現代タイ王国における伝統医学知識の位置づけ

タイ式体操ルーシーダットンの瓶標登録事件を手がかりとして

抄録

　　This paper illustrates the historical background of how Rusie Dutton came to be regarded as one of Thailand's cultural resources in recent years. Rusie Dutton is one of the Thai physical exercises handed down from the ancient time. In 2006, "ルーシーダットン" or "Rusie Dutton" was registered by the Japan Patent Office (JPO) as a Japanese trademark. However, the Thai government called to revoke such a claim, arguing that Rusie Dutton is Thailand's traditional medical knowledge and their own intellectual property. As a result, the JPO acknowledged the Thai government's claim and canceled the trademark.
　　Recently, Traditional Medical Knowledge (T:MK) tends to be considered a cultural resource or an intellectual property, and some countries even attempt to protect and spread T:MK on a national level. One of the reasons why these countries strive to maintain and utilize TMK lies in its economic value. The industrialization of traditional medicine around the globe has enhanced the economic value of TMK. For the Thai government, TMK is an important cultural resource that is used not only as a medical treatment but also for tourism. This change in the state of traditional medicine is a remarkable phenomenon bearing in mind that traditional medicine was previously excluded from the official medical system and placed to the periphery. The issue concerning the trademark of Rusie Dutton has to be examined through these contexts. In order to consider Rusie Dutton as a cultural resource, perhaps the Thai government and its people needed to create a positive and active evaluation of traditional medicine, including Rusie Dutton.
　　Based on these analyses, this paper will discuss as follows.
　　First I examine previous studies about Rusie Dutton. As far as I know, there are no other studies that examine Rusie Dutton from the viewpoint presented in this paper. For this reason, I only consider the studies that refer to the history of Rusie Dutton. In chapter II, I review the history of Thailand's traditional medicine and explain what TMK means to the Thai government. Then, I analyze the historical and social background of the revival of traditional medicine in Thailand in Chapter III. Here principal themes are (1) the influence, on a global scale, caused by the introduction of Primary Health Care (PHC) that the WHO recommends to Thailand's health care system and (2) the ideological influence of national discourse related to the ideas of "Community-culture" and "Indigenous knowledge" in Thailand. In chapter IV, I study some documents that are submitted by the Thai government to explain the reason for the revoke of the trademark for Rusie Dutton. I then examine the way in which the Thai government understands Rusie Dutton as part of their culture. In conclusion, I consider the meanings of TMK and traditional culture in today's Thai society.