Thaksin Completes Man City Buyout

[younghusband]

A sports journalist told me that the officials at Man City's ground try to check all banners brfore home games, fearing some anti-Thaksin banners may be displayed, embarrassing Frank. It was unlikely, he concluded, that the Thai flag banner with Thaksin's name could have been shown without approval.

The officials may have to start checking now but they certainly weren't doing it before this incident. Random checks for various things have been happening for a long time but not searching everyone.

You also say the sports journalist said "the official's at Man City's ground try to check all banners". That to me suggests that many banners can get through unnoticed. So how the journalist can summise that the flag would have been therefore shown with approval, is beyond me. A typical gutter press journalist, sensationalising and summising that 2+2=5. Instead of using the facts laid down.

Another explanation is that a porky is being told.It happens sometimes on forums like this.

[Plus]

Yeah, who would think that Thaksin used his club to keep himself in the news? You must have a twisted mind to even think that. He is the gentelman of highest moral principles and would never stoop so low.

>>>>>

I don't think they meant checking banners at the gate, just looking around during the game to see that nothing subversive is on display. Who'd be surprised if someone brought anit-Thaksin banner to the game, he is not universally loved, you know.

If they indeed do that, they have surely seen the offending flag but decided not to do anything about it.

One of the Democrats actually raised a good question - Thai flags of that size are not easy to find, you can't just buy one, it needs to be ordered somewhere. Given the amount of preparation it's not easy to dismiss Thaksin's staff involvement. Or maybe they were volunteers that have nothing to do with the man himself, like that "flash" mob has nothing to do with its former official leader Jakrapob (has he actually resigned yet?) or the other mob led by an MP has nothing to do with the party he belongs to.

Either way, it's really a non issue but everyone in Thailand seems to be up in arms over it.

[mrbojangles]

A sports journalist told me that the officials at Man City's ground try to check all banners brfore home games, fearing some anti-Thaksin banners may be displayed, embarrassing Frank. It was unlikely, he concluded, that the Thai flag banner with Thaksin's name could have been shown without approval.

The officials may have to start checking now but they certainly weren't doing it before this incident. Random checks for various things have been happening for a long time but not searching everyone.

You also say the sports journalist said "the official's at Man City's ground try to check all banners". That to me suggests that many banners can get through unnoticed. So how the journalist can summise that the flag would have been therefore shown with approval, is beyond me. A typical gutter press journalist, sensationalising and summising that 2+2=5. Instead of using the facts laid down.

Another explanation is that a porky is being told.It happens sometimes on forums like this.

Maybe in the future, i should also stop wrapping it up in brown paper

[Plus]

"We sit right below that flag and I think I can see myself on there, the flag was handed down after the game to an English/British couple, they certainly weren't of Thai origin."

Found on

http://www.bluemoon-mcfc.co.uk/phpBB2/view...sc&start=15

[Tony Clifton]

Every person entering the place is to go through a rigid fit and proper person test. Now let's roll back months ago and begin with the owner.

Edited May 6, 2008 by Tony Clifton

[sriracha john]

It seems as if Noppadope has given up any attempt to at least present a facade of being Thailand's Foreign Minister as his role revival for being Thaksin's personal spokesman continues to monopolize his time....

Foreign Affairs Minister uninformed about bowing in Thai-style

The Foreign Affairs Minister, Mr. Noppadon Pattama, who is the former legal advisor of deposed Prime Minister and Manchester City Football Club owner Thaksin Shinawatra, says he has not been informed about Thaksin's request for his team to bow in Thai-style during games after they shake hands with the opposition.

Noppadon, however, says it is a normal issue, and it is also a good opportunity for cultural exchange. Nevertheless, he says this issue is not considered to be significant. *Hmmm.. he might want to check responses in the UK if this is "not significant issue"... the additional Thaivisa thread might be good place for him to start his education.*

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=187164

Thaksin Asks Manchester City Players To Bow

Asked whether manager Sven-Goran Eriksson will be sacked, he says Manchester City will clarify his status.

- ThaiNews (today)

=================================================================

Noppadope will soon be doing the play-by-play announcing for Man City games beamed to Thailand as well as become Chairman of the Thaksin Bowing Committee.... and Man City schedule-permitting, he intends to pop in at the Foreign Affairs Headquarters building on the second Tuesday of every month..... for an hour or so.

Edited May 6, 2008 by sriracha john

[nomoretalksin]

same same as with Thailand?

(ex UK newspaper)

[Insight]

It seems as if Noppadope has given up any attempt to at least present a facade of being Thailand's Foreign Minister as his role revival for being Thaksin's personal spokesman continues to monopolize his time....

Foreign Affairs Minister uninformed about bowing in Thai-style

The Foreign Affairs Minister, Mr. Noppadon Pattama, who is the former legal advisor of deposed Prime Minister and Manchester City Football Club owner Thaksin Shinawatra, says he has not been informed about Thaksin's request for his team to bow in Thai-style during games after they shake hands with the opposition.

Noppadon, however, says it is a normal issue, and it is also a good opportunity for cultural exchange. Nevertheless, he says this issue is not considered to be significant. *Hmmm.. he might want to check responses in the UK if this is "not significant issue"... the additional Thaivisa thread might be good place for him to start his education.*

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=187164

Thaksin Asks Manchester City Players To Bow

Asked whether manager Sven-Goran Eriksson will be sacked, he says Manchester City will clarify his status.

- ThaiNews (today)

=================================================================

Noppadope will soon be doing the play-by-play announcing for Man City games beamed to Thailand as well as become Chairman of the Thaksin Bowing Committee.... and Man City schedule-permitting, he intends to pop in at the Foreign Affairs Headquarters building on the second Tuesday of every month..... for an hour or so.

The editors of the Mirror must be laughing their socks off by now...

[nomoretalksin]

Most propably the best & most humoristic summary/comparision of the year!

Quote/Link: Click here! or same below

STOPPAGE TIME (by/copyright the Nation)

Why playing politics is much easier than football

By Tulsathit Taptim

The Nation

Published on May 7, 2008

When Manchester City fans hit club owner Thaksin Shinawatra with an adapted version of "Another Brick in the Wall", it's safe to presume that the charms of "My Way" are no more.

As he listened to the defiant terrace chants on TV, it must have occurred to him that running a football club is tougher than playing politics.And this is no joke. The sights of City supporters waving Swedish flags and carrying masks of coach Sven Goran Erikksson only add to my compilation of scientific evidence that maybe it's a good idea for Thaksin to quit football and return to his familiar territory.

To any doubter out there, here's the entire list of reasons why Thai politics is a stroll in the park compared with British football management:

-- One party reportedly spent Bt5 billion in the 2001 election. That, which became an unofficial minimum amount with which one can "buy" political power in Thailand, can barely buy Barcelona's Lionel Messi at his current market price.

-- Politics can glorify those at the top, but football club owners have the same dignity as a sugar daddy. Can one be a champion of democracy and dictator at the same time? Of course, just make sure that when you return home from a well-dignified political exile, don't forget to threaten to sack the coach of a football club you just bought.

-- A football club owner with "blood on his hands", possibly from extrajudicial killings, can be affectionately called Elvis Presley. Then again, the kindest of club owners can become Adolf Hitler if fans are slightly upset.

-- In politics, when trouble looms, splash state's (taxpayers') cash and problems are solved. In football, the bigger the crisis, the deeper you have to dig into your own pocket.

-- In politics, when a minister is banned, use his wife or elderly father. In football, if a key player is banned, your team is screwed.

-- A prime minister can shuffle his Cabinet for fun. The best a club owner can do is make a big PR fuss out of a signing his favourites who will never get to play in the real team.

-- Making thousands of voters chant your name is easier than making 11 players - whose salaries you pay for - bow to you before kick-off.

-- If the team wins, the coach gets all the credit. If the team loses, the owner's management style is to blame. In politics, if the economy booms, the prime minister gets the praise, and when things turn sour, he can always sack the finance minister.

-- With just enough money and power, you may be able to get the Constitution rewritten to erase your crimes. No amount of money and power can overturn an offside call that could send your team into relegation.

-- Spend state money wisely and the country is yours. You break the bank financing the team you bought, but it's always declared a "fans'" club.

-- Bouncing back from a coup that disposed of you, rewriting the Constitution to whitewash yourself, rearranging all political mechanisms to your favour - all these combined are easier than getting Manchester City to the Champions League or even the Uefa Cup.

-- Yes, political life is tough, with the likes of Sondhi Limthongkul and all, but at least you don't have Oasis singer Noel Gallagher brand you, before a worldwide audience, a nutcase who lives in cloud cuckoo land.

-- Again, with just enough money and power, potential enemies such as Snoh Thienthong and Banharn Silapa-archa can roll over and prostrate themselves.

In football, the richer you are, the more determined smaller teams will be to knock your club out of the FA Cup, just like Sheffield United did recently.

lWith shrewd use of nominees, your government can approve big rewards to your company and get away with it. Try signing a player from an agent who is remotely linked to you.

-- They have good tax authorities in Britain and Europe.

-- Critics unhappy with the government's performances or obscure financial dealings can be conveniently dubbed unpatriotic. Call Noel Gallagher "not a real fan" and see what happens.

-- The current pro-Sven campaign portrays the Swedish coach as a political victim who's getting the sympathy of the masses. So, who's the villain here? And wait, does this mean Thaksin paid billions of baht to be seen as a bad guy?

-- The targeted new coach, Luiz Felipe Scolari, will cost Manchester City between Bt700 million-Bt1 billion a year.

Thaksin must know better than anyone how much or "how many" that money can buy in Thailand.

-- Politics gives you second, third, fourth and twenty-fifth chances. If Thaksin fails Manchester City, their fans will make Sonthi Boonyaratklin and PAD look like Santa Claus.

unquote

Good old Tulsathit Taptim from the Nation

1:0 for the man with the best insider views/comparisons! Keep it up!

[nomoretalksin]

Interesting article here

[nomoretalksin]

Scolari looking up/forward to Thaksin?

Latest update on BBC-Online:

Click here to read the BBC news. Title: Manchester City approach to Scolari

Click here to read the adjacent BBC-Forum. Very strong; already 181posts within 2 hours Title: Is Scolari the right man?

by reading a view posts there, it seams the people in the UK prefer: sustainable slow, but decent growth with Sven; rather then again a new couch.

Which coach do you guys think is currently more suitable for Manchester City?

[mrtoad]

Scolari looking up/forward to Thaksin?

Latest update on BBC-Online:

Click here to read the BBC news. Title: Manchester City approach to Scolari

Click here to read the adjacent BBC-Forum. Very strong; already 181posts within 2 hours Title: Is Scolari the right man?

by reading a view posts there, it seams the people in the UK prefer: sustainable slow, but decent growth with Sven; rather then again a new couch.

Which coach do you guys think is currently more suitable for Manchester City?

Someone who is willing to take orders from the little emperor.

Maybe Steve McClaren.

[sriracha john]

Which coach do you guys think is currently more suitable for Manchester City?

You might be surprised, but it's...

Robert Mugabe!

Mugabe to take Eastlands hotseat

Manchester City fans, still reeling from the sacking of Sven-Goran Eriksson, are set for more anguish today. City's eccentric human-rights-wizard chairman Thaksin Shinawatra seems set to offer the manager's chair at the City of Manchester Stadium to not-quite-deposed-yet, you'll-never-take-me-alive Zimbabwean funster Robert Mugabe.

Thaksin is thought to have grown tired by Eriksson's failure to win every single match ever, after a promising start to his tenure saw him win the first three. In the following 34, however, City have also experienced draws and losses, causing Shinawatra to darkly suggest that whilst loss of life is acceptable, loss of a football match could simply not be tolerated.

Also high up on Thaksin's list of grievances against Eriksson was his perceived failures at dealing with the playing staff. "Too many human rights," Thaksin scribbled. "They sit on their farms all day with no fear of eviction. And their children are hardly starving at all."

Mugabe has been looking for a new club since his tenure in Zimbabwe was forcibly ended by means of democracy. Thaksin, who got his number out of the special Dictator's Handbook, jumped on the opportunity to offer him a 3 year deal. Mugabe is said to be delighted at the opportunity, exclaiming that he'll "teach those bastards a thing or two".

Manchester City's supporters are outraged at the move, however. Most, still firmly behind Eriksson, offered him "a go on their wife" if he'd just stay at the club.

One fan said, "At first we were delighted to have a mad, rich, foreign chairman, a man not afraid to make the decisions no sane man would. A man to take mad choices for this club. Now he's made his first mad decision, we're mad. It's just madness."

- The Onion Bag (quite possibly this is satire, but in this circus, who knows)

[mrbojangles]

Which coach do you guys think is currently more suitable for Manchester City?

As a long suffering City fan, i would have prefferred at least another half of a season with Sven.

[marshbags]

Which coach do you guys think is currently more suitable for Manchester City?

As a long suffering City fan, i would have prefferred at least another half of a season with Sven.

Hiya B.J.

From a football supporters view, from my perspective, Sven has done at least a reasonable job, especially when you consider where they were and the present time.

Sadly i also see the that the present owner of Man City has continually used the club and it,s supporters to further his own personal agenda, of which the majority appears to bring the game and football into disrepute.

If he has honourable intentions and is as he wants everyone to believe having the interests of Man. City is about his love of the club and all that goes with being owner.

Keep politics out of the game, give the present coach S.E. the backing he deserves and has earned for at least the forseeable future give him the financial support he promise not only him but everyone, connected to the cluB.

If not, sell up to someone who is genuine about football and Man City and GTFOOTC.

All who commented on the suspected intentions of Thaksin and all that surrounded his reputation ( outside football ) being wrong for the footballing community and the fact that he is not a a fit and proper person to be allowed ownership under the supposedly contradidtory guidelines of what the requirements are laid out to be are sadly, being shown to be correct in their initial concerns, based on his track record and duplicity of his Honest / Dishonest intentions.

He will continually bring disrepute to English football and our beloved game while ever he is allowed to continue with his crafty politically based intentions and dare i hint at it.

Money Laundering activities ect. ect. within the U.K. using Man. City as his Number one vehicle to do so only to sell it all on somewhere down the line, as and when it is in his best interests to do so.

MANCHESTER CITY DESERVE BETTER AND THAT,S A FOOTBALLING FACT AS DO ALL U.K. SUPPORTERS OF THE BELOVED GAME WHO ARE SICK AND TIRED OF THIS DUPLICITY HE BRINGS WITH IT ALL.

IMHO of course as always.

marshbags

Edited May 8, 2008 by marshbags

[sriracha john]

Echoing marshbags' comments...

Thaksin's City Rule: The Shape Of Things To Come?

Sven-Goran Eriksson's shabby treatment by Thaksin Shinawatra at Manchester City highlights the unrealistic ambition, ruthless autocracy and indifference to fans that the new breed of foreign billionaire club owner is likely to bring to English football.

Over the last few weeks, Premier League watchers have seen the shape of things to come. The civil war at Liverpool between the club's American co-owners has been disturbing enough. Now the situation at Manchester City, which would be utterly farcical if it wasn't so serious, is perhaps a microcosm of what we can expect at England's top clubs in future.

Capricious overseas billionaires with no experience of English football and still less understanding of the game's heritage in its homeland, are apt to make decisions on a whim because their egos, no doubt bloated by the flattery of sycophantic minions in their business or political lives, demand massaging.

The new super-rich owners of a growing number of Premier League clubs are not used to coming second, third or ninth in life. It does not sit comfortably with their view of themselves, or the view they want others to have of them as successful and powerful men. Nor does it fill the coffers in the way that coming first can. After all, money and power are almost certainly the great motivators in their careers.

But sport is different. It can be unpredictable. It is competitive in a different, purer way. And most of the time that competition can't be bought off; it has to be beaten on the pitch. So the nouveau-riche now taking over the boardrooms of clubs that were founded in the Victorian age are on a steep learning curve. But some are not too interested in learning and are clearly impatient. They want the glory, and they want it now.

Thaksin Shinawatra was previously the controversial prime minister of Thailand. Now Thaksin owns Manchester City and, after a reasonably smooth nine months or so, has decided to apply his autocratic executive style to what had looked like a ship making good headway at last after years of being tossed around in stormy seas.

The pilot of the ship, Sven-Goran Eriksson, was appointed by Thaksin himself, and in the opinion of most fair-minded people had made a pretty good fist of things in his first season at the helm. On the eve of the season, he was required to put together, with unseemly haste, a new City team - and he did so, albeit at considerable expense (though it was relatively small change for Thaksin).

City got off to a great start, surprising everyone and giving the Big Four plenty to think about in the autumn. How Thaklsin enjoyed the reflected glory of that. But then they ran out of steam, the early momentum sagged and they were becalmed in the doldrums for weeks. They've got some wind back in their sails now, but Thaksin was angered by that dip in form and results, and has let it be known that Eriksson's time at the club is coming to an abrupt end. His 'people' have also let it be known that others, notably Luis Felipe Scolari, are being courted as Eriksson's successor - even as the Swede continues trying to steer City to the end of their season.

In a bizarre twist, perhaps taken aback by the sense of outrage among City fans about Sven's treatment, Thaksin has now muddied the waters by claiming that he has made no decision yet about the manager, and will do so only at the end of the season. That begs the question: why allow Eriksson to be publicly humiliated in advance?

After all, the Swede is widely perceived to have delivered Manchester City their best season in years. They have already exceeded their best-ever points haul in the Premier League, and Eriksson has brought in some top-class talent as well as giving home-grown youngsters a chance. City beat Manchester United home and away, and have just won the FA Youth Cup - twin triumphs which for many fans represent the icing on the cake of a season that has seen them thoroughly entertained and imbued with hope after too many years of precarious drifting.

The club were crying out for stability and direction; Eriksson has provided both. His three-year plan, agreed with Thaksin, was to achieve a Premier League top-ten finish in his first season, Uefa Cup qualification in his second and Champions League qualification in the third. He is on course, having delivered the first objective. Yet it would appear Thaksin is unhappy that the side were unable to maintain their impressive form of the first half of the campaign.

Sven looks like becoming the victim of his own early success. His problem is one of timing. Perhaps if the pattern of City's season had been reversed - that is, if they had started the season indifferently, then produced excellent form and results in the second half - Eriksson would now be enjoying Thaksin's approval as the man who proved the owner's judgement to be sound. But it happened the other way round.

For a week or more Eriksson has been allowed to appear a lame duck, and City a laughing stock. That was bad enough. But now confusion reigns. Thaksin claims not to have made a decision about Eriksson's future, while Luiz Felipe Scolari's spokesman has denied that the Portugal coach has received an offer from City to become their manager next season.

Acaz Fellegger was reported to have said that the Brazilian coach may meet with City bosses before Euro 2008, but later on Wednesday he told Portuguese newspaper Record that Scolari has at no point been in contact with the Premier League club, and will not make any decision on his future until after the tournament in Austria and Switzerland.

Earlier in the day media reports had claimed that Scolari had been offered a £3.2 million-a-year deal by Thaksin, and that the City owner wanted the 59-year-old coach to make his decision before the European Championships begin. The reason for the urgency was apparently Thaksin's wish to appease City fans: stifle further discontent by delivering the man who won the World Cup for Brazil in 2002.

However, Thaksin contradicted those reports by telling BBC Radio 5 Live on Wednesday night: "We want to improve and we will do an evaluation at the end of the season."

Despite the latest claims to the contrary, a source close to Eriksson told BBC Sport that the former England coach has already been told he'll be sacked at the end of the season, and Eriksson, who has conducted himself with dignity and professionalism throughout this messy saga, is still willing to lead City on their post-season tour of Thailand and Hong Kong, despite his shabby treatment.

It all sounds eerily similar to the last days of Martin Jol at Tottenham. It seemed certain Jol was going to be sacked, the club denied it while rubbishing claims that they had met with Sergio Ramos in Sevilla, then sacked Jol and announced Ramos as the new manager.

No doubt another generous pay-off will insulate Eriksson financially from the impact of losing his job, but that's not the point. The point is that a wealthy club owner is acting as though he knows best how to run a football team as well as a business.

Thaksin may (or may not) be brilliant at finance and marketing; at corporate plans and business administration. But as a general rule, football people know better than businessmen or politicians how to run the football side of things: in the dressing room and on the pitch.

Assuming Eriksson's days are severely numbered at Eastlands, and that Scolari will be hired to replace him, there are no guarantees that the Brazilian will fare significantly better than the Swede in his first season, especially if some of the players said to be appalled at Sven's treatment lose their enthusiasm or leave the club. What then? Will Thaksin dump Scolari too? Will he keep hiring and firing until he stumbles across a coach who somehow delivers silverware in the space of a single season? And if he is lucky enough to find that coach, will he demand more and bigger trophies in each subsequent season?

Thaksin and his ilk, the new breed of billionaire club owners, need to take a large dose of realism on board in their new roles. As Harry Redknapp stressed this week, "The trouble is they all want to be winners and only one can win the title. Billionaires do not accept being losers."

City's mid-season slump was comprehensible to most football people, including the club's own fans. It was almost inevitable that a clutch of players, brought in from various clubs around the world and put together for their first taste of English league football without the benefit of a proper pre-season's preparation, then weakened by the loss through injury of one-half (Micah Richards) of their central defensive platform, would fray around the edges at some stage. It duly happerned, but does not mean that City have the wrong manager.

Yet sacking him now could well mean thay have got the wrong owner - or at least one who has a lot to learn about football teams.

- Goal.com / 5.7.2008

[ratcatcher]

Which coach do you guys think is currently more suitable for Manchester City?

You might be surprised, but it's...

Robert Mugabe!

Mugabe to take Eastlands hotseat

Manchester City fans, still reeling from the sacking of Sven-Goran Eriksson, are set for more anguish today. City's eccentric human-rights-wizard chairman Thaksin Shinawatra seems set to offer the manager's chair at the City of Manchester Stadium to not-quite-deposed-yet, you'll-never-take-me-alive Zimbabwean funster Robert Mugabe.

Thaksin is thought to have grown tired by Eriksson's failure to win every single match ever, after a promising start to his tenure saw him win the first three. In the following 34, however, City have also experienced draws and losses, causing Shinawatra to darkly suggest that whilst loss of life is acceptable, loss of a football match could simply not be tolerated.

Also high up on Thaksin's list of grievances against Eriksson was his perceived failures at dealing with the playing staff. "Too many human rights," Thaksin scribbled. "They sit on their farms all day with no fear of eviction. And their children are hardly starving at all."

Mugabe has been looking for a new club since his tenure in Zimbabwe was forcibly ended by means of democracy. Thaksin, who got his number out of the special Dictator's Handbook, jumped on the opportunity to offer him a 3 year deal. Mugabe is said to be delighted at the opportunity, exclaiming that he'll "teach those bastards a thing or two".

Manchester City's supporters are outraged at the move, however. Most, still firmly behind Eriksson, offered him "a go on their wife" if he'd just stay at the club.

One fan said, "At first we were delighted to have a mad, rich, foreign chairman, a man not afraid to make the decisions no sane man would. A man to take mad choices for this club. Now he's made his first mad decision, we're mad. It's just madness."

- The Onion Bag (quite possibly this is satire, but in this circus, who knows)

Although Mister Ebagum has had a good innings as Zimbabwe's beloved despot, he's not yet ready to step into the shoes of Sven. As a patriotic,lunatic African leader he feels that managing a team like Manchester City "just isn't cricket old boy"

[KireB]

From the Bluemoon website (forum):

"At least we know how to get him in trouble now if he pisses us off" (referring to the flag incident)

Turbulence and laughter ahead.

Edited May 8, 2008 by KireB

[mrtoad]

Spot on post Marshbags.

One thing for certain, is that the EPL needs to overhaul it's "Fit and proper person test" and the Home Office need to look at rules regarding people under investigation (innocent of course, until proven guilty) of breaches of human rights, corruption, tax avoidance and money laundering, as to what rights they have whilst in the UK. IMO they should certainly not be allowed to expand there business empire/PR machine whilst in the country.

[nomoretalksin]

regarding above post, I just remember now (googled it up now and link it here for your guys), there was this letter/recommendation

ex HRW = Human Rights Watch group

Click here! http://hrw.org/english/docs/2007/07/31/thaila16544.htm

or read the full letter here:

QUOTE

HRW concerned about Thaksin’s ownership in Premier League Team, Manchester City

Letter to the Premier League's Chief Executive, Richard Scudamore

July 30, 2007"

Attn Mr. Richard Scudamore - Chief Executive - The Premier League

Re: Purchase of Manchester City Football Club by Thaksin Shinawatra

Dear Mr. Scudamore:

Human Rights Watch is an independent, non-governmental human rights organization based in New York, with offices in many other cities, including London.

We write regarding your approval of the sale of Manchester City Football Club to Thaksin Shinawatra, the former Prime Minister of Thailand. In light of the widespread, serious and systematic human rights abuses perpetrated in Thailand under Mr. Thaksin’s leadership, we are very concerned that you concluded that he is a “fit and proper person” to purchase Manchester City Football Club.

We believe that an assessment of any prospective team owner should at least include an assessment of the individual's human rights record, his or her record on corporate responsibility, and whether there are credible allegations of corruption or other issues that might call into question whether the person is truly "fit and proper" for ownership. Such criteria should examine the individual's record globally and not just in relation to UK laws. (We take no position on international ownership.)

In the case of Mr. Thaksin, we have condemned the coup that ousted Mr. Thaksin from power last September and continue to be critical of the military-backed government. However, our research and that of other credible organizations shows that Mr. Thaksin’s time in office from 2001 to 2006 was characterized by numerous extrajudicial executions, “disappearances,” illegal abductions, arbitrary detentions, torture and other mistreatment of persons in detention, and attacks on media freedoms.

The most disturbing period of Mr. Thaksin’s rule was his “war on drugs,” in which Thai security forces routinely committed serious violations of human rights. By his government’s own count, more than 2,275 people were killed in the three months after the campaign was launched on 1 February, 2003. There is little doubt that Thailand was facing a boom in the use of methamphetamines at the time, but instead of responding with legal measures, Mr. Thaksin unleashed his security forces in a violent campaign against alleged drug traffickers and sellers. He issued cash incentives to police and local officials to remove thousands of drug suspects from government “blacklists.” Many on the blacklists, which were issued to local government and police, were killed. In a speech announcing the campaign, Mr. Thaksin borrowed a quote from a former police chief known for having orchestrated political assassinations in the 1950s: “There is nothing under the sun which the Thai police cannot do,” Mr. Thaksin said. “Because drug traders are ruthless to our children, so being ruthless back to them is not a bad thing. . . It may be necessary to have casualties. . . If there are deaths among traders, it’s normal.”

The gravity of the situation prompted the US State Department to report in 2004 that Thailand’s human rights record has “worsened with regard to extrajudicial killings and arbitrary arrests.” The United Nations special rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, Asma Jahangir, expressed deep concern at the high number of deaths in the “war on drugs.” A similar alert was raised by the United Nations Human Rights Committee on July 28, 2005. A Human Rights Watch report, Not Enough Graves: The War on Drugs, HIV/AIDS, and Violations of Human Rights, documented shocking details of extrajudicial executions of drug suspects in Thailand (the report can be found at http://hrw.org/reports/2004/thailand0704/).

Mr. Thaksin was equally brutal in addressing the insurgency in Thailand’s predominantly ethnic Malay Muslim southern border provinces. His heavy-handed counterinsurgency policy, which emphasized the unnecessary or excessive use of force and encouraged grave human rights violations, lead to the deaths of hundreds of ethnic Malay Muslims and injuries to many more. A Human Rights Watch report, “It Was Like Suddenly My Son No Longer Existed”: Enforced Disappearances in Thailand’s Southern Border Provinces, detailed 22 cases of unresolved “disappearances” in which the evidence strongly indicated that the Thai military forces and police were responsible (the report can be found at http://hrw.org/reports/2007/thailand0307/).

Amidst these widespread abuses, Mr. Thaksin failed to address seriously the cultureof impunity that prevailed in the country during his government. In March 2004 Somchai Neelapaijit, chairman of Thailand’s Muslim Lawyers Association and a prominent critic of government human rights abuses, was abducted from a busy street in Bangkok. He has never been seen since and is presumed dead. Under strong public pressure, five police officers were belatedly arrested in connection with the abduction, but only one was convicted of the lesser charge of assault. In his 3 concluding remarks, the judge criticized deficiencies in the police investigation and work of the prosecutors. Mr. Thaksin publicly stated that government officials were involved in Somchai’s abduction and killing but took no action to bring the perpetrators to justice, even though it is widely believed that their identities, and that of their superior officers, are known to the government. Somchai’s wife, Angkhana Neelapaijit, told Human Rights Watch that Mr. Thaksin had informed her that her husband was taken to Ratchaburi province after being abducted. It is unclear how Mr. Thaksin learned of this information, but it is clear he did not act on it (for more on this case, see the Human Rights Watch statement at http://hrw.org/english/docs/2006/03/11/thaila12876.htm).

In all these cases, as well as many other state-sponsored violations of human rights brought to his attention, Mr. Thaksin made no apparent effort to pursue serious investigations to bring those responsible to justice.

Based on his record, Mr. Thaksin does not appear to us to be “fit and proper” under any reasonable definition of that term. His past actions should lead to him being subjected to investigations by impartial police and prosecutors, not welcomed into the club of owners of the most popular football league in the world.

We understand that you may not follow the political or human rights situation in Thailand. But in light of all the publicity about Mr. Thaksin’s record in office, a quick Web search of “Thaksin and human rights” or “Thailand and human rights” would have uncovered a wealth of relevant information, including the Human Rights Watch reports noted in this letter.

We hope you would agree that the integrity of the Premier League depends in large part on the integrity of its owners. The rules concerning who is “fit and proper” should ensure that serious human rights abusers are not among the league’s owners.

Thank you for your attention to this matter. We would be happy to discuss this further at your convenience.

Yours sincerely,

/s/

Brad Adams

Asia Director

Human Rights Watch

UNQUOTE

quite serious these allegations; I just wonder how/why they let him buy the club in the first place???

I wonder also if HRW received any letter back ex MCT last year? Anyone knows?

This looks like serious stuff and no joke! You can also search Thaksin on the HRW website and find many more accusations about his political time in Thailand.

Edited May 8, 2008 by nomoretalksin

[sriracha john]

Here's a bit of a follow-up from much earlier in this thread...

Man City's homesick Suree longs to return home

BANGKOK (Reuters/today) - Manchester City's Suree Sukha, on loan at Grasshoppers Zurich, wants to leave the club because he is homesick and lonely.

The unlucky fullback, offloaded to the Swiss side after being denied a work permit in Britain, said he would return to Thailand and let City decide where to send him next.

He has been unable to play in the Grasshoppers first team and said the reserve side is substandard.

"I don't know anything about my future," a dejected Suree told the Bangkok Post.

"It's difficult for me to improve because the standards of the reserve side are similar to that of a third division club in Thailand," he said, adding that he was "very lonely."

Suree, whose 480 pounds a month salary increased tenfold when he signed a three-year deal with Premier League Manchester City in November, wants to join one of City's affiliate clubs in China or Australia, or play in Japan's J-League.

City signed Suree and fellow Thais Teerasil Dangda and Kiatprawut Saiwaew shortly after controversial Thai billionaire Thaksin Shinawatra bought the club last year.

Teerasil is also at Grasshoppers and Kiatprawut is on loan at Belgian side Club Brugge.

Critics dismissed the signings as a publicity stunt by Thaksin, the ousted former Thai prime minister, four weeks ahead of an election, which was won by a party run by his supporters.

[mrtoad]

Here's a bit of a follow-up from much earlier in this thread...

Man City's homesick Suree longs to return home

BANGKOK (Reuters/today) - Manchester City's Suree Sukha, on loan at Grasshoppers Zurich, wants to leave the club because he is homesick and lonely.

The unlucky fullback, offloaded to the Swiss side after being denied a work permit in Britain, said he would return to Thailand and let City decide where to send him next.

He has been unable to play in the Grasshoppers first team and said the reserve side is substandard.

"I don't know anything about my future," a dejected Suree told the Bangkok Post.

"It's difficult for me to improve because the standards of the reserve side are similar to that of a third division club in Thailand," he said, adding that he was "very lonely."

Suree, whose 480 pounds a month salary increased tenfold when he signed a three-year deal with Premier League Manchester City in November, wants to join one of City's affiliate clubs in China or Australia, or play in Japan's J-League.

City signed Suree and fellow Thais Teerasil Dangda and Kiatprawut Saiwaew shortly after controversial Thai billionaire Thaksin Shinawatra bought the club last year.

Teerasil is also at Grasshoppers and Kiatprawut is on loan at Belgian side Club Brugge.

Critics dismissed the signings as a publicity stunt by Thaksin, the ousted former Thai prime minister, four weeks ahead of an election, which was won by a party run by his supporters.

What a suprise.

I find it hard to believe that the Grasshoppers reserve side is not as good as a Thai 3rd division team. Clearly, he is not good enough to play in Europe, and the usual attitude of Thai players has shone through again, i.e. if it isn't going right give up. Winothai and the other two who were over a couple of years ago were the same when they were over in the UK at Everton and Crystal Palace. It takes time to make the grade in football, and it was never going to be plain sailing for any of them. Hindered by the fact that they were badly advised by the Thai Football Association and used as a political tool by the "Little Emperor", this was always going to end in tears.

[Plus]

If Suree can't play for Grasshopper's reserves, how Thailand would even qualify for the World Cup? He was the only chance according to Thai Football ASSociation. Now it looks like they need to do some work themselves.

>>>

Thailand doesn't have a thrid division, it doesn't even have a proper first, it was deemed unprofessional by Asian Football Federation.

[plachon]

Here's a bit of a follow-up from much earlier in this thread...

Man City's homesick Suree longs to return home

BANGKOK (Reuters/today) - Manchester City's Suree Sukha, on loan at Grasshoppers Zurich, wants to leave the club because he is homesick and lonely.

The unlucky fullback, offloaded to the Swiss side after being denied a work permit in Britain, said he would return to Thailand and let City decide where to send him next.

He has been unable to play in the Grasshoppers first team and said the reserve side is substandard.

"I don't know anything about my future," a dejected Suree told the Bangkok Post.

"It's difficult for me to improve because the standards of the reserve side are similar to that of a third division club in Thailand," he said, adding that he was "very lonely."

Suree, whose 480 pounds a month salary increased tenfold when he signed a three-year deal with Premier League Manchester City in November, wants to join one of City's affiliate clubs in China or Australia, or play in Japan's J-League.

City signed Suree and fellow Thais Teerasil Dangda and Kiatprawut Saiwaew shortly after controversial Thai billionaire Thaksin Shinawatra bought the club last year.

Teerasil is also at Grasshoppers and Kiatprawut is on loan at Belgian side Club Brugge.

Critics dismissed the signings as a publicity stunt by Thaksin, the ousted former Thai prime minister, four weeks ahead of an election, which was won by a party run by his supporters.

Shades of another failed Toxin brainwave project perhaps? Namely the One Tambon One Scholarship, where hordes of ill prepared Thai youngsters from rural villages were shipped off overseas with minimum preparation, back-up and support. It took an Isaan girl to attempt suicide in Germany and news filtering back of miserable participants before the project was reconsidered. Not sure if it was scrapped, but haven't heard anything about it for a long time, so assume it is now off the rails.

Then there was the promise to cabbies that if they voted for him, all their kids would study overseas. His life has just been filled with broken promises on his part and broken dreams on the part of his victims, who Suree is surely one. When will all Thais see through this fraudster who is intent on ruining them, while engorging his family's greed at everyone else's expense?

[clausewitz]

[and broken dreams on the part of his victims, who Suree is surely one. When will all Thais see through this fraudster who is intent on ruining them, while engorging his family's greed at everyone else's expense?

Suree's 4800 pound a month salary (10x what he was making prior to leaving Thailand) makes him a victim?

[nomoretalksin]

You-Tube: "A message to DR Thaksin Shinawatra"

SOS with modest City Fan: Title: SOS Save our Sven (with marching music in the background)

or if you can't see above:

Click here!

...can someone fully translate? I really don't get this slang 100%

Anyhow great fan effort and seams like a nice, modest bloke with wonderful wallpaper!

user comment there:

Quote

Dr. shinawatra is a dictator, corruption man in Thailand

He can destroy even his mother land

I hate him

Unqoute

Edited May 9, 2008 by nomoretalksin

[plachon]

[and broken dreams on the part of his victims, who Suree is surely one. When will all Thais see through this fraudster who is intent on ruining them, while engorging his family's greed at everyone else's expense?

Suree's 4800 pound a month salary (10x what he was making prior to leaving Thailand) makes him a victim?

Alternatively, he may have previously been making 48 pounds/month in Thailand and now it is 480 quid a month? 4,800 per month seems quite a lot for someone who can't even make the Zurich Grasshoppers A side, eh? Don't forget the first few months he was hardly paid at all and was living off handouts from other players to survive. Virtually a beggar when Toxin first dumped him in Manchester, cold and penniless.

Whatever, he is still a victim of a much bigger game being played than on the pitch, where people like Suree are only a mere knave to be moved about the board at will by The Little Emperor. As a person he means little or nothing to his boss, beyond any publicity he can squeeze out of the situation, which now is zero the poor lad is desparate to come home, hopefully a little wiser for the experience that Manchester's streets are not lined with gold and Thai Rak Thai is largely a myth.

[nomoretalksin]

Fair play for Thaksin? (they forgot to include the chairmans attitude)

BREAKING NEWS: City might be rewarded a UEFA CUP place next year!

no joke! read on:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/arti...picbox&ct=5

me just wonders, why Thaki always slips away from his deserved punishment, mostly in always last minute occurances??

Lucky chap (it's a fair play selection, so the team and even the fans kind of deserved it! but Thaksin??) in this case, I must say!

Just as a note: City apparently hasn't been playing in Europe for 31years! Holy cow!

[nomoretalksin]

sorry double entry by mistake (newbie syndrom )

What a success for SVEN and the team!! If Thaksin now still sacks him (still).... he must be mad (is he? will he?)!!!

(nation and post a bit slow date??)

Edited May 9, 2008 by nomoretalksin

[Plus]

It's not the first time:

"City last gained entry to the UEFA Cup in 2003, also via the Fair Play league, but the team who was then managed by Kevin Keegan went out in the second round on away goals."

From the same link.