asd

The FA Premier League would implement "Fit and Proper Person" regulations if Thaksin were convicted of fraud in Thailand.

Every board member or controlling shareholder of a Premier League club must sign a "director's declaration" stating whether he or she has convictions for fraud, theft, corruption or associated offences. Clubs with a director carrying such convictions are debarred from competing in the league until the association with the individual is terminated.

If Thaksin can't prove that his wealth - principally generated from the Bt73 billion tax-free sale of Shin Corp - has been earned legally and charges and a conviction were to follow, the Football Association would be forced to exercise its "Fit and Proper Person" regulations for the first time.

If some people actually would prefer Toxin as PM should they refrain from all political activity?

If some people actually would prefer Toxin as PM should they be banned from attending rallies?

If some people actually would prefer Toxin as PM should they be banned from ALL political activity?

If some people actually would prefer Toxin as PM should they be put under house arrest and not be allowed to leave their homes?

It depends on how they choose to exercise their preference.

If they prefer to use premeditated, violent measures, then the answer to all these questions IMO would be an unhesitating YES.

Kraisak alleged protesters provocative with ulterior motives

Former senator Kraisak Chonhavan said Sunday that anti-coup protesters were apparently inciting violence with ulterior motives.

Kraisak was speaking to a press conference during which he recounted a physical attack against him by some protesters Saturday night.

Kraisak said he went to observe the demonstration by the so-called pro-democracy front against dictatorship in front of the Army headquarters Saturday night because he noticed a lot people joined the rally.

Kraisak said he was speaking to foreign reporters at the rally site when someone on a mobile public addressing unit shouted that he should go home and leave the rally.

He said he walked to the person, telling him that he would like to listen to the speakers of the rally but while he was explaining his stand, a group of young men attacked him by kicking and punching him and throwing objects to him.

He said a few policemen rescued him from the scene. He added that he would not file a complaint with police against his attackers.

Source : http://www.nationmultimedia.com/

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With vast assets amassed through business ventures and what not, Thaksin's only financial troubles would be whether he could ever measure the extent of his wealth or deplete even a small portion of it through living a normal lifestyle for the rest of his days.

Obviously, his billions do not give him the happiness and enjoyment he craves from satisfying his gigantic ego and grand ambition. To him, money without power, recognition and dread from other people does not mean much, especially when nobody is awed by his power.

Thaksin's lack of happiness is due mainly to his perceived helplessness and failure to protect his family members in the face of serious criminal charges.

Thousands of Buddhist faithful, including monks, began gathering outside Parliament to reiterate their call for the Constitution Drafting Assembly to stipulate Buddhism as Thailand's national religion in the new constitution.

Thailand's draft constitution has come under fire from Buddhist monks and supporters for not having a clause declaring a national religion for the country.

The coup-appointed Prime Minister, Surayud Chulanont, noted that the issue could cause problems with the upcoming referendum to ratify the proposed constitution.

It would appear that the government has carefully worded the draft constitution to avoid favouring one religion over another.

Tensions and violence in the predominantly Malay Muslim south of the country have led to over 2,000 deaths; having a clause that recognised Buddhism as the country's official religion may further inflame tensions in the region.

http://en.wikinews.org/wiki/Demonstrators_...tional_religion

you must be a huge fan of what hugo chavez is doing in venezulea right now.

Is that even worse than what CNS is doing to Thailand ?

Demonstrations at Sanam Luang and Democracy Monument

The pro-Thaksin Shinawatra People's Television (PTV) group, and a majority of the protesters appeared to be supporters of former prime minister Thaksin.

The bad guys

( L to R ) Sak Korsaengruang, Nam Yimyaem and Kaewsan Atibhoti

Nam Yimyaem is a retired judge of the Supreme Court of Thailand, former deputy Supreme Court President, and currently chairperson of a committee investigating the assets of deposed Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

In the April 2006 legislative election, Nam was chair of an Election Commission subcommittee investigating claims that Thai Rak Thai party executive Thammarak Israngukra na Ayuthaya hired smaller parties to contest the election.

Nam was appointed by the military junta that overthrew the government of Thaksin Shinawatra to chair a committee to investigate the former government.

The revised scope of the committee was broad, and included tax evasion, and could focus not only on members of the Thaksin government but also on civil servants. Members of the committee included Jaruvan Maintaka, Kaewsan Atibhoti, and Sak Korsaengruang.

The committee selected Kaewsan Atibodhi, a former senator, as its secretary and Sak Korsaengruang, another former senator, to be its spokesman.

The CTX case is deemed a priority for setting the stage to deal with graft violations involving the previous administration.

The 4 billion baht procurement of CTX9000 explosives detection machines from the US was the worst of several corruption scandals at Suvarnabhumi airport.

Thaksin's largest problem is the investigations into various aspects of his family's controversial Bt73 billion sale in January of a controlling interest in the Shin Corp communications group to Temasek Holdings of Singapore.

In Thailand nearly everyone from the cities to the Isan villages knew that Thaksin was corrupt. Thaksin's corruption was intolerably oppressively excessive and extremely disturbing.

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ANTI-JUNTA RALLY

Protesters target Army

Anti-coup protesters last night marched from Bangkok's Sanam Luang to the Army headquarters on Rajdamnoen Avenue, demanding the resignation of the Council for National Security (CNS).

Metropolitan Police chief Pol Lt-General Adisorn Nonsee said all personnel had been ordered not to carry any weapons in a move aimed at preventing untoward incidents.

A supporter of PTV holds a picture of exiled former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra during anti-coup rally.

Police used only anti-riot shields in dealing with the protesters, who were led by Veera Musikapong, a former Thai Rak Thai Party figure.

Weng Torjirakan, another rally leader, said last night that the protesters would not cause any unrest, despite the fears of the police.

CNS chairman General Sonthi Boonyaratglin said he had no concerns, as even some of his relatives were among the protesters.

Police mobilised more than 1,350 personnel to control the rally.

"The police are in charge and we'll strictly follow the law," the CNS chief said.

At around 10pm, an estimated 10,000 protesters reached a police checkpoint at Democracy Monument heading towards Pan Fa Leelas Bridge and the Army headquarters opposite Rajdamnoen Boxing Stadium.

Anti-coup rallies have been taking place every day at Sanam Luang for a week.

Besides Veera and Weng, the other leaders included Manit Jitjankab, a former judge, Prateep Ungsongtham, and community radio hosts Chinawat Haboonpad and Chupong Teetuan.

Protesters are blocked by police as they march from Sanam Luang to the Army headquarters on Rajdamneon Avenue.

These leaders said the protesters would meet tomorrow outside Parliament to oppose the new constitution drafted by a body appointed by the CNS.

Police said it had 600 personnel stationed in front of the Army headquarters, 300 at Democracy Monument and 400 at Sanam Luang.

Maj-General Manit Wongsomboon of the Metropolitan Police said personnel had been ordered to be patient in dealing with demonstrators.

"Our task is to look after the rally participants, not to disperse them. However, demonstrators who violate the law will be arrested," Manit warned.

General Montri Sangkasub, the Army chief of staff, said the situation would not worsen as long as there was no third-party intervention to spur violence.

An anti-coup rally organised by People's Television ( PTV ).

Former Thai Senator Kraisak Chunhawan was attacked by protesters.

People's Television executives consistently denied they have direct links or received funding from ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra or his Thai Rak Thai Party.

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/

The TRT was ordered to dissolve following last week's ruling by the Constitution Tribunal that party officers committed electoral fraud in the lead-up to the April 2, 2006 general election, which was declared null and void later.

The unidentified man armed with AK49 assault rifle and three M26 grenades was killed in the clash with Pathum Thani police.

The M26 has a filling of Composition B contained within a sheet steel two part outer shell which covers a prenotched fragmentation coil inner liner. The use of the inner liner creates a highly predictable fragment pattern and causality radius.

The always helpful and informative asd.

Thank you once again for your posts and your unrivaled photographs...

I hope to see you back again posting soon on the political front.

On May 30, keep us here at thaivisa in mind, please, for your unique access to the breaking news...

Hello SJ This is a great website for checking the current Thailand situation.

The unidentified man armed with AK49 assault rifle and three M26 grenades was killed in the clash with Pathum Thani police.

The M26 has a filling of Composition B contained within a sheet steel two part outer shell which covers a prenotched fragmentation coil inner liner. The use of the inner liner creates a highly predictable fragment pattern and causality radius.

It looks like the bad guys are better trained than the military. These were special forces soldiers, yet they didn't seem prepared for this act, which was something I think they should have expected. I'm no miltary mind, but roadside bombs and booby traps are what to expect aren't they? There's got to be a plan of action in this case.

Sure... use helicopters. Or tanks.

I mean : even the US troops, with heavy technologies and support, suffer from such attacks (road side bombings) in Iraq. It's even the deadliest kind of attacks.

So, what can do the thai troopers ?

Insurgents killed seven soldiers in Narathiwat's Ra-ngae district after bombing their car. The force of the blast caused the soldier's vehicle to land more than 50 metres away.

The soldiers were on their way back from visiting a group of youths and were 300 metres away at the time.

They were part of a special psychological unit ( 2nd Special Force Regiment ), Special Warfare Command (SWCOM) in Lopburi province, 115 km north of Bangkok.

The violence in the South contains important psychological elements, reflecting attempts to instill and propagate fear.

Psychological Operations (PSYOPS) are techniques used by military to influence a target audience's emotions, motives, objective reasoning, and behavior.

A special psychological unit has been deployed to provide security in Narathiwat's Ra-ngae district and also conducted psychological operations in the village.

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

The device was an improvised explosive device powered by a 9 volt battery. The size was at least 20 kgs. It was detonated by the insurgents who were in the forest some 100 metres away.

The insurgents shot at point blank the soldiers who were injured by the explosion to ensure that all were dead.They then snatched the soldiers' M16 rifles and handguns.

An Army spokesman said 2 suspects were detained and were possession of AK-47s.

The bodies of the seven army officials who died from the bomb blast in Ra-Ngae district of Narathiwat province transported to the provinces of Nakhon Si Thammarat and Lop Buri to perform the religious ceremony. Two of the bodies will be sent to Nakhon Si Thammarat while the remaining five bodies transported to Lop Buri.

It is the soldier,

Who salutes the flag,

Who serves under the flag.

Thailand is a predominantly Buddhist country, but the southernmost provinces of Yala, Pattani and Narathiwat have Muslim majorities of Malay ethnic origin. More and more innocent people including policemen and soldiers became victims since unrest broke out in January 2004.

On February 7, 2001, iTV, a supposedly independent television station owned by Shin Corp, fired 21 newsroom staff. Seven of them were sacked on the grounds that they criticised management for interfering in editorial content in favour of a political party. Another was dismissed for insubordination, while 13 more were laid off allegedly because of organisational restructuring. On March 8, to the great joy of those 21 iTV rebels, the Supreme Court upheld a lower court's ruling ordering the station to reinstate and pay them their salaries dating back to February 2001.

Sacked iTV staff record their fight in a book

Pennapa Hongthong and Aekkarat Boonoon , The Nation

Published on Oct 21, 2001

Former rebel staffers of iTV have recorded what they called the overriding of editorial independence by the station's major shareholder - in a book.

Launched last week, "Testimony of the Rebels: Former iTV News Staff," tells of how 23 ex-iTV employees who were sacked earlier this year fought against management interference in the news.

It compiles the writings of all the sacked members, who clearly reported how Shin Corporation, a major shareholder of the station, overrode editorial independence during last year's election campaign.

The station's management dismissed the 23 staffers, including both reporters and producers, in February, citing reasons that ranged from necessary cost-cutting to allegations that some had violated company regulations.

The ex-workers, however, believed they were dismissed because they were protesting against an effort by the management to interfere in news coverage, and their attempts to establish a labour union.

They claimed the management wanted to remove all staffers involved in the fight for an independent news policy after finding that one of them was the wife of a leading protester.

Former news anchor Wisarn Dilokwanit said the 222-page book aims to reveal the truth about interference by administrators and the news staff's struggle against it.

"We don't want to condemn or defame anyone. We want the new generation of media people to learn from our experience and become stronger than us to defend the profession from unjust powers," said Wisarn, who now works as a freelance radio host and a special lecturer at Chulalongkorn University's Faculty of Communication Arts.

The book disclosed many of the tactics that were used by administrators to interfere with editorial content.

They included the withdrawal of "Sai Trong iTV," a news programme in which the anchorman summarised newspaper reports for the audience. The move came just as news of Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra's alleged concealment of assets made the headlines of many newspapers.

Thaksin is also the head of Shin Corp.

In another case, the administrators refused to allow editors to cover an election rally held by the Democrat Party, the chief rival of Thaksin's Thai Rak Thai Party, said Wisarn.

Citing yet another example, Cherdchai Makbamrung, another sacked reporter, recalled the time the station allowed its live-broadcast OB van to be used for political purposes by Thai Rak Thai, instead of using it to cover the National Corruption Counter Commission's decision on Thaksin's case.

One female staffer reported in the book she was put on probation for refusing to cover the release of a new album of songs by Thaksin's niece.

A suit filed by the ex-staffers against Shin Corp is still in the labour courts. Members of the group are going about their lives in different ways. Some are furthering their educations, while others have found jobs at other stations.

Some others - Yuwadee Techapaitoon, Kaewta Priswong, Chompoonuth Kongmont and Orapin Lilitvisitwong - became orange-juice vendors at Chatuchak market.

"Pure orange juice without 'interference' from syrup" is their business concept.

All 23 sacked workers agree on one thing - they are not sorry for what they did.

"I won't bow to unjust powers. How can I sleep if I lose my pride in my profession [by allowing the media to serve an unjust power]," Cherdchai wrote in the book.

The CCTV pictures taken from cameras on Jomtien Beach

SOURCE: Pattaya Daily News: March 1st 2007

Regardless of catching the killer I also agree that they may not have been killed at the beach, look at photo 1 - either Tatiana was sleeping with her head on her friends shoulder or she could not have been sitting up - if she was sitting up her right upper leg would have been on the wood frame of the chair, hardly a comfortable way to sit i'd say impossible

they both may have been drunk and sleeping, the robber ran up in 9 secs and just shot them sleeping and took nothing.

this whole thing is extremely weird

Good work Thai Police !!

This would be a great way for the Thailand police to show they are up with the rest of the world.

Tatiana Tsimfer, 30, and Liubov Svirkova, 25, were found dead in their beach chairs at 5.30 am Saturday after being repeatedly shot by Anuchit Lamlert. His nickname is Nueng.

chief investigator Pol Lt General Assawin Khwanmueng asked Anuchit Lamlert's girlfriend. Nongruk Sudta claimed that Anuchit Lamlert kill both women.

Police are still looking for the murder weapon, a Chinese-made Norinco pistol, which Anuchit said he threw into a shrub-covered plot after shooting both victims.

Man 'confesses' to shooting Russians

Anuchit Lamlert

Police last night arrested a man who they said was the gunman that shot dead two Russian women on a beach near Pattaya last Saturday.

Anuchit Lamlert, an unemployed man with a long criminal record, allegedly confessed to shooting dead Tatiana Tsimfer, 30, and Liubov Svirkova, 25, while they sat drinking in deckchairs on Jomtien Beach.

But, chief investigator Pol Lt General Assawin Khwanmueng, said he did not believe the victims were killed solely for their valuables - as reportedly claimed.

Tatiana Tsimfer and Liubov Svirkova

A police source said investigators were also looking into a potential lead that a Thai women hired Anuchit to kill both women because one of them had a fling with her Russian husband, who owns a tourism business in Pattaya, shortly after they visited his office.

"The Thai wife was worried that her husband might get attracted to the Russian woman and later leave her for the younger girl, so she [may have] decided to whack her potential rival," the source said.

Police are still looking for the murder weapon, a Chinese-made Norinco pistol, which Anuchit said he threw into a shrub-covered plot after shooting both victims.

Civil defence volunteers were mobilised to look for the handgun at press time last night, armed with high-powered spotlights.

Police apprehended Anuchit in a rented room in Sri Racha district, and later found his motorcycle - a red Honda Wave - the same model seen in the blurry video footage from security cameras near the murder site, at a different location in Bang Lamung district.

Police records show that Anuchit had frequently snatched gold necklaces and valuables from foreign tourists in the Pattaya area.

Earlier yesterday, a Pattaya mother had taken her son to see police to prove his innocence. She said he only looked similar to the man in a police mugshot branded as the suspected gunman that killed both victims. Thasorn Sawangchuen said her son Krissana Duangphibool had nothing to do with the murder.

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/

I'm so sry everyone.

Admin ( dr Pat Pong )

This topic is locked. I can not make reply.

Two Russian Women Killed At Jomthien Beach

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=108120

I do send my condolences to their families & friends.

Latest update

Thailand Most Wanted

2007-02-24

Place : The Jomtien Beach Soi 18 at about 5.30 am.

Nationality : Thai

Gender : Male

Age : 22-25

Height : 160-165 cm

Type of his motorcycle : Honda Wave 110 S or Suzuki Smash black-red, 4 stroke

A 500,000 baht reward is on offer for information leading to the suspect's arrest.

Telephone Numbers

Tourist Police ( English, French and German spoken ) : 1155 or 08-18751637 ( Police Colonel Sutin, the Chief of Pattaya )

Three arrested over Chinese New year attacks

The Commander of the Fourth Army Area, Lt General Viroj Buacharoon Tuesday said three suspects behind the string of attacks during the Chinese New Year have been arrested. Viroj said the suspects were between 20 and 30 years of age and had admitted to their crime.

The suspects were paraded in front of the media while Viroj spoke to the press.

He said the attackers had undergone guerrilla combat training - known as RKK (Rundi Kumpulan Kecil) - prior to taking up arms against the state.

He added that the attackers were deployed during the weekend to locations outside their residential area - a similar pattern to other co-ordinated attacks.

Separately, a Border Patrol Police outpost came under attack by suspected militants in Narathiwat's Sri Sakorn district. The gunfight lasted for about ten minutes. No injuries were reported.

In Narathiwat's Yi-ngor district, a bomb was detonated in front of a public school as a security detail was passing by. No injuries were reported.

In Chanae district of the same province, a bomb exploded at a bus stop in a remote village.

In Yala, authorities defused a bomb planted in front of a 7-11 convenient store, while in Banang Sta district, a soldier was injured in a brief gunfight after his unit was ambushed by suspected militants hiding in the forest.

The Chamber of Commerce in Yala, meanwhile, called on the government to put up more closed-circuit cameras in public areas and to provide local residents in rural and the municipality areas with weapons to defend themselves.

In spite of tightened security during the weekend when thousands of local residents were celebrating the Chinese New Year, militants were able to carry out at least 38 bombing attacks, 26 cases of arson and mount seven ambushes from Sunday evening to Monday afternoon.

The Nation

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Latest News

The suspects were accepted that they attacked eleven government installations in three provinces simultaneously. The security forces responded with deadly firepower killing 108 assailants in April 2004.

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Wednesday, April 28, 2004

Violence in the Southern Border Provinces

BANGKOK (Reuters) - More than 70 people were killed on Wednesday in dawn clashes between black-clad young men and security forces in Thailand's restive Muslim south when armed gangs raided police posts in a sharp escalation of four months of violence.

"Seventy four of the culprits were killed and four were wounded," Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra told reporters.

Two soldiers and two policemen also died after gangs of young men dressed in black and wielding guns, swords and machetes launched the early morning raids on security posts across the troubled region, home to a low-key separatist rebellion in the 1970s and 1980s.

An armed Thai soldier stands guard a road next to a falling motorcycle near Krue Se mosque in Pattani province, southern Thailand Wednesday, April 28, 2004. Police gunned down scores of machete-wielding militants who stormed more than a dozen security outposts Wednesday, the bloodiest day of fighting yet in Thailand's troubled Muslim-dominated south. The death toll stood at least 112. Only five security force personnel were among the dead. The rest were insurgents, mostly teenagers.

Thailand's three southernmost provinces have been hit by a wave of shootings, bombings and arson attacks that had claimed at least 60 lives since a January 4 raid on an army barracks that left four soldiers dead.

"They attacked five of our police booths in Yala province this morning and we killed 22 of them," provincial police chief Colonel Prinya Kwanyuen told Reuters.

The largely Muslim province of Yala is 780 miles south of the capital, Bangkok.

An Interior Ministry official said the attackers were killed in raids across the three southern provinces, including in Pattani province, where a battle was still raging between troops and gunmen holed up in a mosque.

Islamist slogans were shouted during the attacks.

The violence shattered Thailand's reputation as a land of peace and tolerance.

The militants, mostly armed with machetes and only a few carrying assault rifles, battled policemen and soldiers in Pattani, Yala and Songkhla in one of the bloodiest days in modern Thai history. Authorities said 107 rebels were killed and 17 were arrested. Five security officials were killed.

Eyewitnesses said some attackers were screaming religious slogans, proclaiming "We are ready to die for God!" as they stormed outposts.

The insurgents, many of them apparently suicidal, launched simultaneous pre-dawn raids on 10 police outposts and a police station in a military-style operation.

"Many had no more than a machete in their hands. It was like a death wish. This is scary," said one intelligence officer, adding that there is real concern that further attacks could be suicide missions.

Witnesses said more than 30 insurgents took up positions at the break of dawn in the historic Krue Se Mosque on the outskirts of Pattani where they used the mosque's loud speaker to urge all Muslims in the area to take up arms against security forces and "fight to the death".

Saddened

Krue Sae Mosque

32 insurgents retreated to the Krue Sae Mosque, the holiest mosque in Pattani. A seven hour stand-off ended when Pallop Pinmanee, the most senior Army commander on the scene, ordered an all out assault on the mosque. All the insurgents were killed. He later noted that "I had no choice ". I was afraid that as time passed the crowd would be sympathetic to the insurgents, to the point of trying to rescue them."

The fighting continued for much of the day until Thai security forces with tear gas, assault rifles and rocket-propelled grenades launched a counterattack against a four-century-old mosque where many retreating militants had holed up. More than 30 fighters were killed in that one confrontation, according to security officials.

It was later revealed that Pallop's order to storm the mosque contravened a direct order by Defense Minister Chavalit Yongchaiyudh to seek a peaceful resolution to the stand-off no matter how long it took. Pallop was immediately ordered out of the area, and later tendered his resignation as commander of the Southern Peace Enhancement Center. The forward command of the Internal Security Operations Command (ISOC), which Pallop headed, was also dissolved. A government investigative commission later found that the security forces had over-reacted.

The Asian Centre for Human Rights questioned the independence and impartiality of the investigative commission. In 3 May 2004 during a Senate hearing, Senator Kraisak Choonhavan, noted that most of those killed at Krue Se Mosque were shot in the head and there were traces that rope had been tied around their wrists.

The incident resulted in a personal conflict between Pallop and Defense Minister Chavalit, who was also director of the ISOC. Pallop later demanded that the Defense Minister stop any involvement in the management of the southern insurgency.

Five members of the security forces were killed in the battles.

Bodies of more than 100 Muslim militants, most of them teenagers, littered the roads and a revered mosque, following clashes across the deep South between insurgents and security forces.

The steady erosion of respect for human rights that has characterized Thaksin Shinawatra’s administration reached a new low in 2005 with killings in the south by security forces and insurgents and the introduction of draconian new security legislation. Continuing failure to investigate widespread killings by security forces in the 2003 anti-drug campaign has deepened the culture of impunity, while critical media have come under direct assault.

The empire adopted Islam in the mid-13th century and later took the name Pattani, with its capital thought to be at modern-day Krue Se, where 32 rebels were gunned down by Thai security forces in an historic mosque Wednesday. The people of Pattani then, as now, spoke a Malay dialect and maintained a culture distinct from the ethnic-Thai north that officially made Buddhism its state religion at about the same time Islam was taking hold in the south."

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Human Rights Watch

The steady erosion of respect for human rights that has characterized Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra’s administration reached a new low in 2005 with killings in the south by security forces and insurgents and the introduction of draconian new security legislation. Continuing failure to investigate widespread killings by security forces in the 2003 anti-drug campaign has deepened the culture of impunity, while critical media have come under direct assault.

In this increasingly hostile environment, members of Thailand’s once-thriving human rights and media community face serious questions about their ability to continue doing their work.

The Executive Decree on Government Administration in Emergency Situations

The Executive Decree on Government Administration in Emergency Situations, summarily put in place by Prime Minister Thaksin in July 2005 and later ratified by parliament, has undermined or revoked many key safeguards against human rights abuses. The decree gives authorities sweeping powers to declare a state of emergency, arrest and detain suspects, restrict movement and communication, censor the media, and deny access to the Administrative Court and to redress for victims of abuses by government officials and the security forces.

While the emergency law was put in place to address violence in the south, there is no geographical limit on where it can be invoked. The decree allows authorities to detain suspects for an initial period of thirty days in informal places of detention without guarantee of immediate access to lawyers This raises the prospect that detainees will be held in secret, undisclosed, or inaccessible locations where monitoring is impossible and there is no judicial oversight or access to counsel or family.

This is an unprecedented and dangerous provision that carries a heightened risk of “disappearances” and is almost certain to lead to abuses. There is no limit to the number of times such detention can be extended, creating the risk of arbitrary, disproportionate, and indefinite limitations on fundamental human rights and freedoms guaranteed under the Constitution of Thailand and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).

Violence in the Southern Border Provinces

Almost 1,000 people have been killed since a new spate of violence began in the southern border provinces of Pattani, Yala, and Narathiwat in January 2004—some at the hands of the security forces and others by insurgent groups. Violence has included arson attacks on government buildings, bombs, beheadings, and assassinations. On October 16, 2005, a Buddhist monk was murdered when Phrom Prasit Temple in Pattani province was burned, marking the first direct militant attack on a Buddhist temple since the spate of violence began in the three southern border provinces last year.

Unrealistic deadlines set by Prime Minister Thaksin to solve cases of insurgent attacks quickly and restore peace in the region have created pressure on the security forces to resort to extrajudicial means and human rights violations. For example, in massive operations to identify and capture those responsible for the January 2004 raid on an army depot in Narathiwat province, a number of people allegedly were arbitrarily arrested and disappeared by the security forces.

However, the Thai government has to date refused to include statistics on “disappearances” in official reports released to the public. Promises of investigation and justice appear to be only rhetorical, aiming to defuse criticisms and political pressure. To date, there have still been no criminal persecutions in the Krue Sae Mosque (April 28, 2004) and Tak Bai (October 25, 2004) incidents, in which nearly two hundred Muslims were killed by the security forces.

Growing fear and suspicion of the security forces have caused hundreds of Muslims to seek asylum in Malaysia. At this writing, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) was in the process of determining the status of 131 Thai Muslims who fled to Malaysia in October 2005.

The Anti–Drug Campaign

Prime Minister Thaksin announced a new phase of the war on drugs from October to December 2005. Almost immediately, new reports of suspected drugs dealers shot dead by the police began to appear in many parts of the country.

There remains no significant progress in the investigation of drug-related murders during the first phase of the war on drugs, from February to April 2003. Of 2,598 cases, the police had investigated only 752 at this writing. Arrest warrants were issued in 117 cases, with interrogation of suspects continuing in ninety others. The remaining cases were dropped due to a lack of witnesses and evidence. The unwillingness of the police to investigate these deaths, combined with the unusually high numbers of drug-related murders, has created widespread suspicion that many deaths were due to extra-judicial killings and police brutality.

Human Rights Defenders

Prime Minister Thaksin and government officials continue to publicly denigrate non-governmental organizations (NGOs). At the National Human Rights Commission workshop on August 6, 2005, Prime Minister Thaksin specifically told NGOs not to “sink the boat” by reporting human rights abuses in Thailand to the international community.

There have been reliable reports of surveillance and harassment of some human rights defenders, particularly those working on issues related to violence in the southern border provinces. In March 2004, Somchai Neelapaijit, a prominent Muslim human rights lawyer, was abducted in Bangkok and is now presumed dead. Somchai had been repeatedly threatened after alleging police torture of insurgent suspects in the southern border provinces. Five police officers were arrested in 2004 in relation to his case, but have not been prosecuted for kidnapping or murder.

Another eighteen human rights defenders have been murdered since Prime Minister Thaksin came to power in 2001. Most were killed after raising public concern about economic development activities by individuals or companies. The latest case took place in June 2005 when a renowned conservationist Buddhist monk, Pra Supoj Suwajo, of Suan Bha Metthadharm Temple in Chieng Mai province, was hacked to death after he staged a campaign against the alleged encroachment of forest and public land by a national politician . Prosecutors have largely failed to pursue these cases. As a result, Thailand’s once-thriving human rights community now operates in an increasingly tense climate of fear and impunity.

To curry favor with the regime in Rangoon, the Thai government has also cracked down on the work of exiled Burmese human rights defenders monitoring the human rights of refugees and migrant workers.

Restrictions on Media Freedom

The Thai government continues to restrict media freedom by withholding or threatening to withhold advertising contracts, operating licenses, or work permits from media outlets, and by filing defamation cases seeking large monetary damage awards against prominent advocates and independent journalists in order to limit critical coverage.

In September 2005, Prime Minister Thaksin personally filed criminal and civil defamation suits against veteran journalist Sondhi Limthongkul, Sarocha Pornudomsak, and Thai Day Dot Com, Co. The 500 million baht sought in the civil suit represent the largest damages ever pursued by any politician or government official.

Members of Thailand’s media, concerned about possible government reprisals, have begun to censor their own work by devoting less attention to human rights abuses and other issues of national importance. As a result, the government has even greater freedom to pursue a range of controversial policy initiatives, including anti-drug campaigns and counter-insurgency operations. Some of the most brutal state-sponsored human rights abuses in the country’s modern history have had little or no public discussion.

Refugee Protection

Prime Minister Thaksin continues to backtrack on Thailand’s longstanding humanitarian stance toward Burmese refugees in an effort to improve relations with Burma’s military junta.

On March 31, 2005, the Thai government enforced a plan requiring all Burmese refugees to move to camps along the Burmese border. According to the Thai authorities, those who fail to register for relocation to the camps—including those officially recognized by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)––will be arrested and deported back to Burma.

Those who do not register will no longer be allowed to receive protection or assistance from UNHCR in Thailand and will be barred from resettlement abroad. However, many of the Burmese urban refugees are hesitant to relocate to the border camps, fearing the move may trap them in a detention-like environment without political freedom and access to telephones or other means of communication with the outside world.

Others are fearful for their security because of mistreatment by camp officials, cross-border violence, or political and ethnic conflicts within the camps.

Key International Actors

The United States is the key bilateral actor in Thailand. While the U.S. raises human rights concerns on a regular basis with Thailand, activists were disappointed by the White House visit accorded to Prime Minister Thaksin in September 2005 and the failure of President Bush publicly to address the erosion of human rights protections under Thaksin. Bush instead emphasized the two leaders’ close friendship.

In June 2005, the United Nations Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances expressed “great concern” over missing Muslim human rights lawyer Somchai Neelaphaijit. In July 2005, the United Nations Human Rights Committee expressed concerns over the climate of impunity created by the Executive Decree on Government Administration in Emergency Situations and persistent allegations of extrajudicial killings and other serious human rights violations.

In an apparent response to those concerns, Prime Minister Thaksin gave a speech at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and United Nations Summit in September 2005 asserting that lack of coordination and inadequate guidelines can draw United Nations agencies into domestic political issues. “This can be a cause of resentment, rejection, and non-cooperation … and make the United Nations irrelevant,” he said.

Insurgent attacks in South left six dead, scores injured

Bombers, attackers and arsonists went on a rampage in the three southernmost provinces and Songkhla Sunday evening, causing at least six deaths and scores of injuries.

Initial reports of casualties were sketchy. It was believed that at least two people were killed and some 20 injured when a bomb went off at karaoke shops in Narathitwat's Sungai Kolok district.

Teenagers riding pickup trucks carried out the attacks, clashed with armed forces at a checkpoint and set fire on at least one school, initial reports from Narathiwat said. Simultaneous attacks also were carried out in Songkhla, Yala and Pattani.

Bombs exploded at over ten places in Yala's night entertainment venues as well as an electricitygenerating plant in Pattani. Electricity has been out for over an hour. Officials ordered Yala residents to stay home in the wake of bomb attacks, which were believed to have injured many.

Initial details from Yala were also sketchy. Reports attacks took place at inner city areas. Targets included Sridara karaoke shop, My Way restaurant, Nong Mai karaoke shop, Suan Kaew karaoke shop, an Esso gas station, Sri Yala Hotel, Shell gas station, a shopping complex, and a transport office headquarters. Attacks in outer city areas took place in front of a golf driving range and in front of a power plant in tambon Sateng Nok.

In Pattani, a bomb exploded at a small power station of the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand, causing a widespread power outage in Muang district and surrounding areas.

Five minutes after the blackout, teenagers on motorcyles, wearing black and white scarfs went on a rampage on streets. There were reportedly ambushes government offices and several residences in many districts. One house was burnt down in Yaring district. One suspect was arrested in Sai Buri district. Insurgents also shot police and military officials and blocked routes in the province.

Power has been resumed in 95 per cent of affected areas, the Pattani governor told iTV after 9pm. Many important places in Songkhla were also attacked by arsonists while schools and mosques in Narathiwat were also under attack.

According to initial reports from Songkhla, trouble occurred at 11 spots in three districts bordering the three southernmost provinces. Incidents included an arson attack on a house, the shooting of a janitor whose condition was still unclear, burning of tyres in several areas including near a border policemen base, and burning of an electricity pole and a phone booth.

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/

For the past three years, roadside bombings followed by brief gunfights or drive-by shooting attacks by gunmen on motorbikes have taken place on a daily basis in the restive region. More than 1,700 people have been killed since January 2004.

Groups of insurgents occasionally carry out simultaneous attacks that are apparently intended to inflict psychological damage rather than real destruction.

The main motivation behind the killings of government officials and suspected informants appears to be a hatred of the state apparatus and the desire to get even for what the militants have deemed the history of injustice against the ethnic Malays.

But with Thaksin out of the picture, the atmosphere has improved. People in the restive South have welcomed Sonthi's announcement. They have also hailed newly elected Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont, who blamed the problems in the South on the state's long-running injustice towards the Malays.

Yala Hospital

''All of us are willing to cooperate in every way to create peace in the three southern border provinces urgently,'' General Sonthi said

Queen had deep concerns for all Thais and wanted those involved to reconcile and cooperate.

There has been a separatist movement in Pattani since at least the 1930s, but under successive Thai military regimes it was firmly suppressed. During World War II, when Thailand under the nationalist regime of Field Marshal Phibunsongkhram was an ally of Japan, Tengku Mahmud Mahyuddin, a prominent Pattani leader who was the son of the last Raja of Pattani, allied himself with the British in the hopes that should the allies win, Pattani would be granted independence after the war. After the war, there was an attempt to establish a "Greater Malay Pattani State" (Negara Melayu Patani Raya), but the British gave this movement no support and hopes of an independent Pattani were shattered.

In the late 1940s when the Phibun regime tried to impose Thai-language education on the area the Pattani leader Haji Sulong Tokmina (who had supported the Japanese during the war as a rival to the pro-British Tengku Mahmud Mahyuddin), wanted cultural autonomy but not independence. He was imprisoned in 1948 and killed by the police shortly after his release in 1952. There was then little overt secessionist agitation until the liberalisation of Thai politics in the 1980s, but separatist groups such as the National Revolutionary Front (Barisan Revolusi Nasional, BRN) survived and maintained a base of support.

In 2002, Thaksin Shinawatra stated, "There's no separatism, no ideological terrorists, just common bandits." By 2004 he had reversed his position, and has come to regard the insurgency as the local front in the global War on Terrorism. Martial law was instituted in Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat in January of 2004, and violence increased, with 200 Muslims killed by troops during the year. In April, troops killed over 100 Muslim men in Yala province who attacked well-defended police stations with only light weapons, in what police described as "suicidal" attacks.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Thailand_insurgency

NEW YEAR'S EVE

Warrant issued for blast suspect

Police hope release of video footage of Saphan Khwai attack will lead to identification

The Criminal Court yesterday issued an arrest warrant for a man police said was involved in the bomb attack near Bangkok's Saphan Khwai intersection on New Year's Eve.

Head investigator and deputy National Police chief Jongrak Juthanont said the suspect, whose identity is still unknown, was charged with five offences including terrorism, attempted murder of police on duty and possession of explosives without authorisation.

Deputy National Police chief Jongrak Juthanont

Jongrak will on Monday seek permission from acting National Police chief Seripisut Temiyavej to make public a video grab of the suspect captured by a surveillance camera at the intersection in Bang Sue district.

The hope is that the combination of issuing an arrest warrant and releasing the video will lead to a member of the public identifying the bombing suspect.

Jongrak said police had not yet obtained any leads indicating a link between the Saphan Khwai man and Ramkhamhaeng University dropout Thawalsak Paenae, who was seen in footage taken at the Seacon Square shopping mall - another of the nine bomb sites.

Justice Ministry permanent secretary Charan Pakdithanakul played down media coverage reporting conflicts between police and his ministry's Department of Special Investigation (DSI) over the Bangkok bombings investigation, saying any confusion was due to "unsynchronised communication" between both agencies.

Charan Pakdithanakul

He said the DSI had become involved in the probe only at the order of the prime minister and police were the key players in working everything out.

However, a study was under way to authorise the DSI to initiate investigations into national security cases on its own, he added.

DSI director-general Sunai Manomai-udom said his department was willing to function as a support unit after it handed investigating authority to police.

The DSI's focus was on solving the Seacon Square bomb case and the suspects carrying out the attack. He expressed confidence the perpetrators would be brought to justice.

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/

He is a Good Man

Somkid Jatusripitak

Somkid Jatusripitak (born 15 July, 1953), Thai politician, is a former Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Commerce of Thailand. His wife, Anurachanee Jatusripitak, teaches at Chulalongkorn University. He has two children.

Early life

Somkid was born in Bangkok and grew up in a large Chinese-Thai family, one of 10 children. One of his older brothers, Som Jatusripitak later became president of Siam City Bank and Commerce Minister in Chavalit Yongchaiyudh's government.

Education and academic career

Somkid graduated with a Bachelor's Degree from the Faculty of Economics, Thammasat University in 1972. He completed an MBA in Finance from the National Institute of Development Administration (NIDA) and a Ph.D. in marketing from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.

After graduating, he joined NIDA and became Associate Professor in the Faculty of Business Administration. Somkid's thinking was greatly influenced by Michael Porter's "Competitiveness of Nations". He focused much of his academic research on the development of national and business competitiveness. Along with his mentor Philip Kotler, he was a strong supporter of the concept of Nation Branding. In 1997, Somkid co-authored "The Marketing of Nations: A Strategic Approach to Building National Wealth" with Philip Kotler. The book outlined how countries could improve their competitiveness through marketing and appropriate policies to support it. Somkid's book, "Thailand Inc: Concepts and Strategy", stressed how Thailand should use marketing to improve its competitiveness.

Commerce Minister

In his term as Commerce Minister, Somkid

Oversaw the recovery of tourism industry in the Andaman coast after the tsunami of 2004

Agreed to draw up a comprehensive road map for increasing trade, investment and cooperatiion with the UK

Boosted Board of Investment incentives in three target sectors - electronics, petrochemicals and vehicle tyres

During the anti-Thaksin demonstrations of 2005-2006, Thaksin noted that Somkid was one of four individuals who might become Prime Minister if Thaksin stepped down.

In March 2006, during the height of the anti-Thaksin protests, Somkid underwent balloon angioplasty surgery to relieve a blood clot in an artery near his heart.

CENTRALWORLD CLASH

Anti-Thaksin activists outside a shopping complex in August last year.

Hello sriracha john

These men involved with CentralWorld clash.

Chaisit Loma (L) , 42 years old, has been charged with assault and illegal detention.

He is a supporter of deposed prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

From a standing position, the leg is swung upward into the target.

Charan Chong-on, the man seen wearing sun-glasses while attacking anti-Thaksin protesters last month. He was previously arrested and sentenced to jail for gambling.

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Police Colonel Ritthirong Thepchanda, a former Metropolitan Police superintendent, failed to protect innocent people during fights that erupted between supporters and opponents of Thaksin at CentralWorld shopping complex on August 21, although he was at the scene.

Pol Col Ritthirong was caught on video talking to people who attacked anti-Thaksin protesters shortly before the scuffles broke out.

Despite the violent incident in front of many witnesses including the media, the police officer took no forceful action.

Thaksin hires high-profile Washington lobbyists

Ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra has hired the Baker Botts law firm headed by former Secretary of State James Baker, according to a US lobbying registration form obtained on Wednesday by a senior Democrat Party executive. Korbsak Sabhavasu showed a registration form from America which indicated Mr Baker and his firm are to represent Mr Thaksin as the "freely elected Prime Minister of Thailand". This is proof Mr Thaksin has no intention of quitting politics, said Mr Korbsak. "I expose this story to tell the Thais that Mr Thaksin is not quitting politics," he said. "He said one thing while doing another thing." During his interviews with foreign media in the past month, Mr Thaksin has repeatedly vowed to quit politics. Many doubt his word. According to the form shown by Mr Korbsak to reporters on Wednesday, Mr Thaksin signed a contract with Baker Botts LLP last Dec 11, just short of three months after he was ousted.

Continued here:

http://www.bangkokpost.com/topstories/tops...s.php?id=116637

Baker, James Addison III (1930- ) American lawyer, campaign manager and diplomat, chief of staff under Ronald Reagan (1981-1985), Secretary of the Treasury (1985-1988), Secretary of State (1989-1992)

Author: Tim Wheeler

People's Weekly World Newspaper, 01/19/02 00:00

Enron also pumped an estimated $2 million into the Bush-Cheney campaign. Bush regularly flew from one campaign stop to another aboard Enron jets. Enron was so determined to put Bush in the White House that they sent their top lawyer, former Secretary of State James A. Baker III, to Florida to orchestrate the stealing of the 2000 presidential election.

Source : http://sopr.senate.gov/cgi-win/m_opr_viewe...&sequence=1