shinawatra in a coup on 19 September 2006 and implored Surayud to be the head of interim government.

Surayud's government was controversial.

There was a significant worsening in perceived levels of corruption during his government.

Surayud's Deputy Finance Minister, Sommai Pasee, was sentenced to jail for abuse of power.

Surayud raised the military budget by 35% and was accused of economic mismanagement, rampant human rights abuses, and flip-flopping on numerous policies.

Article 19 ranked Thailand as falling behind Cambodia and Indonesia in terms of freedom of expression.

Thailand's economic growth rate slowed to the lowest level in five years and was ranked the lowest in the region.

However, Surayud was praised for apologising for atrocities committed by the Thai military fighting the South Thailand insurgency, although the apology was accompanied by a sharp escalation in violence.

He has been accused of forest reserve encroachment (a charge that was not investigated since the statute of limitations had run out by two years) and of illegally acquiring train carriages for display in his forest home.

He is married to Chitravadi Santhadwet Chulanont (จิตรวดี สันทัดเวช) and has three sons namely Captain Non,

Khao and Nam.

Surayud came from a long line of military leaders.

His maternal grandfather was Phraya Sri Sitthi Songkhram (Din Tharab), a royalist leader during the failed Boworadej Rebellion.

Surayud's father was Lt. Colonel Phayom Chulanont, a Royal Thai Army military officer who, as "Comrade Too Khamtan" (สหายตู้คำตัน, RTGS: sahai tu khamtan), became a member of the Central Committee Communist Party of Thailand and Chief of Staff of the People's Liberation Army of Thailand.

Surayud completed his early education at Saint Gabriel's College and Suankularb Wittayalai School in Bangkok.

He graduated from the inaugural class of Armed Forces Preparatory Academy.

As a boy, Surayud's father left his family to go underground to join the Communists.

Phayom explained his defection by citing corruption in the army and its inability to defend the powerless.

His father's defection to the Communists had a large impact on Surayud.

Surayud's son, Non, noted that, "My father always told me that we must help each other redeem the tarnished family name of Chulanont so that Thais can look up to it."

Surayud entered Chulachomklao Royal Military Academy (CRMA) and graduated from Class 12.

Surayud was conferred honorary doctor of philosophy degrees in:

4. Engineering in April 2007 by Tokai University, Japan.

5. Social Development in December 2008 by Huachiew University, Thailand.

Surayud currently serves as a chancellor of the council of King Mongkut's Institute of Technology Ladkrabang (KMITL) and Phetchaburi Rajabhat University.

Early in his army career, Surayud served in several army divisions including a light artillery unit and a paratrooper unit.

He conducted operations against the Communist Party of Thailand (CPT) while his father was a leader of the CPT.