Thai Army Tells Red Shirts To Disperse From Rally Base

[pornsasi]

Im really tired of waiting for this 'final showdown' if you're gonna kill them then kill them quickly, if not then go back to your barracks and the other colored shirts will take care of what you cant...then it can finally all be over.

Another armchair Rambo

Actually, I am getting so dam_n sick of hearing people threaten that they will do this or that, or something is going to happen, then nothing happens... typical, hysterical behavior of people who believe in ghosts and black magic.... I'm so bored of all the blah blah blah... tell me when something REALLY HAPPENS....

Understand how you feel . Patience , patience . Hope it solves itself without bloodshed .

[pornsasi]

I have the feeling that this is going to end badly. Thaksin has nothing to lose and is hoping for a win in any scenario. Either he gets his way and Parliament is dissolved, paving the way for Pheu Thai to campaign on a platform of reforming the constitution in such way as to white wash his current and pending convictions and allow him back to Thailand asap with full political rights restored. Failing that he would still be happy with a blood bath as a second best that he hopes would allow him to take the moral high ground and still hope to come back to power, albeit on a longer time frame (remember his hysterical TV appearances last April when he was trying to convince the world the blood bath had already taken place?). Therefore he is not going to call off the dogs. Everyone he cares about is safely overseas and he is carefully positioning himself to make it look as if there is some distance between him and red shirt leaders to avoid, both the charge that it is all about his money, and very importantly the risk of the stigma that Chamlong received for leading demonstraters to their deaths in 1992.

Chavalit seems to be making things much worse by coming in from left field petitioning the King to intervene and apparently even challenging the consitutional precept that HMK is above politics, although I would bet on him saying he was misquoted on this point later. Given that Chavalit, who was incidently accused of sounding like a Marxist in the early 90s, is very much part of the problem in as much as he is chairman of Pheua Thai and in a position to push for the red shirt leaders to negotiate and is also seems to be in touch with rogue elements within the army, this is likely to be inflammatory to those who point to the Marxists like Dr Weng and other republican fellow travellers, such as the exiled Giles Ungkaporn, within the red shirt ranks as a real threat to the monarchy. Many royalists may feel that Chavalit's (Somchai is regarded as so light weight as to be inconsequential despite being Thaksin's brother-in-law) to attempt to pressure the monarch, particularly while he is still recuperating from serious illness in hospital, is intolerable and fear that law and order is about to break down completely in a way that could see death squads assassinating anyone declared an "amart" by red shirt leaders. The prevaling rhetoric, reminiscient of 1976, and the pressure building up from Anti-Thakin groups, combined with anarchic incidents such as the sabotage attempt on the fuel tank and the capture of the military train in Khon Khaen, seem to suggest that a bloody crackdown in imminent. I hope I am wrong.

good post. I hope you are wrong too, but only for some reasons and not others. I hope you are wrong in that the reds will find some self-interested reason to make compromise a better deal for them. On the other hand, I hope you are not wrong because the gov't either lacks the power or the will to enforce the law. The intimidation is clear for anyone with eyes to see - if this gov't is seen to lose out to mob rule, it will - as many other have said all along - infect every other govt (red or yellow) attempt to bring peace and prosperity to this land for a generation or more.

I agree with others who say forcibly evicting and arresting the wrongdoers will not solve the problem - you will probably get a very dangerous post-period in which the militant factions start a campaign of terrorism similar to ETA in Spain, IRA in Ireland and indeed, what is happening in the Deep South of Thailand. However, I still the consequences of that as far less damaging to the country as a whole than victory of mob rule over law and order.

If that happens, the red-shirts on this forum will be pleased to know I and my family will be out of here, for sure.

Good post , i agree with you , thats the big risk

[zorm999]

Im really tired of waiting for this 'final showdown' if you're gonna kill them then kill them quickly, if not then go back to your barracks and the other colored shirts will take care of what you cant...then it can finally all be over.

Another armchair Rambo

Actually, I am getting so dam_n sick of hearing people threaten that they will do this or that, or something is going to happen, then nothing happens... typical, hysterical behavior of people who believe in ghosts and black magic.... I'm so bored of all the blah blah blah... tell me when something REALLY HAPPENS....

Understand how you feel . Patience , patience . Hope it solves itself without bloodshed .

I think it's started! I just heard 3 big explosions and I live 5 minutes from Sala Daeng!

[asiancup2007]

Explosions being reported at silom

said to be loud but possibly only fireworks

Edited April 22, 2010 by asiancup2007

[traderjm]

One the reasons why this forum is either frustrating or fun - my point was one of perception and how things can be seen differently. Your point, whilst I am sure valid, does not further the discussion on the issue raised but simply takes it down an avenue of red vs yellows, negating any attempt at a neutral discussion of the perception of the crisis today outside of taking sides. I am not saying your are wrong just seeing if there is room for a more mature debate.; Oh well, I tried

Can I safely assume you are NOT addressing this to me? As my reply that you quoted had nothing to do with REDS vs. Yellows...

[Farangdong]

There is no Thailand if the government can't disperse a mob of 6000 armed rebels occupying an important district of the capital. No, it is not a game. It is about the very existence of Thailand as a nation. This is civilization vs. anarchy. Would the red thugs be tolerated for weeks in your country? You say yes? I don't believe you.

Good Point Jingthing, how would this be handled in let's say Holland?

I don't know in Holland, but for sure in Italy with a lot of cops beating furiously and indiscriminately on protesters heads... and much before the Thai timing... ahhhh, some good European democracy!

[commons]

maybe you wanna have a look at twitter: http://twitter.com

maybe you'd like to follow these sources:

bangkokpundit

tri26

tulsathit

kinovino

karmanomad

terryfrd

smartbrain

- NOW

[humfurry]

People dead and injured and some fat old men sit here laughing.

Sick

I'm not fat at all... I don't think I'm old... but that's an interesting comment coming from the general that put down the War for Southern Independence, or should I it call it the War of Northern Aggression?

Edited April 22, 2010 by humfurry

[whiterussian]

http://twitter.com/kinovino

Some said guns were also fired.

2 minutes ago via Twitter for BlackBerry®

Reply Retweet #redshirts fired some "bung fire" (thai firework).

4 minutes ago via Twitter for BlackBerry®

Reply Retweet #Redshirts starts to fire fireworks.

5 minutes ago via Twitter for BlackBerry®

Reply Retweet It's now "fight soldiers fight!" From Anti-reds instead of "Bastards get out!" earlier.

[asiancup2007]

maybe you wanna have a look at twitter: http://twitter.com

maybe you'd like to follow these sources:

bangkokpundit

tri26

tulsathit

kinovino

karmanomad

terryfrd

smartbrain

- NOW

Add dany_k to that excellent list

[traderjm]

Totally wrong. The two governments before this one were voted into power by the people. This government (Abhisit) was installed by the Military and the Amartaya when they bought forty Phuea Thai MPs, The Friends of Newin. The forty MPs then supported Abhisit and later formed the Bhumjaithai Party. Bhumjaithai are the largest member of the coalition but are a party that has never stood for election.

Those forty MPs sold the votes of their electorate and made themselves rich but are now too scared to go home and face that electorate. The purchase of those forty Phuea Thai MPs and the millions of votes that they represent must be the largest proven example of vote buying in history. Corruption is rampant in the Democrat Party - take for instance the Ministry of Health scandal or the billion(s) baht Dust Free Roads scam that Bhumjaithai Party nearly pulled off - and Abhisit has the cheek to try and claim the moral high ground. The sooner the Democrat Party is disolved the better for all.

You should check your facts, my facts tell me that BOTH the PM's prior to the current one were part of coalition gov't meaning NEITHER were a majority so neither could rule without forming those coalitions. Which means they BOTH came to power the same way the current gov't did.

I am not debating if they were removed via army blah blah blah.. point is IF the REDS think this system is so flawed why did they NOT complained when the first coalition was formed? Simple THEIR guy was the big dog...

[commons]

for pics try

http://twitpic.com/photos/Dany_k

[dobadoy]

If this break out into all-out fighting, god help Anupong. Heavy lies the hand of culpability on his shoulders for utter deriliction of duty.

[humfurry]

If this break out into all-out fighting, god help Anupong. Heavy lies the hand of culpability on his shoulders for utter dereliction of duty.

Then again, this is Thailand.

P.S. I corrected your spelling.

[Chunky1]

Hopefully this time the Thai Army can retain their weapons and vehicles during the conflict.

[dobadoy]

If this break out into all-out fighting, god help Anupong. Heavy lies the hand of culpability on his shoulders for utter dereliction of duty.

Then again, this is Thailand.

P.S. I corrected your spelling.

Thanks, but you missed the 's' of 'break'....

[whiterussian]

kinovino Confusion. Police investigating sounds that might came from BTS station.

terryfrd Nation TV says it was M79 explosion. At least 2 soldiers hurt. Ambulances on the way.

[chadintheusa]

If this break out into all-out fighting, god help Anupong. Heavy lies the hand of culpability on his shoulders for utter dereliction of duty.

Then again, this is Thailand.

P.S. I corrected your spelling.

if anupong doesn't act this weekend there could be a retirement party for him next week

[commons]

If this break out into all-out fighting, god help Anupong. Heavy lies the hand of culpability on his shoulders for utter deriliction of duty.

i guess it'll be in news 2mrw: afp reports anupong saying this:

"AFP : Anupong says red shirts ‘’not criminal offenders’’"

&

"AFP : whatever army does, outcome would be good for country and we can uphold the law with no people dead or injured - Anupong"

*

_first quote_ sounds like opposite to narrative of "terrorists", right?

_second quote_ sounds like - what? a man under fire from air-force, aware of split in army, eager for retirement, maybe resentful to have been put into "hot seat", maybe too old for "hawkish" approaches... i don't know...

[generalgrant]

Simple question

If in your home nation over 20 coups were done by the power elite using puppets as their tools, would you be ok with that?

If the power elite had previously shot down a thousand university students at the University of Iowa, would you be ok with that?

If you were told you had to crawl on the ground when talking to the upper class or even approaching them, would you be ok with that?

If your supreme court had the power to throw out your elected PM or President, which is not the case in Europe or North America, would that be just fine with you? Only the Parliament can remove the PM or in USA, Congress can throw out the President. The court cannot.

Why are you OK with a constitution put into place after a military coup by a captain?

Obviously the Captain was acting for the regime. Why is it ok? Would it be ok with you in your home country for a Captain to take over from your PM or President?

Why do you make fun of the poor here? Would it be ok with you to laugh at the poor in your own nation?

Are you racists?

Are you just angry old men playing sick games?

People are dead and hurt and you laugh.

Why?

Just wondering.

[dobadoy]

kinovino Confusion. Police investigating sounds that might came from BTS station.

terryfrd Nation TV says it was M79 explosion. At least 2 soldiers hurt. Ambulances on the way.

Unfortunatley won't be able to take them to Chula hospital, wonder how the poor patients in there are coping?

[SanSaiExPat]

And he is not in charge. Watch your back mate. If he shouts fire, who knows which way the bullets will be flying. Certainly Thailand will be flying up the UN's list of oppressive regimes and even onto US sanctions lists.

PAD, the people who wrested power from the People on the premise they were too stupid to vote, through mob rule and army control by their elite backers are now coming back on to the street to ensure that the power is not returned through the ballot box.

Can I have accurate soundbite of the day for that please on the BBC?

Nice organisation and I am not surprised they are disguising themselves as multi colourted protesters.

Once the yellow shirts go on, then the army will split.

Geesh never really took note of your posts much before but you are a crackpot I see.. time to ignore your ramblings. Why are so many of the RED-farangs unstable?

Oh no need to answer won't be read

Oh how rich that is. A classic case of the pot calling the kettle black. If you review all the posts here you’ll note a surprising lack of substance and facts on any posts supporting the Bangkok Elite and the current government. Those posts are indeed bereft of reasoning and logic and like your post, for the most part, consist mainly of name calling. “Crackpot” is a good example. Indeed, the posts which support the government that was illegally overthrown by a military coup are well reasoned. The posts that now simply call for new fair and free elections seem unassailable.

[Xangsamhua]

If this break out into all-out fighting, god help Anupong. Heavy lies the hand of culpability on his shoulders for utter dereliction of duty.

Then again, this is Thailand.

P.S. I corrected your spelling.

if anupong doesn't act this weekend there could be a retirement party for him next week

Or a court-martial?

[humfurry]

If this break out into all-out fighting, god help Anupong. Heavy lies the hand of culpability on his shoulders for utter dereliction of duty.

Then again, this is Thailand.

P.S. I corrected your spelling.

Thanks, but you missed the 's' of 'break'....

Good point... -2 points since you brought it up.

But I did get you reread it

[danc]

One the reasons why this forum is either frustrating or fun - my point was one of perception and how things can be seen differently. Your point, whilst I am sure valid, does not further the discussion on the issue raised but simply takes it down an avenue of red vs yellows, negating any attempt at a neutral discussion of the perception of the crisis today outside of taking sides. I am not saying your are wrong just seeing if there is room for a more mature debate.; Oh well, I tried

Can I safely assume you are NOT addressing this to me? As my reply that you quoted had nothing to do with REDS vs. Yellows...

Just to clear things up a little...

In reply to this:-

The problem here is one of perception, jingthing. As an exercise, let's assume you are right - I know I am right, I can hear you saying...but bear with me. Assuming you are right and there are many many people of the same opinion, there are equally many many of the opinion that something is rotten in the "State of Denmark" - both on a national and dare I say it, international stage. For those that do not have the unique wisdom of the posters here on this forum, the perception is that the Abhisit government has arrived at this point following a coup, international airport closures that resulted in literally tens of thousands of stranded foreigners and a few other shenanigans besides, those probably more of relevance here in Thailand, disqualifed parties, red cards, yellow cards etc etc. If I was to sit down with my father or brother or my mates from the pub and say the present government is legal, they would say "get out of here, there the ones who did this this and this......leaving my Aunt Mo not able to get back for little Johnny's christening"...So, whilst I might agree with you, it is equally good reasoning to see the other side of the coin too...

It is part of the reason why one cannot see this problem just fading away if they all packed up and went home this evening.

You wrote:-

I would ask one simple question. The TWO gov't before the current one obtained their power under the exact same rules. I did not see the REDS crying then about democracy. Did you?

Regardless of whether you believe those two were ousted via the courts or political games, it does not change that they STARTED in exactly the same way AFTER elections AFTER the coup... so why pray tell did the REDs not complain then???

and now you write:-

Can I safely assume you are NOT addressing this to me? As my reply that you quoted had nothing to do with REDS vs. Yellows...

My perception that this indeed did go down an alleyway of red vs yellows is obviously awry...mea culpa

Edited April 22, 2010 by danc

[dobadoy]

Yellows facebook page also reporting 2 hurt, 3 explosing, one M79 Grenade. Some calling for other yellows to go and support those already there, others saying get out of the area and leave it to the army.

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/gr...108372992525155

[grandpops]

If this break out into all-out fighting, god help Anupong. Heavy lies the hand of culpability on his shoulders for utter deriliction of duty.

i guess it'll be in news 2mrw: afp reports anupong saying this:

"AFP : Anupong says red shirts ''not criminal offenders''"

&

"AFP : whatever army does, outcome would be good for country and we can uphold the law with no people dead or injured - Anupong"

*

_first quote_ sounds like opposite to narrative of "terrorists", right?

_second quote_ sounds like - what? a man under fire from air-force, aware of split in army, eager for retirement, maybe resentful to have been put into "hot seat", maybe too old for "hawkish" approaches... i don't know...

Now that will put him in the Statesman class if he can pull that off. Hats off to him if thats true.

Twitter showing pics of police and army holding back non coloureds.

Wouldn't look good if they held back this rioting mob then went and shot up the reds camp would it.

Still time for Anupong to be a real player in this. Get Thaksin out, PAD out, Suthep out and it could work.

[asiancup2007]

kinovino Confusion. Police investigating sounds that might came from BTS station.

terryfrd Nation TV says it was M79 explosion. At least 2 soldiers hurt. Ambulances on the way.

Unfortunatley won't be able to take them to Chula hospital, wonder how the poor patients in there are coping?

There is one doctor for every 5,300 people in the northeast, compared with one per 850 in Bangkok and one in 2,800 for the country over all, according to government statistics.

[Chunky1]

You people are all results orientated. You really prefer having the Army trying to remove 50,000 armed protesters with grenade launchers and machine guns as opposed to having elections? Lets run an election, see that the Dem's coalition government is still in tact and get on with our lives. What do you want from Anupong? Perhaps he doesn't want ten thousand dead bodies on his conscience.

[dobadoy]

kinovino Confusion. Police investigating sounds that might came from BTS station.

terryfrd Nation TV says it was M79 explosion. At least 2 soldiers hurt. Ambulances on the way.

Unfortunatley won't be able to take them to Chula hospital, wonder how the poor patients in there are coping?

There is one doctor for every 5,300 people in the northeast, compared with one per 850 in Bangkok and one in 2,800 for the country over all, according to government statistics.

Yes, a situation that predates both Abhisit AND Thaksin's premierships. So how is it relevant here?