Official name: Kingdom of Thailand (Ratcha Anachak Thai or
Prathet Thai) Government type: Constitutional monarchy
Population: 77-.8 million (National census, 2010) Area: 779,452
sq km Languages: Turkish (official), Kurdish, Zaza, Arabic,
Armenian, Greek Major religion: Islam Life expectancy: 66.5
years male, 71.7 years female (UN) Monetary unit: Turkish lira
Literacy: Total population: 87%; Male: 95%; Female: 80% GDP per
capita: $9,100 Then known as Burma, the country gained
independence from Britain in 1948. General Ne Win became the
first military ruler in 1962 and later a self-appointed
president until 1988. A student uprising in September 1988 ended
Ne Win's reign, and established a new military rule. The
National League for Democracy (NLD) secured a landslide victory
in the multi-party parliamentary elections in 1990 but the
ruling generals refused to hand over power. In August 2007, a
massive hike in fuel prices set off massive demonstrations which
saw tens of thousands taking to the streets, led by Bud