Eric Loh

So it was a pointless and unproductive trip as no MOUs were signed, no businesses were concluded and no mention of the free trade negotiation.

Bold words from a man who has the power to write his own amnesty.

This really turn things on his head. Boonchai Bencharongkul is highly critical of Thaksin policies and now in the same camp as Thaksin? Or the myth about the wat owe its allegiance to Thaksin is busted? So the Wat is not really Red. Lots of red faces ihere who keep harping on the wat pivot to Thaksin and the Red theory.

Hand outs and religion are the tools of shinawatra.

Nah, PAD has their Dharma Army and PDRC has Issara.

So the money-grabbing sect are playing the political card and we have a few posters swallowing that.

The stupid argument seems to be that because we have a junta then all laws are out the window. Anarchy comes to mind.

This is a legal case that so far, concerns the DSI, police and an accused monk who refuses to even acknowledge a case against him.

I don't anticipate a storming of the temple, advocated by some, but the DSI still has a few cards up it's sleeve. For example get AMLO involved and freeze the temple's bank accounts. Block all wifi & mobile comms is another possible escalation, And so on.

Law is not out of the window. Just that which law to apply. Extract of a BP article explained "The law of God, of men, of the junta? The law of the well-connected and the privileged? The law that stares at the poor and the disenfranchised like the eye of the inferno? Dispensation of fair and equitable law?

Some posters have inferred that because we have a junta, laws are out the window - not me.

The laws of Thailand are man-made just like most other countries and it's not the laws that are at fault but the implementation of them.

The law in this case IS being (or trying to be) brought against an extremely wealthy, privileged & well-connected individual. You are choosing the wrong case in your attempted deflection.

We have laws, the problem is not just implementation, it's more of interpretation that is part of the political problem and a bane to reconciliation. I don't expect you to see that.

Most laws here are not implemented due to a highly corrupted police. Laws are interpreted in a way that usually favours the government at the time - that applies to any government here.

Yes it doesn't help reconciliation but neither side is making any real effort now and in the past.

Somehow the law didn't interprete in government favor when the ex-PM was banned for 5 years for crony appointment while crony appointments are common in this government. You should add political expediency as another bane in the political divide.

That said reconciliation has nothing to do with the fact that a monk & his followers consider him(self) above the law that has been in place for years and junta-haters have jumped on the 'politicised' bandwaggon.

Why can't Thai Buddhism come to a compromise.

Yellow Buddhism and Red Buddhism.

Simple.

One for the rich and one for the poor. One for the North and North-East and one for the rest of the country.

This is going through the minds of Thai people as they watch Buddhism dragged through the mud everyday in the media.

Maybe the corruption is going on and all the government say is correct but the way they handle the case's is truely amazing. So amazing that some even question whether the P.M himself is Muslim. When there was scandal in the Catholic church no one was raiding the vatican, sending soldiers or police into churches, putting out arrest warrant on priests, hunting down bishops. This is like medieval times.

No wonder the followers of the Dhammakaya Temple want a different government. How long will the Buddhist purge last for?

I see nothing amazing about trying to arrest a man who received 878 cheques worth 11 billion baht embezzled from a cooperative by the former chairman of Klongchan Credit Union,Supachai Srisupakson who is now serving 16 years in jail for fraud.

.

Received? The cheques were donations. The abbot apologised that he didn't know or question where the money had come from. But the abbot did return all the money when evidence had been presented that this money was stolen.

Naturally 674 million baht' donated' by a cooperative in Klong Chan is an every day event for a Buddhist temple, no way to check its origins, 'we're just a simple temple not interested in money.'

So when caught, he asks donors for funds to return the money.' Hey, I committed no crime I've returned the money!'

Return the money and all is forgotten. Doesn't that sound awfully familiar. That's another interpretation of junta law.

So the money-grabbing sect are playing the political card and we have a few posters swallowing that.

The stupid argument seems to be that because we have a junta then all laws are out the window. Anarchy comes to mind.

This is a legal case that so far, concerns the DSI, police and an accused monk who refuses to even acknowledge a case against him.

I don't anticipate a storming of the temple, advocated by some, but the DSI still has a few cards up it's sleeve. For example get AMLO involved and freeze the temple's bank accounts. Block all wifi & mobile comms is another possible escalation, And so on.

Law is not out of the window. Just that which law to apply. Extract of a BP article explained "The law of God, of men, of the junta? The law of the well-connected and the privileged? The law that stares at the poor and the disenfranchised like the eye of the inferno? Dispensation of fair and equitable law?

Some posters have inferred that because we have a junta, laws are out the window - not me.

The laws of Thailand are man-made just like most other countries and it's not the laws that are at fault but the implementation of them.

The law in this case IS being (or trying to be) brought against an extremely wealthy, privileged & well-connected individual. You are choosing the wrong case in your attempted deflection.

We have laws, the problem is not just implementation, it's more of interpretation that is part of the political problem and a bane to reconciliation. I don't expect you to see that.

So the money-grabbing sect are playing the political card and we have a few posters swallowing that.

The stupid argument seems to be that because we have a junta then all laws are out the window. Anarchy comes to mind.

This is a legal case that so far, concerns the DSI, police and an accused monk who refuses to even acknowledge a case against him.

I don't anticipate a storming of the temple, advocated by some, but the DSI still has a few cards up it's sleeve. For example get AMLO involved and freeze the temple's bank accounts. Block all wifi & mobile comms is another possible escalation, And so on.

Law is not out of the window. Just that which law to apply. Extract of a BP article explained "The law of God, of men, of the junta? The law of the well-connected and the privileged? The law that stares at the poor and the disenfranchised like the eye of the inferno? Dispensation of fair and equitable law?

He better start placing equal importance between India and China. India is an emerging superpower and will be the 3rd largest world economy by 2020 while China is walking a economic tightrope and may run into a financial crisis due to the ballooning public debts like Greece. Thailand will do good to sign the free trade agreement with India as soon as possible. Somehow I really have serious doubt whether Prayuth knows anything about world economics.

If we take the PAD government house 8 moths siege as a yardstick, this standoff will probably go similar distance. Then arrest warrants were issued to the core leaders and their followers obstructed the arrest attempts several times and none so far has been convicted. So good luck to the arrest warrants and the futility.

So does this mean he is not going to be charged?

TIT?

The situation has entered into a different phase when the monks state that Dhammakaya will only surrender to an elected government. They now challenging the legitimacy of this junta government and therefore the charge is illegal. What's next? Anybody guess and holding their breathe who will blink first. The saffron revolution may have planted the first seed.

This discussion and most of the posts on this thread are quite frankly pointless, the UDD have no mandate or authority to even comment on such matters for a start.

Does anyone actually know what value an observer would add.............

When people vote they generally do it in private - no foul can be detected at that level

People talk about vote buying in Thailand like there is someone standing at the booth offering 500 baht to tick a certain box, that is not how vote buying in Thailand works, it all takes place in the villages through the head man, he distributes the funds to his flock and they are told to vote a certain way, they have no choice - money talks and elections are bought here, no observers will ever be in a position to witness vote buying in Thailand, nobody will ever dare speak out about it but we all no it goes on and is prolific

Now that we know how vote buying works, we really need neutral observers when you consider that the junta has full control from village head upwards and they have the financial might to bus in voters and influence voters. Don't you think so?

I see a constant stream of posters on this forum advocating the use of force to arrest an unwilling suspect in the midst of his own barricades and innocent followers (innocent of criminal charges). This is not much different from Waco, Texas and I think we all remember how that one turned out.

I still have faith in the government (more than any preceding one) that the job will get done but it's a sensitive issue which doesn't need a "shoot first, ask questions later " mentality

I agree with what you say about "advocating the use of force to arrest an unwilling suspect" and "shoot first, ask questions later "

There are so many people e.g Taksin and Co supporters that are constantly barking on how bad the junta is, comparing it to the Nazis and Hitler etc..

Imagine what these anti Junta mouth pieces, would say and do if the army went in guns blazing to extract that stooge of a monk and his trouble making followers. It would be the exact excuse that they would need.

The army had no hesitation going in guns blazing in 1976 student massacre and 2010 killing. The junta care less for an excuse and give shit to world opinions. The only reason I see that the Prayuth and Prawit are staying clear of this situation is that their positions are not threatened. The protest is peaceful and localized unlike Rajaprasong and Bangkok shutdown which are public places and threatened security. But I will be very careful of 3rd party temple enemies that can instigate the situation that give the excuse for the army to move in forcefully.

and when these brainwashed (and probably well funded) idiots end up getting hurt because of their blind faith in a criminal they decided to protect from the law, they will try and sue and press charges the same way the red shirt terrorists did.

No sympathy, I hope they all get some good jail time instead of amnesty.

It is way past time that Thais learn that there ARE consequences to your actions.

Fantastic forward looking vision. Seeing well today.

I am starting to believe there are political players involved in this that want confrontation, I can reason no other logic behind this sham, they tried it with students which failed.

This is not an attempt to destroy Buddhism that has already been partly achieved with the very obvious criminality involved with these so called Buddhist temples and their leaders, it is they that have brought shame on Thailand

Money rules all here, what about the people that lost their savings

Thailand history is littered with proxy wars with the real masterminds behind the scene. The current government is a example of a proxy war staged by a wannabe monk and a tormented monk.

So; after another month of ass scratching and thumb twiddling they will drop the case and another criminal gets away with millions...farcical !

Slow down. He has not answer to the charges and he is yet to be indicted. Legally he is not a criminal and he did return all the money to back to KCUK and even got a thank you note. I think that's where the anger from the followers are from. The illegal money was 'donated' to the wat in 2009-2011 and only in 2015 did the DSI found that the ex-President KCUK had fraudulently authorized withdrawal. How did the monk know it was illegal donation? legit question. Lots we laymen don't know and the color allegiance messed up even more.

The EU is no better than any other corrupt government. Maybe less corrupt, but still corrupt.

Badly need a coup; Thai style.

many people that post here although accused are not "junta supporters" as you lot call them, we are a group of people that want change in Thailand, an end to power abuse and massive corruption and murder on the streets of innocent people including children.

We all have a vested interest in Thailand to see it doing well, we have witnessed serious levels of violence for some time now mostly caused by corrupt elected governments abusing power and/or evading justice, the people have had enough, just maybe when this process has ended we may see Thailand on a path of stability, it will take a very long time to bring Thailand out of the dark ages and elevate it from 3rd world, it is possible but the right people need to be in place for it to succeed - no elected government has ever attempted such a thing because they have been too busy looking after their own interests and have always been a major part of the problem enriching themselves, just maybe that is about to change

Thaksin is gone for good unless he decides to come back and go to jail, those that have been feeding off his corrupt accumulated wealth and ill gotten gains are going to find it drying up soon. Go find a job and get off the stage

I don't really see how you are in a position to be calling anyone out for labelling others - your "the thaksin fan club constantly spaming TVF" being a particular favourite of mine - but that aside, I think you will find the vast majority of us posting on here want the same things as you, we just don't see it happening with the current people in power.

very rarely if ever have I used that term and I most definitely did not start that sort of slandering

since we are talking very broadly on the same page, who do you think or what process do you think would bring about such change, I said on here many years ago that Thailand needs a hero a man that has the interests of the country and its people to make the changes, I to an extent see that man in the current PM, I could be wrong but I am willing to wait and see what comes out of it, if we take him at his word then he could be the one, it cannot happen with an elected government simply because no single man could achieve such a thing when he has a government full of self serving leeches that would be very quick to remove him/her at the first sign of them trying to end the corruption and power abuse, a strong rigid constitution is the solid base to build from, independent agencies that can call a government to account and a justice system that can deal with wrong doers with severe penalties

Singapore is a fine example in SEA of how such reforms can be achieved, it took a very long time of hurt and hardship but look at how it developed and it is now

PS also worth noting I have been the author of some very scathing critical attacks on the current government and PM were I thought it was deserved and will continue to do so, they have made some very poor choices and come out with some extremely stupid statements - they are for sure no experts in diplomacy and political speak

Since you made reference to Singapore and indirectly the role that LKY plays in reforming the country, perhaps you can reflect on what is his opinion on coup.

"On coup attempts during Corazon Aquino's presidency that discouraged inflow of investments, Lee wrote:

This was a pity because they had so many able people, educated in the Philippines and the United States. Their workers were English-speaking, at least in Manila. There was no reason why the Philippines should not have been one of the more successful of the ASEAN countries.

In the 1950s and 1960s, it was the most developed, because America had been generous in rehabilitating the country after the war. Something was missing, a gel to hold society together.

The people at the top, the elite mestizos, had the same detached attitude to the native peasants as the mestizos in their haciendas in Latin America had toward their peons.

They were two different societies: Those at the top lived a life of extreme luxury and comfort while the peasants scraped a living, and in the Philippines it was a hard living. They had no land but worked on sugar and coconut plantations".

What LKY said could easily be referenced to Thailand. Key takeaways are political stability and people at the top indifference attitude towards the poorer uneducated peasants. Phillipines is good example of people freedom to rid corrupted leaders through the ballot boxes not through the barrel of guns. The title of Asia sick man is now sadly handed to Thailand.

there is no such thing as a yellow shirt which certain people keep mentioning on this thread, that would imply that there were rival factions which is all very well and gives thaksin and his funded terrorist reds a purpose but they are gone, there is no longer such a movement, you have the vast majority of Thai people and a funded terror group called redshirt or UDD

"""""""There is no longer such an organisation called yellow shirt in thailand"""""""""" Thaksin and his followers would like to think there is such a thing because you cannot have a conflict unless there are identifiable sides, this is the closest Thailand will get towards so called reconcilliation, no more yellows and red side that cannot justify their existance or purpose

The yellows are gone, all that is left are the ordinary Thai people niether red or yellow just people and a small group of funded thugs that are trying to justify their existance

The reason I have mentioned this several times on this thread are two fold

1. stupididty keeps talking about yellow shirt - they don't exist anymore

2. the UDD seem to think they have a mandate to control something or interfere in a process or act in some sort of official capacity - well they don't, why should they

You say that there is no longer a yellow shirt organization. Think again. Who is running the country now. The only organization that is resisting the derailment of democracy, human rights abuse and the curtailment of the freedom of expression is the UDD. Many will praise them for their stand and bravery against the coup. They don't have a mandate for anything especially when the government is the military but credit them for trying and in doing so, expose the lots of ugly truth which will never be known if the government had their ways.

Looks like his effort to swing people to his side by brainwashing using the values recital, audio and visual daily deluge, happiness polls, control freedom of expression and a timid media are all working just fine. One down, few more millions to go.

There is no such thing as a yellow, what we have now is a small group of thugs that are paid for their services "by the" now insignificant criminal on the run and then we have the rest of the Thai population who have become well aware of the situation after the antics of the last government - they have had enough

the thaksin fan club constantly spaming TVF need to smell the cheese - it's over, red terrorism will never raise its head again in Thailand

Wake up and smell reality Smedly. The yellow group is fast shrinking disgust by the junta idioscrantic performance and the bad economic hurting their pockets. Many yellow academics and activists have been very outspoken critizing the junta. The Dems have also been harsh and brought out many corruption cases and the main perpetrator of the coup, the PDRC is forming a parallel reform committee. The yellow is in disarray and disunited.

Meanwhile, thanks to the highly skewed draft charter, the UDD is stronger than ever and Yingluck popularity has not dropped and seen by more neutrals as a victim of this elaborate plan to rid her since the day she was elected. The junta is increasingly concern by the sustainability of the PT popularity in spite of all the barriers that they throw at them. The UDD is taking the mickey out of the junta and have them guessing what they will do next. It's not over by a long shot and the junta knows it but not you as you are a steadfast junta fanboy.

when millions took to the streets in peaceful protests and were slaughtered by government sponsored terrorists

Is this a plot from a movie you saw recently? Sounds thrilling.

perhaps you slept through it or just choose to ignore it

during the last attempt at a new charter all the red fan boys on here made claims that the government didn't want the charter approved because they wanted to stay in power

Now that this charter is aprroved and we are heading for a referendum and ultimately and election you are all now wanting the referendum to be rejected and no elections

there no pleasing you is there, the only thing that is going to work is to hand control of the country over to the nonelected UUD lol and control given back to the convicted criminal Thaksin

Oh and who was the idiot farang (in the photo) I noticed on the red stage last week when they made this announcement, well it looked like a farang lol

Oh and before you claim election or not the army will still be in power - that is your interpretation, I quite like the idea that a future elected Thai government actually has to answer to someone for their actions, usually it is the Thai people but since they were generally ignored when millions took to the streets in peaceful protests and were slaughtered by government sponsored terrorists while the police were told to do nothing, I see this as a reasonable compromise and a necessary one.

you are aware of the murders including children to which the reds cheered on stage.................didn't happen right ?

We are also aware of the popcorn shooter killing an elderly man and injuring 3 others and was hailed as hero by the yellows. Both equally bad in my books or you with the yellows proclaiming the popcorn shooter as a hero. Your thoughts.

Lots of old fossils living in Krabi but not sure if they are famous. Hope they are ok.

Got to love the UDD running rings round the junta and see them react. Doubt the UDD is serious that the centers will stop cheating but did this to annoy the junta. Jaruporn milked this smartly by saying Prayuth and the EC have no objection and left Prawit fuming to curb the centers. He is creating conflicts within the NCPO. Brilliant that he intend to write to the international agencies and bring international spotlight on the referendum. Now the pressure on the junta.

Surely the UDD know that the junta has all the power to stop the centers and really who will believe what the UDD reports. This just a clever way to pose doubts to the general public and international and have them alert to the outcome of the referendum.

Even the PAD call the NACC a junta agency. What more can you add. Laughably say when the NACC chair is appointed by the NCPO.