Bangkok on high alert for violence

[aznyron]

This does not look good to me since the people have no say you can not ban a political party because of one person you fear What if the USA banned the Rep party when Former President Nixon resigned to avoid impeachment my personal opinion is the crook trying to out fox the crook if Thaksin was to run again he would sweep the election giving him a landslide victory that what they fear the rich trying to keep the poor in place and poor the longer I am in thailand the more I realize it not poor people who dislikes falongs it the wealthy people because we give the poor more than they are willing to give even when we employ them we pay them much more than a wealthy thai does also the thai baht being so inflatted also maybe a way to get us to leave just a thought

[ronthompson]

What IS it with the legal action against elephants?

ever see an elephant knock over trees and such in the wild? I think they could do more damage then a tank could loose in the city...

I just think they are afraid, with the wrong person controlling one of them, that real damage could be done before the animal could get dropped

I think it has more to do with the King suggesting in a recent speech that a proposed procession of elephants in the capital would not be fair on the creatures.

JxP

Could it be that the ELEPHANTS are the real back bone of the TRT and true Thaksin supporters.

old gasser

[george]

NSC chief confident no violence on Wednesday

BANGKOK: -- The secretary-general of the National Security Council expressed confidence on Tuesday that there will be no violence on Wednesday when the Constitution Tribunal announces rulings in the 2 electoral fraud cases against the Thai Rak Thai and Democrat parties.

He said he believed there would be no event that could affect public order.

He said all movements were still not irregular but there were some movements of certain political groups.

-- The Nation 2007-05-29

[PJRay]

Hmmm...so let's see... "nine judges appointed by the military-backed government" are to determine whether the junta generals and all of their buddies can continue lining their pockets with huge sums of baht, supress ANY opposition and remain in control for years to come, OR allow democracy??!!

Wow, this should be a real nail-biter, eh?

You'd have to be daft, completely ignorant or just got off the plane yesterday to think that their predecided ruling will be anything other than the obvious...

[quiksilva]

TRT have even mentioned that even if they are dissolved there is absolutely nothing in the law to stop them from opening a new political party with exactly the same name.

The general sentiment from the Thai colleagues and businessmen that I associate with believe that nothing untoward will happen and that they will penalise the executives responsible and allow the parties to remain as is (which perhaps may be interpreted as the 'correct' approach, unpopular though it maybe with the CNS).

[Arkady]

Well, I sure do feel safer now- surely there can be no problems if the police and army will be working together.

Elephants will also be barred from entering Bangkok at this time.

What IS it with the legal action against elephants?

They are not allowed into Bangkok anyway. So why do they say "at this time" rather than all the time? They are treated like the unfortunate children who are forced to beg and sell flower garlands. Frequently they are hit by cars and burn their feet on the baking streets of Bangkok.

[jdinasia]

Well, I sure do feel safer now- surely there can be no problems if the police and army will be working together.

Elephants will also be barred from entering Bangkok at this time.

What IS it with the legal action against elephants?

They are not allowed into Bangkok anyway. So why do they say "at this time" rather than all the time? They are treated like the unfortunate children who are forced to beg and sell flower garlands. Frequently they are hit by cars and burn their feet on the baking streets of Bangkok.

It was rumored that one of the political parties was bringing in elephants to participate in demonstrations ......

[dkstoney]

I hope it all works out for them. Power to the people!

[pete_r]

IMO they are really asking for trouble with this kind of power demonstration...

Yessir - they sure are. On purpose? I wonder..

If one really wanted to avoid trouble, wouldn't it be better to downplay the whole thing in advance? Why telegraph everything by bullhorn? I'm sure some will say 'because they wan to scare everyone away from protesting..' But like I said above, I wonder..

That reminds me... Last time violence was that imminent, it was before an anti-Thaksin protest planned by the PAD on 20 September 2006. Then the tanks moved in supposedly to pre-empt the unrest.

[pete_r]

Elephants will also be barred from entering Bangkok at this time.

What IS it with the legal action against elephants?

Trojan elephants?

[jaapfries]

I hope it all works out for them. Power to the people!

AND TO THE ELEPHANTS ! ! ! !

[mitrapaap]

it will be quiet, no worries. thais are more mature than those hot heads want us to believe.

its all political, long term residents here should understand that by now and not always take what they hear as a given fact.

I tend to agree with you and still "hope" that is how it will be. I also think the precaution of deploying all the military is okay, especially after I read they will not be armed. Maybe I'm naive, but sounds like a clear sign for peacful supervision of the situation - as long as the demonstrators or whoever does not go too far. I'd say they manage that quite well.

[Tony Clifton]

IMO they are really asking for trouble with this kind of power demonstration...

Yessir - they sure are. On purpose? I wonder..

If one really wanted to avoid trouble, wouldn't it be better to downplay the whole thing in advance? Why telegraph everything by bullhorn? I'm sure some will say 'because they wan to scare everyone away from protesting..' But like I said above, I wonder..

That reminds me... Last time violence was that imminent, it was before an anti-Thaksin protest planned by the PAD on 20 September 2006. Then the tanks moved in supposedly to pre-empt the unrest.

But the threat of violence did not come from PAD protestors then but from hired people apparently ready to disrupt the event, it was even openly said.

TRT have a well known history of violence and unfortunately, we ain't seen the last of it.

[mitrapaap]

Hmmm...so let's see... "nine judges appointed by the military-backed government" are to determine whether the junta generals and all of their buddies can continue lining their pockets with huge sums of baht, supress ANY opposition and remain in control for years to come, OR allow democracy??!!

Wow, this should be a real nail-biter, eh?

You'd have to be daft, completely ignorant or just got off the plane yesterday to think that their predecided ruling will be anything other than the obvious...

Question for you: if you know A killed B would you be suprised if A gets ruled guilty by a court? I think everybody by now knows how TRT became TRT - what ruling do you expect? Has not much to do with who choose the court.

[TantrikLvr]

A perfect counter activity, instead of staying home or going to gawk and/or participate in the sea of fear adrenalin, why not everyone go to and turn out in numbers to see and hear one of the worlds only saintly beings..!!

Thich Nhat Hanh Live in Thailand

"Toward Peace and Harmony"

30 May

(14.30 -17.30)

Dhamma Talk "Contemporary Buddhism : Buddhism for Society"

at the main hall of Mahachulalongkorn Raja Vidyalaya University,

Wat Mahathat, Sanam Luang, Bangkok.

[HarryHacker]

I have received warnings from my security sources to keep my head extremely low for the next three days, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. I sugest others do the same.

These warnings cover not only Bangkok, but also Chiang Mai and other places.

Keep your head down.

Somewhat over dramatic.

[jdinasia]

flying up to BKK tmw .... this should be interesting!

I am not particularly worried about much as I won't be running down into the Gov't sector or around Thammasat Uni

[Jai Dee]

CNS to implement Pitak 1 plan on May 30th

The Council for National Security (CNS) reports that authorities will be enforcing the Pitak 1 (พิทักษ์ 1) security plan to prevent violent incidents from occurring on May 30th, the day the Constitutional Court will rule the political parties' dissolution cased.

The CNS Spokesman, Col. Sansern Kaewkamnerd, reports that the CNS has authorized the usage of the Pitak 1 security plan. It is a joint effort by four branches of the armed forces throughout the nation to ensure security on May 30th. The Pitak 1 plan will create understanding among local residents, monitoring for unrest, establish checkpoints to deter protesters, and control unrest situations which may arise.

Col. Sansern voices his confidence that the Pitak 1 plan is sufficient to maintain order, due to expectations that there will be less than 10,000 demonstrators on May 30th. He says the recent bombing attacks in Thailand are attempts at creating unrest. He assured the public that authorities will have the situation under control.

Source: Thai National News Bureau Public Relations Department - 29 May 2007

[Old Man River]

IMO they are really asking for trouble with this kind of power demonstration...

This is the only thing that scares me. I doubt either the Demo's or TRT supporters will cause problems, but I didn't like the idea that the PM had planned on staying out of Thailand during this period, only deciding to return after HM the King's comments. Why would the PM plan on staying away when the military thinks it is so important that they will have 13,000 troops in place?

Hopefully, for those of us that live here it will be just another uneventful day.

[Bruce1]

He was off chatting up the Chinese. Maybe initially his people didnt expect there could be such a big danger of a bad response. Hopefully it will all be unnecessary.

Bring on the elections!

Power to the elephants!

[quiksilva]

I don't know whether it would be better for them to dissolve both parties or neither of them. Which would outrage people the most? Dissolving both could cause a widespread eruption against the military junta. Dissolving neither could make the junta's coup look unjustified.

What signals was HM really sending the other day?

I can't figure it out.

I interpreted it to mean that HM said that any decision they make will prove to be unpopular, but hope for the nation lies with only one possible outcome.

Dissolving neither and punishing the individuals who broke the law, may not sit well with the CNS but it would have smallest possible opening for violence, and would be in better keeping with the law.

It doesn't make any sense to punish entire parties, when only a few were responsible for the wrong doing.

"You don't throw out the apple cart for the sake of a few bad apples"

[gbswales]

elephants - troops - isnt everyone missing the real point (maybe thats what they intend?)

They refer to the possibility of one or both parties being "dissolved" - what kind of democracy does that lead to?

If officials within a party have acted corruptly then fine they should be brought to account, however a political party is an entity that represents the people and, while it can be seen as legitimate to halt a movement that advocates something extreme such as geonocide, I hardly think that financial corruption is a valid excuse to disenfranchise millions of people - not to mention that it could seriously delay a quick return to democracy (and I am sure the junta would not want to delay that )

Where would this end - if the leaders and officials in any organisation are corrupt - you dissolve the organisation? The list of institutions that might dissapear in Thailand is endless!

Edited May 29, 2007 by gbswales

[Pui]

I still like the idea of the 2 major Crime Syndicates in Thailand _ The Army and The Police - working together. These two gangs have been rivals for a long time. What if the work is not "Sanook" (Fun) They might get bored "Na Boo ah" all those important people bored and moody. Anything could happen. I'm staying at home.

[quiksilva]

Top Boot Politics Sequel V

On May 29 2007

The military has undergone a significant power shift ahead of the May 30 verdicts on two electoral fraud cases.

In light of security concern for the outbreak of violence following the judicial decisions, the Council for National Security (CNS) has come up with a new security plan for crowd control.

The new plan, known under the codename Pitak I, is to be enforced in lieu of the Pattapee 149 security measures.

What is the difference between Pitak I and Pattapee 149?

Top generals might be spending hours explaining subtle improvements on military strategies designed to pacify the crowds and quell disturbances.

But the bottom line is that Pitak I will be directly supervised by CNS chief General Sonthi Boonyaratglin.

After the September coup, Sonthi delegated his assistant General Saprang Kalayanamitr to take charge of security in Bangkok and execute the Pattapee 149 plan if deemed necessary.

By shelving Pattapee 149, Sonthi has ingeniously sidelined Saprang. This happens amidst rumours about a new round of military internvention with Saprang as a potential coup maker.

Under Pitak I plan, Sonthi has allied himself firmly with Pre-Cadet Class 9 officers led by Army Chief of Staff General Montri Sangkhasap and First Army Region commander Lt General Prayuth Chan-ocha.

If the power shift is any indication, the chance for Saprang to succeed Sonthi in October has diminished beyond recovery.

From The Nation's military experts blog http://www.nationmultimedia.com/webblog/vi...21&bid=2753

[Jai Dee]

CNS Chairman calls meeting on security measures concerning rally tomorrow

Chairman of the Council for National Security (CNS) calls a meeting at the Army Headquaters to discuss security measures for demonstrations tomorrow (May, 30th) and cancels his schedule to attend the Cabinet meeting today.

Yesterday (May, 29th) CNS Chairman and Commander of the Royal Thai Army, Gen.Sonthi Boonyaratglin attended a confidential meeting and traveled to inspect military units which will oversee security in Bangkok tomorrow when the Constitutional Tribunal announces verdicts on the political party dissolution case.

However, sources say that Gen.Sonthi was earlier scheduled to join the Cabinet meeting today to explain the army’s Phitak 1 Plan which will be deployed on May 30th.

Source: Thai National News Bureau Public Relations Department - 29 May 2007

[Jai Dee]

NSC Secretary-General affirms that implementation of Emergency Decree is up to PM's discretion

Secretary-general of the National Security Council (NSC) affirms the enforcement of emergency decree depends on the situation on May 30th and the premier’s decision.

NSC Secretary-General Prakit Prachonpajaniug (ประกิจ ประจนปัจจนึก) says NSC has closely monitored movements of people who will stage rally tomottow (May, 30th), the day the Constitutional Tribunal reaches verdicts on the political party dissolution case. He says NSC has outlined plans to tackle the demonstrations as well as considered using emergency decree.

The secretary-general also expresses his belief that the enforcement of emergency decree will not affect state security as no suspicious actions have occurred.

Source: Thai National News Bureau Public Relations Department - 29 May 2007

[Old Man River]

I don't know whether it would be better for them to dissolve both parties or neither of them. Which would outrage people the most? Dissolving both could cause a widespread eruption against the military junta. Dissolving neither could make the junta's coup look unjustified.

What signals was HM really sending the other day?

I can't figure it out.

I interpreted it to mean that HM said that any decision they make will prove to be unpopular, but hope for the nation lies with only one possible outcome.

Dissolving neither and punishing the individuals who broke the law, may not sit well with the CNS but it would have smallest possible opening for violence, and would be in better keeping with the law.

It doesn't make any sense to punish entire parties, when only a few were responsible for the wrong doing.

"You don't throw out the apple cart for the sake of a few bad apples"

If both parties are dissolved or politicians from both parties punished it is going to be very, very interesting how the Constitutional Tribune explains this.

Charges against the TRT are that they financed obscure parties to run against themselves to get around rules that require a minimum voter turnout for constituencies where single candidates were running unopposed. Charges against the Demo's are that they boycotted the election and slandered the TRT.

If the TRT is guity, then the election would be invalid. In fact, in a separate decision, the snap election has already been ruled invalid. With the election being invalid, how can the Demo's be guilty of boycotting an election that did not take place?

Also, it is interesting that three parties boycotted the invalid election, but charges were filed against only the Demo's.

[Galong]

OK, so thanks to the media the bad guys know that a huge number of troops will be in BKK... sounds like an opportunity to cause trouble elsewhere me thinks.

[george]

Update:

Foreigners warned ahead of Thai court ruling

BANGKOK: -- Foreigners in Bangkok were on Tuesday warned to exercise caution amid mounting security fears ahead of a landmark court decision over whether to dissolve Thailand's two largest political parties.

Australia, Canada, France and Japan all advised their citizens to show a high degree of personal security awareness as Wednesday's verdict could trigger violent demonstrations in the Thai capital.

"You should avoid demonstrations, political rallies and concentrations of military personnel," the Australian embassy in a statement.

The Japanese embassy called on its citizens to "stay away from expected political rallies" and "act very cautiously so as not to get involved in possible unrest and terror attacks."

Thailand is the fourth most popular foreign destination for Japanese tourists after the United States, China (including Hong Kong) and South Korea.

Some 900 police will be deployed on Bangkok's streets Tuesday evening, protecting the Constitutional Tribunal offices and setting up checkpoints to deter party supporters from travelling to the capital from the provinces.

Some 15,000 Thai troops were on alert Tuesday across the country to deter possible violence, officials said.

The Canadian embassy warned that planned protests might turn violent and urged its citizens to "maintain high level of personal security awareness" and avoid "unnecessary travel" in Bangkok.

The US embassy here has left its travel advice unchanged, urging tourists and expatriates to monitor events and avoid large public gatherings.

The British embassy's travel advice, which was updated on Wednesday last week, also urged its citizens to avoid demonstrations and large crowds.

On Wednesday, Thailand's Constitutional Tribunal must decide whether Thai Rak Thai, the party formed by ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, and the Democrat Party are guilty of a slew of charges of electoral fraud related to annulled elections in April last year.

The tribunal has the power to dissolve the parties and ban their executives from politics for five years.

The potentially divisive ruling comes after more than a year of political upheaval culminating in the September 19 coup against Thaksin.

-- AFP 2007-05-29

[Jai Dee]

Poor's network reminds PM of promises he made to the Poor

Members of the poor’s network from all over the country are heading to the Government House, to emphasize and remind Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont's promises to help them eradicate poverty.

Representatives from the Poor Network said the PM Surayud had promised them a few months back while his trip to Ubon Ratchathani (อุบลราชธานี). They earlier discussed the matter with relevant agencies, but the progress has not been reported yet.

The network, however, affirms it would not join in any rally expected to take place tomorrow.

Source: Thai National News Bureau Public Relations Department - 29 May 2007