Fearing the kind of social and political chaos that surrounded the overthrow of Suharto in Indonesia, domestic businesses began to organize against IMF policies and the incumbent government. The government, led by Thailand’s oldest political party, the Democrats, stood accused of destroying domestic capitalism. The Democrats, identified as allies of the IMF and foreign investors, were accused of ceding sovereignty over economic policy making to outsiders and selling off Thai assets to foreigners. Powerful elements of the local business class concluded that IMF-sponsored reforms would so weaken their control and reduce their wealth that the demise of their class was possible. They came together with intellectuals, workers, NGOs, and politicians, and even gained the support of King Bhumibol, in a nationalistic campaign against the IMF and the Democrats. The outcome was to cede political control to domestic business leaders who had survived the crisis. It was media and telecommunications tycoon Thaksin Shinawatra who emerged as the political savior of the business class. The spectacular growth of Thaksin’s businesses owed much to the economic boom. By the mid-1990s, the Shinawatra family was one of Thailand’s wealthiest.