Authors : Amonrat Ariyachaipradit, Noppadon Nimnoo and Piyapong Boossabong
Abstract: This essay analyses the role of local government in the protection of the legal rights of the elderly in the case of a city in Thailand namely Maha Sarakham by adopting interpretive approaches in advancing quantitative analysis. This essay found that Maha Sarakham City Municipality initiated local policies based on the interpretation of legal rights in equality and on an individual basis. Evaluation of such policies from both empirical and normative perspectives reveals gaps between the policie’s scope and the elderly’s real life experiences. The elderly did not always appear vulnerable as many of them still played an active role within their family and community. Policies based on individual rights did not fit well with the social value that elderly care should be a part of family-care. To interpret rights on the basis of equality also shaped one-size-fits-all policies for a pluralist society. This essay argues that the co-existence of different policy discourse coalitions identify and possibly bridge the gaps.
Amonrat Ariyachaipradit, Noppadon Nimnoo and Piyapong Boossabong, 2018. Empirical and Normative Considerations of the Role of Local Government in the Protection of Elderly Legal Rights: Lessons Learned from Thailand. The Social Sciences, 13: 223-234.