BANGKOK: More than 100K at 9pm. Many More Coming. JAMS 50km Long. ArbiSHIT SHITTING!

[kensington]

Re: BANGKOK: More than 100K at 9pm. Many More Coming. JAMS 50km Long. ArbiSHIT SHITTI

Capo di Tutti Capi and his Consigliere of the Thai Army Mafia.
But all these wiseguys are reshuffling in Sept and the second in command will be the new Capo di Tutti Capi and he is reputedly a very hard man and the Queen's protege.

The excerpt below might help to understand the complexity of Thailand's military situation, it is the view of New Mandala, an academic blog at the Australian National University, and is written by a researcher who claims to have gotten behind the scenes information about Thailand's military politics. We can't vouch for any of it, having never been close to the military back story personally, but present it as third-party opinion.

But, on the military side, that reshuffle is an extremely tense matter. Anupong is the key to this delicate transition to an Army commander from Class 12. He in turn requires Prayuth’s guarantee of safety during his retirement from investigation into corruption involving the flawed GT 200 bomb detectors and the multi-million-baht airship that has proved useless in spotting insurgents during actual operations in the Deep South. This factor is central to understanding Anupong’s need to accommodate Prayuth during the present crisis. For his part, and in addition to waiting uneasily for his promotion to Army commander in June or July at the earliest, Prayuth needs to ensure in advance his dominance of the Army during at least the first year of the projected four years that he will spend in that post.

The career concerns of these two officers ladder of these two generals remain crucial to the evolving political situation. They help explain why the mass rallies of the “Prai” [red shirts, 'commoners'] are so fierce in their retaliation against the forces of the “Ammat”. [yellow shirts, 'elite']


--------------------


The airship or a fucking GoodYear Blimp without the advertising logo has been condemned as the biggest practice target in the restive South freedom fighters and cost a whopping 35 millions bahts and probably cost only one tenth on the E-Bay auctions. Corruptions were rampant since the overthrown of Thaksin, an increased of 35% of the military budget was approved by the interim junta that ruled after the 2006's coup.

The useless GT 200 bomb detectors were also overpriced many times over the market value and the generals get to pocket the change and they are hundreds of million bahts and not satangs.

All these horse tradings before the retirements of the top guys in the Army meant who gets to stay and be feted and who gets the exile and disgrace..

 

[kensington]

Re: BANGKOK: More than 100K at 9pm. Many More Coming. JAMS 50km Long. ArbiSHIT SHITTI

And here's why it's, really, all gone to hell.

And here's the curve ball where the entire situation goes topsy-turvy... which resulted in 25 deaths including soldiers, one pro-government faction of the military, suffered substantial casualties to its officer ranks....Queen's ToyBoys Colonels) some which may have been inflicted by mysterious black-clad and highly trained rogue fighters who seemed to come out of nowhere


But the forces of alliance.... [in the] Gen Prem alliance suffered the most damaging casualties in the 10 April clash at Dinso Road in front of Satri Withaya School. Promotions have for some time rewarded officers who enjoyed the benevolence of... Gen Prem, to the dissatisfaction of members of other classes and factions. Bed-ridden senior officers now recovering from injuries sustained on 10 April in the special ward on the twentieth floor of Phramongkut Hospital insist that the black-hooded snipers active that evening were well trained army officers. They were probably former members of Marine SEAL units, the Army’s special warfare unit in Lopburi, and another specially trained secret unit in the Air Force. “They rab job (were paid for a task) to kill us. They did not come to chase us away or to lend the Red Shirts moral support, but to undertake that single mission,” officers wounded on 10 April told this writer. These officers believe that what happened was not the work of a disbanded group of specialist military rangers or tahan pran but rather of more skilled mercenaries.


These gunmen succeeded in causing a serious loss to the Prem... alliance. For they killed a rising star in Queen’s Guard from Prachinburi, Col Romklao Thuwatham, and seriously injured a number of senior officers, including Burapha task force head Maj Gen Walit Rojanapakdi and his colonels. Among the seriously injured soldiers was Lt Col Kriengsak Nanthapotidet, half-brother of the late Lt Col Narongsak, a member of Class 8... Narongsak created and gave fame to the Queen’s Guard unit.

 

[kensington]

Re: BANGKOK: More than 100K at 9pm. Many More Coming. JAMS 50km Long. ArbiSHIT SHITTI

The mysterious 'Third Hand'.
<script src="http://player.ooyala.com/player.js?embedCode=03bGJkMTricGyMkI-I8Zmob2NJ2apm44"></script>

Here's one video below that has been used to allege that a mysterious third party (referred to as a 'the third hand' in Thai) was involved on April 10th, obviously we can't verify any of this. Suffice to say the situation is far more complicated than it seems and the closer you get the more layers of intrigue you unearth. What we've shown is just the tip of the iceberg even. The behind the scenes machinations are vast in Thailand, probably more so than in most countries' politics.

 

[kensington]

Re: BANGKOK: More than 100K at 9pm. Many More Coming. JAMS 50km Long. ArbiSHIT SHITTI

DEMOCRACY IS NOT SIMPLE WHEN THE PAD DEMANDS 70/30 EQUATION.


We don't justify any violence that has happened, but we would like to merely point out that Thailand is another example of how the political evolution towards democracy is rarely the simple affair many think it to be.

Even if new elections are held and the current situation ends peacefully, Thailand still has a very long way to go. The yellow shirts might even come out in force to argue against new elections just as the reds are arguing for them.

Let's just hope at least that the country's political development keeps moving forward rather than backward.

There are a lot of good intentions involved, on both sides. In fact, from our experience with people on both sides, most of the people involved, are indeed well-intentioned. We feel they just need a free media to protect them from disinformation and representative political institutions that allow people to feel they have a say and can choose their leaders in a peaceful way.


Unfortunately,
neither of these things exist in abundance right now
of which the current violence is the inevitable outcome.

 

[kensington]

Re: BANGKOK: More than 100K at 9pm. Many More Coming. JAMS 50km Long. ArbiSHIT SHITTI

Rebellious Mood Takes Root in Rural Thailand


By THOMAS FULLER


KHON KAEN, Thailand — Six weeks of demonstrations by red-shirted protesters turned violent this week in Bangkok, but the capital is not the only place with a whiff of insurrection in the air.

The red shirts have a core of support in Khon Kaen.

On this poor and rugged plateau in Thailand’s hinterland, farmers who say they were never interested in politics are donating hundreds of thousands of dollars to the red shirt movement. In at least three northeastern cities, red shirts are holding nightly rallies, sometimes drawing thousands of people.

This week, Red Station Radio, an antigovernment FM station based here in Khon Kaen, about 280 miles north of Bangkok, broadcast a warning that a train was heading to Bangkok carrying military vehicles. In no time, hundreds of red shirt supporters, who have followed the protests daily with the broadcasts, mobilized to block it.

Indeed, this rural region — home to a third of Thailand’s population — forms much of the core of the red shirt movement, demonstrating the magnitude of the challenge facing Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, whom the protesters are pressuring to step down and call new elections.

On Friday, protest leaders in Bangkok offered to negotiate an end to the standoff if Mr. Abhisit would dissolve Parliament within one month, instead of immediately. The gesture eased tensions slightly a day after one person was killed and scores were wounded when grenades exploded near red shirt barricades in the capital.

But the anger here in the countryside will not be easily dissipated after simmering for more than three years since the military coup that overthrew Thaksin Shinawatra, the billionaire tycoon turned prime minister, who is seen as the first politician to have seriously addressed the concerns of the poor.

Mr. Thaksin’s wealth and patronage network remain important drivers of the protests, but the movement also appears to be taking on a grass-roots character, with farmers and villagers finding common cause and demonstrating a new assertiveness.

The people of this northeastern plateau, known as Isaan, speak dialects similar to the Lao and Cambodian languages and generally work as farmers, manual laborers and factory workers.

The red shirts have railed against the “double standards” in Thai society — the wealthy, the Bangkok elite and the top military brass break laws with impunity, the protest leaders say, while the poor are held to account.

Radio stations like Red Station Radio have played a crucial role in spreading that message in the countryside. Red Station Radio, which operates from an unmarked office, has rapidly expanded since it started operating in November, and now has six affiliates in and around this city.

Its disc jockeys urge supporters to disrupt visits by senior government officials. One D.J. is even a full-time police officer, who uses the on-air name Noi Tamrung to protect his identity and, he says, avoid being fired. Many other police officers also back the movement, its supporters say.

“Don’t come here — that’s the message,” said Noi Tamrung. “We reject anyone from this government.”

Government supporters have called for the stations to be shut down, and the government has already banned some Web sites of the red-shirt movement, including the site of Red Station Radio. But the red shirts here have vowed to physically block any attempt to close the station, such is its support among farmers.

One farmer, Takum Srihangkod, listens constantly to broadcasts of protests in Bangkok with a cheap Chinese-made radio that he tucks into his waistband, next to his slingshot.

“Abhisit doesn’t want anything to do with poor people,” Mr. Takum said of the prime minister as he tended his cattle. His radio even stayed tuned to the protests as he muscled out a newborn calf in a difficult birth.

Supporters of the government often portray the red shirts as a mob for hire, mercenary protesters who receive a daily stipend. In a country with a long tradition of vote buying, that may be true for some.

But villagers bristle when asked if they are being paid to protest. Local officials and police officers describe a widespread fund-raising effort to support the demonstrators in Bangkok.

“We help each other,” said Triem Tongkod, a farmer who grows sticky rice in a village outside Khon Kaen. Pickup trucks with loudspeakers travel through his village periodically asking for donations. “You give what you can afford,” Mr. Triem said.

Last Saturday, at a Buddhist temple about 35 miles outside Khon Kaen, Mr. Triem was one of thousands of people who attended the funeral of Praison Tiplom, a protester killed in the April 10 crackdown on the red shirt protests in Bangkok. A total of 25 people died, including five soldiers, in circumstances that remain under investigation.

The deaths of protesters have become an opportunity to rally support and gather donations. At the funeral last Saturday, organizers collected about $9,400 for Mr. Praison’s widow, according to Num Chaiya, a D.J. at Red Station Radio who helped organize the funeral.

The widow of Praison Tiplom, a protester killed in Bangkok, held a picture of her husband during his funeral last Saturday.

It was far from a typical somber ceremony, the crowd cheering loudly as Mr. Praison’s coffin, draped with the Thai flag, was carried around the crematorium three times. “Give a big hand to a warrior of the people!” Mr. Num exhorted the crowd. Almost all wore red.

Organizers of the red shirts have begun selling DVDs eulogizing the dead protesters and showing scenes of the April 10 crackdown. Along the highway, one DVD salesman, Pornchai Nanthaphothi, operates a stall festooned with red flags and other red shirt paraphernalia. A bandanna he sells is embossed with the words, “I’m not scared of you.”

“This area is nearly 100 percent red,” Mr. Pornchai said.

Successive Thai governments, including the current one, have tried to develop the Isaan region, but persistent income inequality and the need for more doctors, universities and jobs have fueled the protest movement, said Krasae Chanawongse, a medical doctor by training who has worked as a minister in four previous governments.

Thailand’s centralized political system has engendered a “colonial attitude of governors” posted here, he said. “They are more or less dictating, not consulting,” he said.

Some analysts question the durability of the red shirts, because of their close affiliation with Mr. Thaksin, but supporters here in the northeast say the movement has taken on larger goals.

In a country that has seen more than a dozen coups over the past eight decades, Chaisawat Weangwong, a 42-year old rice farmer, said the crisis had opened his eyes to the influence of the military in Thai politics and the need for a system where “the majority chooses the winner.”

“This is not for Thaksin,” he said. “This is for democracy.”

Red-shirted protesters in Bangkok on Friday. Farmers who say they were never interested in politics are donating large sums to the red-shirt movement.

 

[kensington]

Re: BANGKOK: More than 100K at 9pm. Many More Coming. JAMS 50km Long. ArbiSHIT SHITTI

Thailand Online Censorship Amid Protests

Thursday, April 29, 2010

By ChaoChoo Andapnerng

As Red Shirt protesters continue to press their demand for the resignation of Thailand Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, the government is doing everything to weaken the protests, including the use of emergency powers to block TV stations, community radio stations, and websites that broadcast “subversive” stories.

There are more than 16 million internet users in Thailand and both the pro and anti government forces are bringing their propaganda in the cyberspace to influence the opinion of online Thais.

To prevent the Red Shirts from succeeding in the cyber war, Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban authorized the blocking of 36 websites early this month. But press freedom advocates reported that thousands of websites have been blocked already. They claim the number has already reached 65,000. CJ Hinke reports:

April 9, third day of martial law, the Deputy PM’s CRES center authorised the ICT ministry to block further websites and Twitter if they were being ‘provocative’ in inciting disunity. He stated that a further 9-10,000 websites (press reports vary) had been blocked since the start of Red rallies in March and that a list of 700 more will follow. Obviously this list had been prepared long beforehand to take advantage of the fact court orders were not necessary.


However, these new government figures bring the total number of websites blocked in Thailand near to 65,000.

NNT uploaded this April 10 brief statement from the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology

The Ministry of Information and Communication Technology has now been strictly curbing all defamatory internet contents that likely pose serious threat to national security with an aim of preventing further division in the society.


Meanwhile, the internet users have been warned to use the internet in the right way or with appropriate purpose and avoid disseminating information that could create misunderstanding or instigate violent actions among the public. Also, all popular websites and social networks such as facebook, twitter, hi5 and my space will be under thorough watch.
Violators will be prosecuted by law with no compromise.

The following day, the Ministry reported that they were able to detect 300 websites everyday that instigate violence

The Ministry of Information and Communication Technology (MICT) has daily detected over 300 websites containing radical political views that instigated violent actions among the public.
MICT urged for public cooperation to report defamatory internet contents via Hotline 12121 or email them directly to [email protected].

The Centre for the Resolution of the Emergency Situation is recommending the closure of additional 190 “dangerous” websites

The Centre for the Resolution of the Emergency Situation has ordered the MICT to close 190 websites, of which over 60% are claimed to be politically seditious. Since the red shirt protests started, the MICT has ordered the blocking of about 500 URLs per day on average.


About 7-8 URLs of the YouTube website where seditious clips were posted have been ordered closed

Thai Journalists’ Association and the Thailand Cable TV Association issued this statement in response to the censorship activities of the state

The blockade of information like this definitely affected the people’s rights to free information. The people affected by the information blockade could come out to demonstrate in a bigger number and could cause the situation to be more complicated and lead to violence.

A group of former senators of Thailand made this demand

Stop all the obstruction of public information flows and news reports presented in print media, radio and TV stations, telecommunications, the Internet and all other kind of media, in order to return the constitutional rights to information and expression to the people.

FACT - – Freedom Against Censorship Thailand asks if the government secured a court order before it blocked the “seditious” websites

The new cebnsorship means that Thailand blocks nearly 65,000 websites. So we have a few questions for the ICT minister. Why are your blocklists not made public with the reasons for each block? Did you get court orders to block these 10,000 more websites as required by the Computer Crimes Act prior to martial law? Why won't you make these court orders public?



Reading the tweets from Bangkok in the past 24 hours, it seems censorship is still imposed on several websites, including Facebook

naruta_noo_mu: The URL you requested has been blocked. URL = www.facebook.com/
Nok_Kasama: RT @bangkokpundit If they start asking Abhisit hard Qs, will the govt censor BBC? (yes this is a joke) // and I laugh about it.
elgrodo: Wonder if one should refer to Internet censorship here as ‘The Great Tyrewall of Thailand'
MyselFlesyM: Facebook was blocked
bkkbase: Amazing Thailand. Never know which website blocked message will show up next.
VictorBurgundy: it seems like CNN has been blocked from the internet in BKK, maybe pitched battle is happening between UDD & soldiers on Vasapat soi
thaimythbuster: Reporters Without Borders is also surprised by a court ruling upholding the government’s censorship of PTV,
farangone: RT @pdouble0k: Springnews is blocked by the Gov
MB2MB: RT @vaitor: recent survey on political censorship at bangkok university: 68% angry with tv/internet censorship but only 27% would fight for free speech

Thailand is listed as one of the countries in the world which is accused of enforcing media censorship. Several journalists and individuals have been charged and jailed already for lese majeste.

 

[kensington]

Re: BANGKOK: More than 100K at 9pm. Many More Coming. JAMS 50km Long. ArbiSHIT SHITTI

The Spin Begins on M-79

Arrested cop admits taking grenades to 'client'

The policeman wanted in connection with the discovery of 63 M79 grenades, launchers, guns and ammunition in Pathum Thani province on Wednesday has been arrested, police announced.

Pol Sgt-Maj Prinya Maneekhot was apprehended when the pick-up truck he was driving stopped at a red light at the intersection of Klong 12-Lam Luk Ka road in Lam Luk Ka district of Pathum Thani.Pol Lt-Gen Krisda Pankhongchuen, the Region 1 Provincial Police chief, said on Thursday afternoon

During tense interrogation, Pol Sgt-Maj Prinya confessed to having in his possession 63 M79 grenades which were seized by police from a motorcycle during the stand-off between the red-shirts and government forces near the National Memorial on Wednesday. Police said they also found the wanted policeman's ID.

He said the grenades were being transported to his "clients", according to Pol Lt-Gen Krisda.

However, the suspect denied any involvement in the past M79 attacks in Bangkok and other provinces, or the activities of the red-shirts of the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship.

Before his arrest, Pol Sgt-Maj Prinya went to Kasikorn Bank at the Zeer department store in Rangsit and withdrew 290,000 baht. He proceeded to Krung Thai Bank at Si Mum Muang market nearby and withdrew another 300,000 baht, Pol Lt-Gen Krisda said.

He was subsequently arrested at the intersection by police who had followed him from the banks.

In a search of his vehicle, police found a 9mm handgun, a fully-loaded magazine, a monocular, four fake car licence plates, camouflaged military pouches and 700,000 baht in cash.

In an earlier search of a car at his house before the arrest, police found three M16 rifles and 100 ammunition magazines, three M79 grenade launchers, 10 barrels for M79 launchers, and many other items.

Pol Maj-Gen Methi Kusolsang, the Pathum Thani police chief, said he had ordered Pol Sgt-Maj Prinya's suspension from the police force pending further investigation to establish if he was a member of an illegal weapons trading ring.

Police on Wednesday confiscated 63 M79 rounds found on a motorcycle abandoned in the inbound lane of Vibhavadi Rangsit road during the clashes between government forces and red shirts near the National Memorial.

The rider fled as he approached an air force checkpoint and left behind a bag containing the M79 rounds.

Police found Pol Sgt-Maj Prinya's police ID card and the ID cards of two other people in the bag.

BangkokPost

 

[kensington]

Re: BANGKOK: More than 100K at 9pm. Many More Coming. JAMS 50km Long. ArbiSHIT SHITTI

Dr Weng Tojarikan Interviewed by BKK Dan (Questions in dark colour)


Dr. Weng Talks: No Thaksin Protector?

Well am not really a fan of the current red tactics, no, there isn’t any real strategy for any betterment. What looks red could easily be yellow – hey both want democracy with the king as the head of state. But that doesn’t mean that one has to concrete-cast one’s head.

So I took a stroll through Bangkok’s neo-apocalyptic red zone in the hands of urban vagabonds (see the little photo essay below) and met Dr. Weng Tojirakarn, an approachable, from the outside pleasant man who at younger age led Buddhist students and was accused of being a communist. Authorities sent gunmen to kill him, he says. He fled.

From 1976 to 1980 he lived in the jungle and practiced as a doctor, whereas two thirds of the time he was down with malaria. Dr. Weng’s the probably more reasonable voice within the red triumvirate. Here’s our little chat – yes I tried to get a feel if the reds have outgrown Thaksin. Will the doctor make you switch sides?

Dr. Weng, the international media seem to buy your struggle, some even romanticize your movement, local media not. Why’s that.

Because now today democracy is the mainstream of the world and this is a peaceful demonstration, we are a peaceful movement. Yesterday Abhisit would like to create war, and all the lies they accuse us of.


What lies?

That we want to overthrow the monarchy. They intentionally create absolute lies, it’s the classic standard to denounce a political opponent since Pridi Banomyong. It’s 78 years since the fall of the absolute monarchy, and yes it’s a pity that Thailand had 23 coup d’états. In average every three years we have a coup, how can Thailand develop and protect the basic life of the people with equality of chance. I’m talking about economic chance, political chance, social chance, cultural chance.

But those issues need reform, not revolution. Why your upheaval now? Abhisit continued and improved many of Thaksin policies. Thaksin for himself copied many of the Democrats’ polices, just renamed and repackaged them.

What about Suvarnabhumi Airport? Where is the rule of law? That was a terrorist act. They are terrorists and Abhist does nothing …


Yes but I asked about Abhisit’s policies. We know, you want democracy, but people’s life today is not that much worse than under Thaksin, is it. Why the rush?

No, Abhisit is fake, he’s stupid. He pays like 600 to 800 baht to families, where is the equality? So you have to buy kids’ cloths to join school activities, you have to pay more and more money, like 2,000 baht.


What would Thaksin do?

I’m not a defendant and not a protector of Thaksin, but people tell me he took their kids away from drugs. I don’t know about extrajudicial killings of drug dealers, but four years on not a single case is proven. They still cannot sue him. Look, our political line is very obvious. We want democracy with the king as head of state. We want to get rid of the bureaucratic system. Thaksin created the strongest democratic system, but Thaksin is a byproduct.


Well plenty of people would counter that 1) Thaksin eroded independent organizations, 2) tried to get rid of checks and balances, 3) placed loyal people in key positions and 4) put the media under enormous pressure. That’s not democracy.


Nothing is proven. Abhisit now closes down websites. Thaksin did not close websites. And now two TV journalists have been banned from TV show. These two ladies just told the truth. TV3’s Thapanee Ietsrichai and Wassana Nanuam.


But it’s difficult to deny that Thaksin still is the backbone of your movement.

He is just a speaker. He’s a good speaker and an ex-prime minister. Many remember him very well. Remember how they get children back from drugs, how they get cardiac surgery for 30 baht. The half million baht before no one could afford. Or many people have lumbar issues from the hard work, from bending over all day long. Thaksin helped. He finished the underground lottery and made it legal. Gangsters and the mafia lost huge profits, that’s why gangsters and the mafia hate him, and drug traffickers. A certain portion of these bad people joined the PAD.


How come many people think Thaksin is exactly the opposite of what you say.

Because he is so arrogant. He created a lot of enemies. Intentionally or not, that’s his personality.


Willl he be back?

I’m not concerned about him coming back or not. I want democracy with the king as head of state. The government must work. I’m not at all concerned about Thaksin. Most people walked across Thaksin already.



But Thaksin himself said he wants to be given another chance to be back in power and prove himself. Well that must be what people want …?

That’s his individual idea, his hope.


Is Thaksin a changed man?

I hope so. He may have learned a lesson from history, what is good, what is not good. What made him so many enemies. So many love him. So many hate him.


Thank you for your time Dr. Weng.

(BD: Well the only proof if Thaksin is outgrown will be a red election campaign without the playing of the Thaksin card/factor. And, if elected to lead a government, to not only concentrate on attempts to turn back time via legislative means to undo what they consider the work of a junta.)

 

[kensington]

Re: BANGKOK: More than 100K at 9pm. Many More Coming. JAMS 50km Long. ArbiSHIT SHITTI

Inside The RED City

 

[kensington]

Re: BANGKOK: More than 100K at 9pm. Many More Coming. JAMS 50km Long. ArbiSHIT SHITTI

 

[kensington]

Re: BANGKOK: More than 100K at 9pm. Many More Coming. JAMS 50km Long. ArbiSHIT SHITTI

The Red Inner City is still healthy with sanitation and running water. Doctors and nurses abound to take care of any infectious diseases symtoms.
A fun and festive place to be with concerts and stage shows but with the govt's juggernaut hanging so closely above their heads, half the fun has dissipated. Most are catching up on their sleeps during the days in anticipation of the govt raid during the night and vigilante cum fortress guarding duties. Every vehicle are check for weapons. The Bamboos and tyres embankment were said to be boobytrapped with fire acelerants and their intentions are to stall the army from attacking them by fires. Whether they have to resort to this fiery plan remains to be seen

Popular slogan are : I wasn't hired, I came on my own free will.

Middlefinger :oIo: slogan to the PAD : Whatever I done was wrong, Whatever you do was right. Somehow they sounded funnier when spoken in Thai.

Foods and drinks are free, mostly from sponsors outside who symphatised with their struggle and as a down payment for currying favours when the Redshirts are victorious. All bets covered. Win-win situations. Except some people might lose their lives

 

[postnew]

Re: BANGKOK: More than 100K at 9pm. Many More Coming. JAMS 50km Long. ArbiSHIT SHITTI

Reds storm hospital
By Pongphon Sarnsamak
The Nation
Published on April 30, 2010
The hour-long incident at the hospital, which is located right next to the red-shirt rally site, was monitored closely on Twitter and triggered a storm of criticism within the social media community.

Hospital director Dr Adisorn Patradul initially refused to let the members of the anti-government Democratic Alliance against Dictatorship (DAAD) into the complex.

However, a source said Adisorn gave in after DAAD co-leader Payap Panket, wanted by police for his role in the tumultuous red campaign, insisted that he be allowed to inspect the area.

Although Adisorn only allowed Payap, five red-shirt guards and reporters to come in, scores of other red-shirt guards poured into the hospital buildings as soon as the door was opened.

During their search, watched by bewildered nurses and doctors, the red-shirt guards seized two men and brought them to the DAAD stage at the Rajprasong intersection. The two were later released after they told the red shirts they were just workers.

The red-shirt guards stopped their search at the hospital at around 8.30pm, but only after police stepped in to negotiate. During the talks, the wanted man Payap was just inches away from the senior officers taking part in the negotiations.

The talks ended with an agreement for the red-shirt guards to be allowed to check the hospital again today. This prompted angry responses from Twitter users monitoring the incident, who described the police action as shameful.

After the red shirts left the hospital, big bangs were heard, creating new tension. But it was later reported to be the mere explosion of firecrackers.

The red-shirt guards' raid of Chulalongkorn Hospital came despite a plea from the Medical Council of Thailand earlier in the day asking the anti-government protesters to keep at least 100 metres away from hospitals.

Besides Chulalongkorn Hospital, the anti-government rally site is also close to the Police General Hospital.

Even before yesterday's raid, Chulalongkorn Hospital had already announced it would close medical services for outpatients at Phor Por Ror and Sor Kor building today.

Medical Council president Dr Somsak Lohlekha said the council had issued a statement asking all parties to respect the work of medical workers at Police General Hospital and Chulalongkorn Hospital.

He said Chulalongkorn Hospital had already stopped receiving new patients while Police General Hospital had transferred patients to buildings that were farther away from the demonstration.

"We are now asking the protesters to step back and not to block the entrance to the hospital. They should not interfere in the operations of medical workers by entering and searching the hospital," he said.

Somsak said the council had issued this statement because it did not want protesters or other parties to use hospitals as a shield for political purposes.

"I hope red-shirt leaders, like Dr weng Tojirakarn, will understand our purpose. No demonstration in any country in the world uses hospital premises to defeat the opposition," he said.

"People are not allowed to honk a horn when they pass a hospital but the demonstrators use loudspeakers every day," he added.

Meanwhile Dr Suphachai Kunarattanapreuk, a committee member of the council, pleaded with the protesters to stay at least 100 metres away from these two hospitals.

Adisorn said the hospital has also issued a second statement, announcing to the public that the hospital will today close its outpatient and inpatient units.

The hospital has already moved all patients from Phor Por Ror and Sor Kor buildings to other buildings near Henri Dunant Road.

The hospital also suspended surgery for emergency patients and has temporarily stopped receiving patients from other hospitals.

The special clinic will be closed from today until Sunday. The emergency unit is still open. Meanwhile all classes for medical students will be closed today.

Paramedics assist in evacuating a patient from the Chulalongkorn Hospital, located adjacent to the fortified camp of anti-government 'red shirt' protesters, in the Silom business district Bangkok April 30, 2010.​

 

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Re: BANGKOK: More than 100K at 9pm. Many More Coming. JAMS 50km Long. ArbiSHIT SHITTI

A Thai patient is helped to evacuate from Chulalongkorn Hospital in Bangkok Friday, April 30, 2010. A major hospital in the Thai capital evacuated patients and suspended all but emergency surgery Friday after anti-government protesters who occupy a nearby zone stormed in to hunt for security forces they suspected were positioned there.​

 

[postnew]

Re: BANGKOK: More than 100K at 9pm. Many More Coming. JAMS 50km Long. ArbiSHIT SHITTI

People (R) buy food from roadside stalls on Silom road near to the Red-Shirt anti-government protesters' fortified camp in the financial central district of Silom in downtown Bangkok on April 30, 2010.​

 

[postnew]

Re: BANGKOK: More than 100K at 9pm. Many More Coming. JAMS 50km Long. ArbiSHIT SHITTI

Thai soldiers stand guard on Silom road near to the Red-Shirt anti-government protesters' fortified camp in the financial central district of Silom in downtown Bangkok on April 30, 2010​

 

[postnew]

Re: BANGKOK: More than 100K at 9pm. Many More Coming. JAMS 50km Long. ArbiSHIT SHITTI

Thai pro-government supporters hold a placard during a demonstration at military base in Bangkok on April 30, 2010.​

 

[postnew]

Re: BANGKOK: More than 100K at 9pm. Many More Coming. JAMS 50km Long. ArbiSHIT SHITTI

A Thai patient is taken in a vehicle to evacuate from Chulalongkorn Hospital in Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, April 30. 2010.​

 

[kensington]

Re: BANGKOK: More than 100K at 9pm. Many More Coming. JAMS 50km Long. ArbiSHIT SHITTI

Stand-off in Bangkok
Head to head
Trying to avert another bloody showdown

CHAMLONG SRIMUANG, a royalist rabble-rouser, is rarely a voice of reason. But when he described Thailand as seemingly “without a government, soldiers and police officers”, he had a point. Thousands of red-shirted protesters have been occupying parts of the capital for over six weeks. Business is reeling. A deadly grenade attack on April 22nd on a pro-government rally sparked travel warnings by foreign governments. On April 28th clashes left one soldier dead, apparently from “friendly fire”. Unrest is spreading to the provinces as red shirts try to stop police and soldiers getting to Bangkok.

Mr Chamlong has joined a chorus of voices urging Thailand’s prime minister, Abhisit Vejjajiva, to end the protests by all means necessary. A fierce encounter with combat troops on April 10th left 25 people dead and around 800 injured. The government says black-clad “terrorists”, possibly rogue soldiers, fired on the troops. Protest leaders, somewhat implausibly, plead ignorance of the gunmen. Whatever the truth, it seems certain that an assault on the red shirts’ fortified camp in the centre of Bangkok would meet similar resistance and cause more casualties. The army chief, General Anupong Paochinda, prefers political compromise to a crackdown.

So far, neither is forthcoming. On April 23rd red-shirt leaders softened their demand for snap elections by proposing a three-month deadline. Mr Abhisit abruptly rejected the plan and said that a parliamentary dissolution would not solve Thailand’s political crisis. Both sides have begun talking tough again. But the door to talks is still open, and the most likely outcome appears to be a six-month election timetable. But for diehard red shirts, that would be a big climb-down. It would also be unpopular with Mr Abhisit’s coalition partners, who fear being overwhelmed by the red shirts. But it would inch Thailand back from the brink of all-out civil strife.

Mr Abhisit is right to argue that an election, in itself, will not solve a deep political crisis, and that allowing an angry mob to force a change of government sets a bad precedent. But that is what happened in 2008 when Mr Chamlong and his yellow-shirted pals in the People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD) shut down Bangkok’s airports. That is how Mr Abhisit came to power. Now he looks increasingly out of his depth. Bangkok residents are fed up with marauding red shirts and miss their malls. Thousands gather daily to sing patriotic songs and scold the rural-based red shirts as foolish farmers.

Under its emergency powers, the government can ban such gatherings. Instead, it is quietly encouraging them in order to show that the red shirts are only one of many interest groups. So far, the PAD has stayed off the streets, but seems itching to get back into action. It frames the crisis as a battle to save the revered monarchy from the clutches of the exiled former prime minister, Thaksin Shinawatra. He remains a hero to many red shirts, who are mostly rural and working-class, in contrast to the genteel ranks of the conservative groups.

Royalist hysteria has long been the PAD’s calling card. Worryingly, it has been taken up by Mr Abhisit and his security chiefs. On April 26th their operations-centre spokesman claimed to have unearthed a secret anti-monarchist plot by red-shirt leaders and other opposition figures. Denials came fast and furiously, along with dark warnings of how such smears can be used to justify violent repression, as was the case in October 1976. To avert the tragedy of a repeat performance, both sides need to keep their hardliners in check.

 

[postnew]

Re: BANGKOK: More than 100K at 9pm. Many More Coming. JAMS 50km Long. ArbiSHIT SHITTI

A street food vendor cooks eggs next to barbed wire installed by Thai army on Silom road near to the Red-Shirt anti-government protesters' fortified camp in the financial central district of Silom in downtown Bangkok on April 30, 2010.

A young boy (3R) queues with Thai Red-Shirt anti-government protester to get free breakfast inside the Red-Shirts' fortified camp in the financial central district of Silom in downtown Bangkok on April 30, 2010.

Thai Red-Shirt anti-government protesters sit eating their breakfasts and watch the news on television inside their fortified camp in the financial central district of Silom in downtown Bangkok late on April 30, 2010.
​

 

[kensington]

Re: BANGKOK: More than 100K at 9pm. Many More Coming. JAMS 50km Long. ArbiSHIT SHITTI

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva is approaching senior police officers to join the Centre for the Resolution of the Emergency Situation.

Down to the wire Coils of razor wire cover the frontage lanes of Vibhavadi Rangsit Road in front of the state-run NBT Channel 11 head office, causing serious traffic congestion. Red shirt protesters have threatened to rally at the TV station today. PATTANAPONG HIRUNARD

The move has come following criticism that police inaction was undermining the government's attempts to resolve the political crisis, police sources said yesterday.

The sources said the reluctance of some police officers to follow orders had frustrated Mr Abhisit, especially when it became apparent acting national police chief (Pol Gen) Pateep Tanprasert, who is a member of the CRES, was unable to get things done.

Although the police chief has ordered his men to strictly enforce the law following sharp criticism of the force's effectiveness, the situation has not improved.

Many members of the CRES were unhappy with the performance of Pol Gen Pateep, a source at the centre said.

Many blame the failure of several government operations on police dragging their feet in taking action against the red shirt protesters.



Police sources said the prime minister had approached Pol Gen Adul Saengsingkaew, an adviser to the Royal Thai Police, and (Pol Lt Gen) Asawin Kwanmuang, the assistant national police chief, as well as (Pol Gen) Phanupong Sihara, another adviser, to work at the CRES.

Pol Gen Adul was being considered because of his background as a former commissioner in charge of the three southernmost provinces and his good relations with the military.

Pol Lt Gen Asawin has connections with police officers in many areas.

Neither Pol Gen Adul nor Pol Gen Phanupong have responded to the government's offer, a source said.

Pol Gen Phanupong might turn down the job as he has yet to be cleared by the National Anti-Corruption Commission, the sources said. He is being investigated for allegedly using excessive force in an operation in the South in which a local leader was killed.

The move by the prime minister underlines his policy to involve police in the plan to contain members of the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship instead of leaving the task solely to the armed forces.

Under the plan, police from the North and Northeast would form the key units deployed to join operations in Bangkok.

Pateep: Fails to get things done

The CRES has had problems mobilising police units from these two regions because of their reluctance to fight the red shirt protesters.

Police caravans have been held up by red shirt supporters in several provinces including Khon Kaen, Udon Thani and Nakhon Ratchasima.

Another police source said many policemen in the North and Northeast leaked their officers' travel plans to UDD members in the provinces to en able the red shirts to block their route to the capital.

Dismayed at such developments, the government has opted to rely on police from bases in lower central and southern Thailand, the source said. The main police units in the capital now are from Police Regions 7, 8 and 9, based in Nakhon Pathom, Surat Thani and Songkhla, respectively.

In the latest crackdown on red shirt protesters, at the National Memorial in Lam Luk Ka district in Pathum Thani on Wednesday, police from Kanchanaburi were on the frontline with troops from the 9th Infantry Regiment based in the same province. The air force was also involved in Wednesday's crackdown, which showed the military and police were starting to work together, the source noted.

Meanwhile, the District Court has sentenced seven red shirt protesters to four months in prison for causing a disturbance on Vibhavadi Rangsit Road on Wednesday. The court halved the terms after the defendants confessed.