Troops, Armoured Vehicles Converge On Bangkok Protest Site

[KMUTT]

Red Shirts in Udon Thani seized the old City Hall and have burned it down.

[jcbangkok]

With troops and police given the authority to now shoot those inciting violence, looting and lighting fires. I cannot see this playing out more than another 24 hours. But I do believe that until authorities move in there is going to be wide spread vandalism, looting and arson. Well not wide-spread ... just in the currently infected (or is it infested) area.

[lannarebirth]

Taking into account the average Thai stubbordiness, seizing the accounts at this particular moment is only fuelling the conflict. Should have been done in a quiet period. As already some opinions have stated, this conflict is maybe only the spark of a major operation in line with a re-positionning of some actors on the politician stage. If true we should see some new developments in the coming hours...

IMHO, the seizure of accounts NOW is a tactical mistake.

If you had been right about even one thing until now Jerry I might agree with you. As far as I'm concerned freezing the money flushed out the relevant players and that is a good thing. I know you mean well but you've got just about every aspect of this conflict backwards so far.

[warfie]

Additional media photos of the Chulalongkorn Hospital area:

Democracy??????????

if the reds are fighting for democracy, why have they been told to vote Phua Thai by their paymasters?

Did they vote for their leaders?

[Herm]

Din Daeng Red-shirts to Act on Their Own

UPDATE : 19 May 2010

Red-shirt protesters in Din Daeng area, who were not happy with the key leaders' decision to call off the red-shirt rally, have declared themselves independent from the main red-shirt movement.

They say they'll now act on their own and have threatened to hunt down members of the press.

http://www.thailandoutlook.tv/tan/ViewData...?DataID=1029522

Any evolving splinter groups have to be considered terrorists and the army should get a shoot to kill order and use heavier weapons to execute them quickly now!

[jcbangkok]

Red Shirts in Udon Thani seized the old City Hall and have burned it down.

source or link available? not that i really care if these morons burn down their own city as it might be the first part in their educating themselves to their being consequences to idiotic actions.

[Jingthing]

Al Jazeera English (about Bangkok red operation):

THIS

IS

OVER

Sweet words indeed.

[animatic]

Jatuporn earning some respect from me for turning himself in and continuing speech from police station trying to get the red mob to disperse. Clearly this doesn't take away the need to hold him accountable but he certainly deserves a heck of a lot more credit than the other coward leaders,

Isn't he the one who threatened to place a BOMB on the skytrain tracks much earlier in this conflict?

Jatuporn has lost any chance as respect.

He MUST try and talk his puppets down if he expects ANY leniency...

which I doubt will help him. No doubt MP status won't save him this time.

15 minute formal session and Parliament cuts him loose. Bye Bye.

[KMUTT]

Protesters burn tyres on Lard Prao Road

Protesters burned tyres on the inbound Lard Prao Road at 2 pm.

The fire sent thick smoke billowing over the road.

Police closed the inbound Lard Prao.

The Nation

[SomTumTiger]

Din Daeng Red-shirts to Act on Their Own

UPDATE : 19 May 2010

Red-shirt protesters in Din Daeng area, who were not happy with the key leaders' decision to call off the red-shirt rally, have declared themselves independent from the main red-shirt movement.

They say they'll now act on their own and have threatened to hunt down members of the press.

http://www.thailandoutlook.tv/tan/ViewData...?DataID=1029522

With the women, children and elderly out of the way - time to take out the trash "Chuck Norris" style.

[animatic]

tulsathit: Sansern: We are faciliating transportation of protesters who want to go home.

Wed May 19 2010 14:02:29 GMT+0700 (SE Asia Standard Time)

tukky_nt: Sansern insisted they can control the situation and asked protesters to take bus home at National Stadium.

Wed May 19 2010 14:02:25 GMT+0700 (SE Asia Standard Time)

tulsathit: Sansern: The general situation is under our control. We have stopped troops' advancement operations.

Wed May 19 2010 14:02:06 GMT+0700 (SE Asia Standard Time)

tulsathit: Sansern calls red leaders who have surrendered - Jatuporn, Nuttawut - as terrorist leaders.

Wed May 19 2010 14:01:29 GMT+0700 (SE Asia Standard Time)

That's what I call, calling a spade a spade. Thanks CRES

Agreed.

[otherstuff1957]

I saw a half dozen elections billboards - the kind that list all of the candidates - in the Jatujak district. They were all lined up & ready to be distributed. It looks like the elections are going to take place.

Edited May 19, 2010 by otherstuff1957

[jitenshaman]

Ask yourself this question, all this carnage could have been avoided if Abhisit had called an election? If he thought he could have won he definitely would have done it, if as is certain he would have been ousted then... well that answers the question. Better to murder your own people than get voted out of office I suppose.

perhaps you have been on an island in the middle of the Pacific for the past few weeks? Abhisit called for a dissolution of parliament in September and an election to follow in November, well ahead of schedule, as an olive branch to the Reds to stop their protest. The more moderate Red Shirt leaders accepted the proposal. Their paymaster decided it didn't suit his aims and didn't get his money back so he vetoed it. Think of all the carnage that could have been avoided if he had. Better to murder your own people for personal gain than to give any kind of democratic process a chance I suppose.

[dhrobertson]

Great stuff from Korn on CNN!

He really explained to the fools that this not a simplistic poor v rich fight.

Mentioned free eduction and income gurantees for farmers.

Impact on GDP from all this is about 0.5% largely due to impact on tourism.

Sadly, he used the "word" NORMALCY. I guess it must correct then.............

[animatic]

Din Daeng Red-shirts to Act on Their Own

UPDATE : 19 May 2010

Red-shirt protesters in Din Daeng area, who were not happy with the key leaders' decision to call off the red-shirt rally, have declared themselves independent from the main red-shirt movement.

They say they'll now act on their own and have threatened to hunt down members of the press.

http://www.thailandoutlook.tv/tan/ViewData...?DataID=1029522

Any evolving splinter groups have to be considered terrorists and the army should get a shoot to kill order and use heavier weapons to execute them quickly now!

EXECUTE THE ORDERS, not execute the splinter group members....

Unless they attack when faced with authorities trying to stop them.

They attack, and it's their look out to survive the counter attack.

Let's pray that most can think this through and call it a day.

[jcbangkok]

Do not be too optimistic, the moderate leaders have surrender leaving an angry mob uncontrolled... as Tulsahit has tweeted everyting may happen from now ... or only some pockets of resistance... or a bigger insurrection.

Praying everything go to normalcy, but difficult with moderate leaders "neutralised".

That's been a problem for a couple weeks hasn't it? The moderates wanted to accept the "road map" but the hard liners overruled. Maybe it's better with them out of the way.

In France, we have learnt that it was better to keep the structured leaders controlling a mob, than to let a mob uncontrolled...We will see what happens.....

Do you read or watch the news? Those leaders who have not fled have lost control of the mob. The remaining mob has refused their orders to disburse and now claim to be a break off group ... which is setting fire to the city.

One does have to wonder if the red leaders gave this break-off group all their weapons.

[elcent]

RT @RichardBarrow: Thai military to impose curfew on Bangkok tonight. /via @markmackinnon

2 minutes ago via web

absolute necessary. should have happened earlier though.

[whybother]

Do not be too optimistic, the moderate leaders have surrender leaving an angry mob uncontrolled... as Tulsahit has tweeted everyting may happen from now ... or only some pockets of resistance... or a bigger insurrection.<br />Praying everything go to normalcy, but difficult with moderate leaders "neutralised".<br />

Started already. These scum have set fire to Zen/Central World.

Why aren't the army there securing things in that (former) key Red area?

Any update re Asoke/Suk junction?

Asoke Suk: looks like a pile of tyres alight on the Queen Sirikit Centre side of the intersection.

[thepodest]

Looks like this is very very far from over.

Central world, Paragon, MRT, other important buildings are on fire.

[jcbangkok]

Great stuff from Korn on CNN!

He really explained to the fools that this not a simplistic poor v rich fight.

Mentioned free eduction and income gurantees for farmers.

Impact on GDP from all this is about 0.5% largely due to impact on tourism.

Sadly, he used the "word" NORMALCY. I guess it must correct then.............

lol re: normalcy ... there are some words (actually the way people pronounce them) that is like fingers on a chalkboard to me. From previous posts I know normalcy is one that does it to other people.

[Steely Dan]

TAN: INN: Dindaeng red-shirt protesters announce independence from main gathering and said it will hunt down members of the press

BBC & CNN are you getting this? Amnesty International, what have you got to say now?

[SomTumTiger]

The remaining mob of terrorists need to be dealt with swiftly and decisively. Death toll will rise, but these are not the "peaceful protestors". These are the hard core "kill em all, let God sort em out" crazies. Force is necessary.

[elcent]

tulsathit: RT @js100radio: Explosion heard in front of TV3 station.

Wed May 19 2010 14:46:31 GMT+0700 (SE Asia Standard Time)

tulsathit: RT @cqdemal: takling to a friend abroad - his mom lives around siam center and she says that there is a fire at siam soi 5

[Herm]

Din Daeng Red-shirts to Act on Their Own

UPDATE : 19 May 2010

Red-shirt protesters in Din Daeng area, who were not happy with the key leaders' decision to call off the red-shirt rally, have declared themselves independent from the main red-shirt movement.

They say they'll now act on their own and have threatened to hunt down members of the press.

http://www.thailandoutlook.tv/tan/ViewData...?DataID=1029522

Any evolving splinter groups have to be considered terrorists and the army should get a shoot to kill order and use heavier weapons to execute them quickly now!

EXECUTE THE ORDERS, not execute the splinter group members....

Unless they attack when faced with authorities trying to stop them.

They attack, and it's their look out to survive the counter attack.

Let's pray that most can think this through and call it a day.

did you say "think this through" ???

rest asured that among those are ronin's and all the criminals that joined the rally as opportunists - most will know that they will be identified and can expect very long jail sentences or an injection since they all have priors - mug shots - fingerprints on record - they will not give up and therefor they need to be executed and quickly so because they will cause extraordinary damage to the city

Curfew has been announced so the army can finish what they started

Edited May 19, 2010 by Herm

[SomTumTiger]

TAN: INN: Dindaeng red-shirt protesters announce independence from main gathering and said it will hunt down members of the press

BBC & CNN are you getting this? Amnesty International, what have you got to say now?

Exactly

[yoshiwara]

It had to happen sooner or later. Now I hope for two things: Firstly minimal casulties on both sides. And secondly for Abhisit to to go through with his roadmap inclusive early election plans instead of abusing a successful crackdown to suppress the opposition. What we need is real reconciliation. Without concessions to all the moderate red supporters in the provinces, i fear, it won't take long before more of them are radicalized.

You're nicer than I. I can see Abhisit going through with his 'roadmap' ....but he should not feel compelled to go ahead with early elections. The Reds had that option - wide open - but shunted it rudely. Early elections have not been on the negotiating table for a week. Thaksin and the Reds gambled and lost. Abhisit should go ahead and have elections at the end of 2011. And all expenses for dealing with the rallies/riots should be borne by T, and members of his friends and family who sponsored it.

Do you honestly think this is the end? The majority of Thais wanted an election but they are poor so I suppose they don't matter. Give it a month to settle down then their will be an insurgency with bombs going off in Bangkok and the final nail in the Thai tourist industry. That will give Abhisit an excuse to do what his puppet masters have always intended and cancel any election. Abhisit knows he and his cronies will be arrested and charged with the mass murder of unarmed protesters, when he is inevitably voted out of office.

There is considerably more support for the UDD now, than before the brutal crackdown, Abhisit will not hold an election he knows he can't possibly win.

I have been watching news reports from around the world, unlike the government propaganda the Thais get see and from all reporters there is no doubt that they consider the Thai government to be the ones over the top.

Ask yourself this question, all this carnage could have been avoided if Abhisit had called an election? If he thought he could have won he definitely would have done it, if as is certain he would have been ousted then... well that answers the question. Better to murder your own people than get voted out of office I suppose.

In your dreams.

Now the red apologists get very angry.

Why?

Thaksin is the classic overreacher.

And as for elections, they are coming.

You know that.

However, keep peddling the red civilian line.

Keep burning for a few more hours and put more Bangkok workers out of work.

The UDD is finished.

Only your stale apologetics to entertain us.

[Jingthing]

Normalcy? Nothing to correct. Look, mate, American English usage is the most common international standard. Next ...

[KMUTT]

Central World is on fire.

Protesters smashed glass panes around the department stores while others threw fire bombs into the first floor of the building.

At Sala Daeng, the protesters destroyed telephone booths, advertisement signs, traffic signs, and others.

Edited May 19, 2010 by KMUTT

[khunya]

Red-leader Jatuporn Promphan to Turn Himself In

UPDATE : 19 May 2010

Reports indicate that key leader of the red-shirt movement Jatuporn Promphan is expected to turn himself in at the National Police Office.

Key Pheu Thai Party MPs will act as witnesses to ensure the safety of the red-shirt leader.

You better do it, son. That's how many... 1 out of 6 or 7 current leaders???. I don't recall.

Now what??? Veera and Weng too? So the tanks and the military have won. For sure it didn't win heart and mind of the rural poor and red shirts supporters. Is Abphisit now cancelling his promise of new election in November? Because he has now "Phuyai" in the army backing him???

Abphisit better make it clear to the general public asap if he still holding on his promise. It won't take long before the Reds find new leaders and regroup again in months and a year ahead. Al least the Reds have shown what they can inflict the government. They have the rest of the country behind them.

[elcent]

RT @veen_NT: The Emporium and most of stores in Bangkok inner city have been closed.