Thai Troops Retreat In Face Of 80,000 Protesters

[Jerrytheyoung]

just a question to those who have aroached the Red Shirts today;

concerning the "class War", is it just a slogan or have they drafted a platform (set of proposals for the poorest?)

A mobilisation on slogan only will die and is not sustainable. A political party must make proposals....Where are we TODAY?

[elcent]

An M79 grenade was fired at the front gate of Channel 5 near the Victory Monument Saturday evening, injuring a solider and two civilians.

The attack happened at 7 pm.

The two civilians are passers-by.

The three were rushed to the Phayathai 2 Hospital.

-- The Nation 27/03/2010

[newsfooter][/newsfooter]

it's getting more and more serious

[lucjoker]

I'm pleased there is no violence. I hope they get their way and get an election. Abhisit isn't a bad man, he just isn't elected.

A fair election is impossible ,they pay people openly to vote or demonstrate for them,

since the majority of the people are poor and ignorant,the party who pays the most,

will win !

Well than the most corrupt billionaire will win again ? Whoever he is !

What they need is a despot,a tirran !

But how to select him?

By civil war?

by "elections ?" ha ha !

So, not an easy decision !

[moresomekl]

I'm pleased there is no violence. I hope they get their way and get an election. Abhisit isn't a bad man, he just isn't elected.

He was elected by the Minsters Of Parliament with full quorum, and all duly elected in 2007.

All the oppositions attempts at votes of no confidence have failed miserably.

By the laws of the land, and all logic, he is a 'Properly Elected Prime Minister of Thailand'.

And he is not a bad man, which is a rarity in this seat it seams.

Elected by what kind of parliament ? What logic ?

A parliament where the leading party the PPP was disolved by a court ?

A parliament where even a naiv would suspect that many MPs switched side in exchange for

some kind amnesty in minor case of corruption ?

A parliament elected by the people ? Certainly not , the people elected another

parliament last time they were consulted . What democratic legitimacy has this parliament

anyway ?

Abhisit who is a nice guy and good looking guy , cant do much now as he

dont have a mandate from the ppl , even if he had the strenght to take a decision

all by himself , a debatable issue .

He must know deep down that his venue in power

is a parody of democracy . And that is why the governement is weak .

He should have called a popular election long ago .

He or the democrat party might even win the election if he is a good

communicator after all .

The army will not move against peaceful rurals and i guess they must be very glad to withdraw .

Someone far higher then Abhisit and who has all his life been caring for the poor would not approve .

This is a sad situation for THailand . First an ex-PM that thinks he can buy the whole

legislative and judiciary with his money , and today a PM that has no popular mandate .

Hope that the situation will resolve itself peacefully . Both sides have shown great restrain

I hope this continues

It's so clear your desires over rule your observational abilities.

Oh well.

As it does for 100,000 ppl in the streets of Bangkok for last

2 or 3 weeks

Edited March 27, 2010 by moresomekl

[snaggletooth]

Agreed. What's the point in having a military if your run away, just like the disgraceful showing in Pattaya last year. God forbid if any of Thailand's neighbors gets strong enough to wage war against this soft country. Everybody here would soon be speaking Burmese.

The Thai Military are a bunch of pussy's.

This country lost face when they retreated and let the Japanese invade them.

Nothing has changed since then - they lost face long ago ......

[gregb]

The fact that (certain) Bangkok people are starting to feeling the pinch is only a good sign. The protestors are on the street to cause inconvenience. If there was no pressure or inconvenience each and every demonstration was useless.

Yes thats the point of demonstrating

That is the most utterly ridiculous statement I have ever heard any Thaksin apologist make. The point of demonstrating is to make people aware of your cause and hopefully win their support through peaceful and non intrusive means. If your only goal is to inconvenience your fellow countrymen and impinge on their civil liberties because they disagree with you, then you clearly have no business protesting at all. That is the time where protesters deserve to be gassed and sent home.

Wonderful. A people that are labelled as red shirts-but in actuality have the guts/balls to face a gov't that has been put into power illegitimately. You Brits,American etc. can learn a lot from them. Your gov'ts have taken away most of what you enjoyed living for and with. How dare you criticise these protesters. Take your shirts-off and look back at the mirror..you see the yellow streak. I don't need to see your bare backs to know what nervous-paranoid-desperate-self-motivated opportunist and cowards you are. Sitting at your notebook or PC and criticising others who have the guts to make what was wrong, right again. Irregardless, who these protesters are...they are doing the RIGHT thing..what have YOU done to make it right in YOUR country? ..I thougt so.

Please do not generalise . Many if not most farangs , those i know at least , can see the point of the current demonstration and are symphatetic . Both parties have to compromise i guess . The red shirts on Thaksin because of his past behavior , and the governement on free and fair elections asap . If they do both side win , and Thailand wins .

I urge you to find some new friends. Your sampling size is way too small and you are spreading disinformation. Except for a small number of Thaksin apologists on this board, no farangs I have ever spoken with approve of the red miscreants. I know some who will tolerate them as long as the confine their disruptive activities to government institutions, but another parade like last week is absolutely unacceptable.

Thailand wins when Thaksin has been eliminated. That is the only criteria. The red shirts fighting for him are a blight on this otherwise peaceful land.

[roamer]

on the positive side ....the thai bart would be even stronger ,

if there was not the , current political unrest .

The current political "unrest" is the reason why the Baht and the SET are at two-year highs. Thaksin's best efforts have been unsuccessful and the government is perceived to have an air of stability about it. Foreign investors have been snappig up Thai shares which are now seen as being cheap, secure and high yielding.

They'll learn.

Strong exports is the reason why the baht is at a two year high. The continuing global bullish trend and good recent earnings are the reasons why the SET is strong.

The SET is high not strong, there is a difference. Some people are willing to take a gamble on the current problems being resolved. If they prove to be wrong the money can fly out as quickly as it came in. Short term money. The long term foreign investment directly into areas such as manufacturing is thin on the ground right now. Anyone who thinks multinationals are not having second thoughts about retooling their factories or investing in new ones is being naive.

[Snowdog]

Probably want to avoid provoking these types of people, giving them an excuse and justifying violence. Good on them.

when is the military going to show some strenght and shoot tear gas into the crouds to disperse them then arrest the leaders.this has been a joke for the world to see.no other country would allow any of this to go on to this extent.the leaders need to be locked up for many years for trying to over throw the government.most of these people were paid to be there.they are not there because they actually beleave in that crook thaksin.they need to make an example of the leaders of the red shirt protest and that includes a fireing squad

[Jerrytheyoung]

Just a question to those who have been in touch with the Red Shirts today:

Until now the Class War appears more as a slogan than anything else. TODAY, have you get information about a platform, a set of proposals or a policy program?

It is obvious that if the slogan is not converted in a platform (or equivalent), this is a fully empty shell and it will not go very far.

[snaggletooth]

Truth is the Reds don't know what they want except money in their pockets.

And to bring back the corrupt bastard Mr. T.

Too bad their too stupid to fight for what's really right, like demanding the government spend funds on infrastructure projects in their towns in the provinces and upgrading their schools. The Abhisits and the Yellows want to keep these people down and stupid so they can enjoy the fruits of their labor.

If the government were to build proper infrastructure in the North and Northeast,their people would not have to split up their families to work in Bangkok and they could live a modern life like the people in Bangkok. That's what they should be fighting for, but that's not what they articulate because unfortunately, their too DUPID

In turn, it would make Bangkok a better place to live because there would be less strain on the Capital's infrastructure and roads as well.

Hooray for the reds! At last some hope for the poor people in Thailand.

Forum red apologists have been asked on a number of occasions to name one red economic policy demand applicable.

Now it is your turn.

Edited March 27, 2010 by snaggletooth

[lucjoker]

I'm pleased there is no violence. I hope they get their way and get an election. Abhisit isn't a bad man, he just isn't elected.

A fair election is impossible ,they pay people openly to vote or demonstrate for them,

since the majority of the people are poor and ignorant,the party who pays the most,

will win !

Well than the most corrupt billionaire will win again ? Whoever he is !

What they need is a despot,a tirran !

But how to select him?

By civil war?

by "elections ?" ha ha !

So, not an easy decision !

What about this idea?

Elect a goverment ,whoever is in it ,4 years later the people have to vote

"if they will be all killed and a vote a new coverment,again for 4 years,

if the people are satisfied with them ,well than they can continue ,if not

they will be shot and a new goverment chosen !

This system will show that the goverment in power will think twice before they go

against the will of the people !

AND,after a few mass executions of goverments,there will be less candidates to

run for the posts ! only those who think are capable will show up !

This should be done world wide !

[jdinasia]

As it does for 100,000 ppl in the streets of Bangkok for last

2 or 3 weeks

If you are going to exaggerate the numbers why not just use the Million Man number instead?

Thaksin's money isn't getting to the people that are expecting it and even with the new infusion of cash for this weekend the turnout is far too low.

[webfact]

Metropolitan Police Gear Up for March to 11th Infantry Tomorrow

BANGKOK: -- Metropolitan police have prepared measures to handle the red shirt procession to the 11th Infantry Regiment tomorrow. Regions 1 and 2 of the Metropolitan Police will be responsible for handling security for various locations throughout the route of tomorrow’s procession.

Deputy Metropolitan Police Commander Police Major General Panu Kerdlappol reveals that officials will be securing the route from the Pan Fah Bridge area to the 11th Infantry Regiment as the red shirt protesters proceed at 9 A.M. Sunday morning. Locations which will be guarded by police forces include the Crime Suppression Division, BTS stations throughout the route, and the Channel 5 and Channel 7 studios.

Authorities are advising the general public to avoid the following areas: Yommarat, Rama 5, Ratchawitiee roads, Victory Monument, Central Ladprao intersection, and Phaholyothin Road. These areas should be avoided from 9 A.M. to noon Sunday.

-- Tan Network 2010-03-27

[newsfooter][/newsfooter]

[elcent]

For the numbers

from the pictures I see there are hardly 3000 at a time in one place. So we have about 7 places, 20 - 25000 is the correct number. It's just the bikes, flags and the color that makes it look huge.

When I count the numbers of people from the slide show, assuming they are all in different places then there are not even 10000 altogether. It could be that the real number of active protesters is about 5 - 7000.

Edited March 27, 2010 by elcent

[whiterussian]

Truth is the Reds don't know what they want except money in their pockets.

Err... yes. Money is kinda useful.

However much I sympathise with the 'reds' (as most of the people in ChiangMai are) - albeit having a Dr Evil type leader, the only way to win this one is to wait until the goalposts have been restored to the original position. ie: No banning of entire parties. A free election. Of course it will be a puppet govt. But then these days what government isnt?

[jdinasia]

Truth is the Reds don't know what they want except money in their pockets.

Err... yes. Money is kinda useful.

However much I sympathise with the 'reds' (as most of the people in ChiangMai are) - albeit having a Dr Evil type leader, the only way to win this one is to wait until the goalposts have been restored to the original position. ie: No banning of entire parties. A free election. Of course it will be a puppet govt. But then these days what government isnt?

I doubt the no banning of entire parties will fly since we have been witness to party executives committing electoral fraud. Free elections, hopefully, will include Free elections where people are not paid to vote and where all parties can campaign everywhere.

As for "puppet governments" -- well if it is a Thaksin government it certainly will be.

[dude007]

Probably want to avoid provoking these types of people, giving them an excuse and justifying violence. Good on them.

In my opinion a very wise decision from the Government. Red shirts so far have shown restraint and respect for the law (I do not attach big importance to details), but if it takes too long (as is the case already now), more counterwind will start to blow, in the first place from the Bangkokian locals and from the local industry (who are getting organised). These are the people who are paying now the bill for te ongoing useless and senseless protest and disturbance from the red shirts who in fact have made their point already. All what follows now is contra-productive and their convicted criminal leader staying in Dubai should start knowing this (if ever he has noble and ethical feelings about his home country). But I am afraid that he has a hidden agenda and doens't care about the wellbeing of the country which is in good hands now. He is mostly concerned about his money that is being taken back to where it belongs

His objective is: if I can't come back, then better destroy and eternally divide this country and let it go to civil war...

We have already seen this typical Thai attitude in the row on Preah Vihear. What benefit does Thailand has in pushing to abolish this recognition as a UN-cultural world heritage? "Better destroy it than let it for the Cambodians", and I have blatant evidence on how they have shelled and damaged the pagoda, how they have destroyed mayor parts of it and burnt the Cambodian market downstairs. This is not self-defense anymore, it is revenge...

Immaturity at its highest...

[Tony121]

As the red posters keep seem to use the Airport as an excuse to do pretty much anything. does it make it ok to send the police in to shoot of some red protesters legsoff with tear gas canisters ? does it make it ok to fire m79 grenades into the reds as they sit and listen to there dear leaders?

[RegularReader]

Probably want to avoid provoking these types of people, giving them an excuse and justifying violence. Good on them.

when is the military going to show some strenght and shoot tear gas into the crouds to disperse them then arrest the leaders.this has been a joke for the world to see.no other country would allow any of this to go on to this extent.the leaders need to be locked up for many years for trying to over throw the government.most of these people were paid to be there.they are not there because they actually beleave in that crook thaksin.they need to make an example of the leaders of the red shirt protest and that includes a fireing squad

Most of what you want to happen is not the perogative of the army. First it is for the government of the day to instruct the military to "crackdown". The arrest is not their job - the police do that.

But, most important is that so far the government, the military and the police force have all show very good discipline by not cracking down.

Perhaps all sides for once have learnt some things from the past and all realize, to this point, that following a course of action such as you suggest, will not achieve anything more than, more of the same ...1976, 1986, 1992 etc.. And for the UDD it would likely end up in a repeat of last year's Songkran riots.

So far "go gently, carrying a big stick" has been quite effective - as exampled by the army seeming to give a lot of ground during today, until, this evening's backdown by the UDD at Government house.

Tomorrow of clurse, is another day.

Edited March 27, 2010 by RegularReader

[Jerrytheyoung]

Truth is the Reds don't know what they want except money in their pockets.

And to bring back the corrupt bastard Mr. T.

Too bad their too stupid to fight for what's really right, like demanding the government spend funds on infrastructure projects in their towns in the provinces and upgrading their schools. The Abhisits and the Yellows want to keep these people down and stupid so they can enjoy the fruits of their labor.

If the government were to build proper infrastructure in the North and Northeast,their people would not have to split up their families to work in Bangkok and they could live a modern life like the people in Bangkok. That's what they should be fighting for, but that's not what they articulate because unfortunately, their too DUPID

In turn, it would make Bangkok a better place to live because there would be less strain on the Capital's infrastructure and roads as well.

Hooray for the reds! At last some hope for the poor people in Thailand.

Forum red apologists have been asked on a number of occasions to name one red economic policy demand applicable.

Now it is your turn.

Like Snaggletooth, i do find too much imbalance between Bangkok and Northern Thailand, and the Thai budget nearly entirely devoted to Mega projects of infrastructure to develop Bangkok and its suburb. At the same time, a large part of the population is living in extremely rude conditions.

Part of the Reds are in the street because they expect more decent life conditions, the imbalance between Bangkokians and Northen Thailand is not sustainable, it has to be reduced significantly and quickly because, it is the yeast for endless troubles.Issan conditions are not acceptable in the 21Th Century. (remember the gap between income per capita as published by the bank of Thailand- 2006 - from memory 36,000TBT in ISSAN and around 300,000TBT for Bangkok)

However the Red Shirt leaders seem more preoccupied by the support to Thaksin than by proposing a new deal for reducing the inequalities, and because of this, I am critical ....

As a lot of Farangs and Thais, I cannot support T, but I do understand part of the Reds fighting for their recognition in the Thai society.

I was expecting a shifting of the Red Shirts declaration towards more justice and a clear platform...but were are we today? Is the movement still mainly orientated on a support to T or a new policy is proposed?

[whiterussian]

...will include Free elections where people are not paid to vote and where all parties can campaign everywhere.

As for "puppet governments" -- well if it is a Thaksin government it certainly will be.

Let's hope so. But where do you draw the line? Electoral promises could be construed as bribery, although not as blatant as 500 baht in the back pocket of course.

Talking of puppets, there are of course puppet masters, and there are puppet masters.

Hang on, just gonna check my mental health score.

oops. I'd better relax.

[almavro]

Might I point out, vis a vis electiveness, that Abhisit was in fact elected, and Mr T never, ever was elected, in his own right? He lost the BKK governor race, and from then on was canny enough to run as a party list contender. Overall, the Democrats are where they are now through legal, systemic means -- whether one agrees with the decisions that forced the outcome or not.

[TPI]

Why doesn't someone take away all their toys, smack their bums and send them off to bed??

Enough already...this's becoming boring!

[bangkokrick]

TAN Network: DPM Suthep, Gen Anupong visit injured soldier from Ch 5 bomb attack; 7 injured in total

MCOT: DPM Suthep, Gen Anupong visit injured soldier from Ch 5 bomb attack; 7 injured in total

THE NATION: Thaksin phoning in now

"It's beautiful Thai tradition, what happened today," Thaksin said.

Thai tradition to fire grenades at soldiers and maim innocent people. Thaksin must have once again lost his mind.

Cheers, Rick

[bangkokrick]

TAN Network: DPM Suthep, Gen Anupong visit injured soldier from Ch 5 bomb attack; 7 injured in total

MCOT: DPM Suthep, Gen Anupong visit injured soldier from Ch 5 bomb attack; 7 injured in total

THE NATION: Thaksin phoning in now

"It's beautiful Thai tradition, what happened today," Thaksin said.

Thai tradition to fire grenades at soldiers and maim innocent people. Thaksin must have once again lost his mind.

Cheers, Rick

[NCFC]

CAPO readjusts deployment of troops in the city

BANGKOK: -- The Center for the Administration of Peace and Order has readjusted the deployment of troops in the capital to make it in line with the protest situation, according to Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban, in his capacity as the CAPO director.

Mr Suthep said at a press conference that government forces had performed their duties satisfactorily in dealing with the rallies with no single case of violence erupting. He said they had strictly abided by CAPO’s policy of avoiding violent confrontations with the United Front of Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) demonstrators. He stressed that troops were put on standby to ensure peace and order, in order to enable the country to move forward. They were not enemies and did not want to defeat anybody, he explained.

Mr Suthep said the CAPO was evaluating the situation on an hourly basis, and all decisions taken to solve the facing problems were made in line with the situation. He said the withdrawals of troops from eight spots in the city today were part of the revised strategy. The CAPO will continue to readjust its peace keeping plan to ensure safety of government buildings and properties as well as peace and happiness of the people. He reassured the public that the government would be able to control the situation and prevent violence.

Mr Suthep also mentioned that negotiations were underway to end the rallies, but not with the UDD core leaders. He said the Cabinet will hold its weekly meeting on Tuesday at the 11th Infantry Regiment, and the Internal Security Act is still in force.

-- NNT 2010-03-27

[newsfooter][/newsfooter]

Re-adjustment of troop deployments = Orwellian Newspeak for the army is in retreat.

Last weekend the government were in retreat on the streets of Bangkok. This weekend it's the armies turn to face the democracy protestors. And by the way, who does Abhisit think he is posting troops in the grounds of a temple? Has he no respect for the country's religion? But that is what you get when a Thai-passport carrying English toff gets handed the premiership of a country he knows little about.

We can only hope that the army does not repeat it's actions of 1976 and 1992 when they slaughtered hundreds of innocent civilians. Hopefully cool heads will prevail and the army remembers they are there to serve the Thai nation and nit it's aristocracy.

[versialcontro]

The Thai Military are a bunch of pussy's.

This country lost face when they retreated and let the Japanese invade them.

Nothing has changed since then - they lost face long ago ......

What a stupid statement.

I might also ask, in relation to what event do you make this statement?

Is is the fact they have shown incredible patience today?

Is it that they are not armed when facing protesters ?

Prey tell what brilliant thought gave you the confidence to say such a thing ?

Ah WWII, dont listen to the Thai's ramble on about how we are so proud, we have never been colonised. They dont teach them in school that they threw their hands up to the Japanese and were occupied by them. Heard of the The Thai/Burma Railway. On that note all these Muslim's in the south which the Thai's so much despise actually fought against the Japanese during WW11.

This country is a joke - it ever had a face to lose.

ps. Lets get this party started ....

[ovaltina]

So what happens when the army decides not to back down in a particular situation?

Eventually, there is going to be violence.

And the reds will come up with some lame propaganda to say that it was Abhisit's fault.

It is terribly sad, as Abhisit has been the most outspoken 'no violence' person so far, his comment when he heard of the blood-buckets idea was "I worry about their health, withdrawing blood in a medically unsafe way".

I just hope people remember this quiet, humble man and his words during this sad affair.

Tumb up for you my friend !!!

Abhisit is the only person strong enough to get this country back on track. He already told hundreds of times that the elections will appear according to the constitution. If people cannot respect this, and make turmoils, the law obstruct his possibilities to run this constutional election.

I guess the elections result will be an object of fighting anyway. Somebody will not respect the result regardless of which party gets the votes.

I`m just very sorry about this banana republic nonsens.

I agree totally with you. There needs to be elections at the right time, and hopefully a little patience from the citizens,will have given Abhisit's reforms the time required to bring positive results for the poor both rural & urban.

He had so many institutional problems to deal with when he came into office, fixing them takes many years.

Regarding these protests today, I was watching on TV , the red crowd pushing the troops back further and further. One of the red women near the front of the crowd carrying a huge sign-board reading "PEACE NON-VIOLENCE", which just made me think, well so what , what are you protesting about then? You already have peace & non-violence. Your sign-board is supposed to read "I demand..." or "we want ...... now!" / *fill in blank* .

Marching and pushing soldiers around in a quite frankly non-peaceful way, wth a banner proclaiming "PEACE NON VIOLENCE" actually means nothing. I go to work every single day, (for minimum wage even though I'm not rural) and I have never at work used violence or breach of peace on my way through the streets to work. But it is just a normal thing for me as a citizen, it isn't something that I feel the need to carry a big sign-board over my head saying it.

To me it just shows that what they are protesting about is nothing. Why not use those signs to say something useful, if they have genuine complaint.

Today somebody said to me, in Thailand they have huge gap in rich / poor , & that is true, also allover the world.

Try Russia where oil-billionaires drive Rolls Royces past the millions of homeless street children, these children are heroin addicts at age 8 some of them. Russia homeless street children have world's biggest heroin epidemic. Corrupt police shoot the kids dead on the street, instead of arresting them. The kids sleep in the -40' freezing cold streets, begging or stealing or selling themselves to buy dirty heroin, which they inject with frostbitten fingers. All the while oil billionaire Russians driving along in Rolls-royce. In Russia men of working age stand along side motorways, all day, waiting for a rich man to maybe stop and say ; "I pay you for cut my garden / fix roof / clean floors for 5 hours today" , sometimes these men stand for a week just for one car maybe stops to employ them for just a few hours work. These are starving desperate poor people, in a land with oil-billionaires.

Ditto Africa, China ,South America, Middle East, etc.etc. There is huge wealth gaps in most parts of the world.

I think Thailand has a much better opportunity to move forward with progress to a more meritocratic & socially conscious society, than for example Russia. Thailand has huge potential, and the last thing it actually needs now is more fighting, or a new post-coup corrupt leader.

[RegularReader]

The Thai Military are a bunch of pussy's.

This country lost face when they retreated and let the Japanese invade them.

Nothing has changed since then - they lost face long ago ......

What a stupid statement.

I might also ask, in relation to what event do you make this statement?

Is is the fact they have shown incredible patience today?

Is it that they are not armed when facing protesters ?

Prey tell what brilliant thought gave you the confidence to say such a thing ?

Ah WWII, dont listen to the Thai's ramble on about how we are so proud, we have never been colonised. They dont teach them in school that they threw their hands up to the Japanese and were occupied by them. Heard of the The Thai/Burma Railway. On that note all these Muslim's in the south which the Thai's so much despise actually fought against the Japanese during WW11.

This country is a joke - it ever had a face to lose.

ps. Lets get this party started ....

There was a recommendation from the Health Ministry in last couple of days about people being affected by these goings on, to the effect that they should go and get themselves checked out.

I had thought this was yet another of those frequent and quaint suggestions/ rules coming from them

I see I was mistaken.

Please tell me what medication they suggest.

I make these comments, particularly in light your post above, because I cannot see how it has any relevance to the issue being discussed in this thread.

If I am wrong and you are saner than most of the other posters here - especially me - I will duly apoogize.

Other wise, please refrain until you see a doctor - thank you.

[tracer5050]

good move on the troops part. A smart move right now as long as it peaceful.