Karen army blocks borders after Chalerm's taunts

THE NATION

BANGKOK: -- The Foreign Ministry is negotiating with Myanmar's Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA) after the group closed 12 border checkpoints from Tak to Kanchanaburi in retaliation of the government including a Karen leader's name on the list of drug offenders, ministry's spokesman Thanee Thongphakdee said yesterday that at the local level, the closure has affected the operation of two Thai-owned ore-mining companies after the transport of their products was stopped.

Though small-sized vendors in Tak's Mae Sot area continued trading, Tak customs chief Phongthep Buasap said.

According to military intelligence sources, DKBA commander Lt-General Na Kha Muay has mobilised Karen troops and told them to be ready for combat along the border, reportedly to prepare for a "military retaliation" against Thailand for blacklisting him. Deputy Prime Minister Chalerm Yoobamrung had earlier made provocative remarks against the Karen general.

The closure of the border has prompted the taskforce under the 4th Infantry Regiment based in Mae Sot to go on alert in both Mae Sot and Phop Phra districts.

DKBA has said that it would not guarantee the safety of Thai nationals crossing the border, Chaiyuth Senitantikul, an adviser to Tak's Industrial Council, said, adding that the issue should not escalate any further or it would adversely affect local people.

Banphot Kokiatcharoen, chief of the Tak Chamber of Commerce, is calling on the government to set up a standard procedure in case such conflicts occur in the future, adding that this sort of problem had complicated matters further. He did not elaborate.

Tak Governor Suriya Prasartbundit, meanwhile, called on Thai nationals to exercise extra caution when visiting Myanmar.

Na Kha Muay is demanding that his name be withdrawn from the blacklist, and was especially enraged after Chalerm issued a taunting statement urging him to surrender.

-- The Nation 2012-05-04

Maybe Chalerm will think twice before opening his back mouth again! (errm,... "Chalerm" & "think" are probably not words that should occur within the same sentence!)

Question for our members: Are the border checkpoints at Tak and Mae Sot closed or not?

Anyone?

Chalerm and his sons do not accept competition, that's the only reason of the conflict. If Chalerm applied the same high standards to his own family they were all in Klong Prem by now.

Question for our members: Are the border checkpoints at Tak and Mae Sot closed or not?

Anyone?

This is not good news...I can't seem to find anything, yes or no...

Question for our members: Are the border checkpoints at Tak and Mae Sot closed or not?

Anyone?

This is not good news...I can't seem to find anything, yes or no...

They may be able to shut down the smaller crossings along the border but Mae Sai is open and doing business as usual. No sign of increased security...

Edited May 4, 201214 yr by TeddyFlyfisherDavis

Chalerm and his sons do not accept competition, that's the only reason of the conflict. If Chalerm applied the same high standards to his own family they were all in Klong Prem by now.

Is this blacklist of drug smugglers available online? Are there any Thais on it or are they all pesky foreigners intent on corrupting Thai youth?

Well done Chalerm with your usual high standard of diplomacy. Technique, "put foot in mouth first" and wait for adverse reaction.

From Tak to Kanchanaburi in practise I believe only means the border at Mae Sod, which is in the hands of the Burmese government. I believe there are numerous onofficial border crossings, but these are for locals only.

For now I would be cautious when using the border crossing, as in the past fighting at the border has occured with shots fired towards the Thai side. Also be prepared to use another border crossing instead of Mae Sod.

Foreigners appear not to be targeted.

Karen Army.....heads up....get it, heads up, Karen long knecked tribe...............oh please yourselves

Karen Army.....heads up....get it, heads up, Karen long knecked tribe...............oh please yourselves

It's a tough audience but you will get one laugh!

I hope it's sorted by 15th May for my visa run!

I really don't want to add another 6 hours to my journey to Mae Sai again

Maybe Chalerm will think twice before opening his back mouth again! (errm,... "Chalerm" & "think" are probably not words that should occur within the same sentence!)

He must have overdosed his "ear-medicine.

Maybe Chalerm will think twice before opening his back mouth again! (errm,... "Chalerm" & "think" are probably not words that should occur within the same sentence!)

If he just shuts his mouth, he doesn't need to to that other thing you recommend.....

Maybe Chalerm will think twice before opening his back mouth again! (errm,... "Chalerm" & "think" are probably not words that should occur within the same sentence!)

I've got a few for you.

Chalerm thinks he's above the law, Chalerm thinks drinking in parliament is acceptable, Chalerm thinks it's OK to execute alleged drug smugglers in 15 days but also thinks its OK for family members to execute police officers. Chalerm thinks pink is an appropriate manly colour to paint his Bentley.

Chalerm does plenty of thinking, unfortunately it's all done for the benefit of himself, his sons, and his despot master, oh and Johnny Walker.

Karen Army.....heads up....get it, heads up, Karen long knecked tribe...............oh please yourselves

One of the dangers of being flippant about this situation is that you open yourself up fro all sorts of smart replies.. personally I think you have stuck your neck out here

Karen Army.....heads up....get it, heads up, Karen long knecked tribe...............oh please yourselves

One of the dangers of being flippant about this situation is that you open yourself up fro all sorts of smart replies.. personally I think you have stuck your neck out here

Quite true monty1412, you just ran rings around his comments.

Chalerm is only allowed in the government to make Yingluck look good. Once she goes, so will he.

Anyway - is Mae Sot open for a visa run or NOT?

Chalerm is only allowed in the government to make Yingluck look good. Once she goes, so will he.

Unfortunately that is far from true. This pair of ani go back yonks. In fact Chalerm's first act when he became a Minister was to give Thaksin a cable-TV licence back when he was still losing money hand over fist.

In fact I sometimes wonder if the relationship is platonic or not.

Karen Army.....heads up....get it, heads up, Karen long knecked tribe...............oh please yourselves

I'm afraid this post is in bad taste. Long neck villagers are not Karen but Paduan. The Karen have steadfastly defended their people against the worse excesses of the Burmese army. I know some Karen soldiers and they are honourable people, unlike some Thai cabinet ministers. Chalerm is an idiot, I'm afraid.

It's not in my (neck) of the woods, (backbone) is what we need here not chalerm.

Every time this man opens his mouth I think wow he could not get any more thick headed than this. Time and time again he proves me wrong. Give the man credit, he never fails to sink lower into his pit of crass stupidity.

Edited May 4, 201214 yr by Bluespunk

Karen Army.....heads up....get it, heads up, Karen long knecked tribe...............oh please yourselves

One of the dangers of being flippant about this situation is that you open yourself up fro all sorts of smart replies.. personally I think you have stuck your neck out here

Quite true monty1412, you just ran rings around his comments.

I showed these posts to my Karen friend and she threw up, I think, but I'll know for sure in a couple of hours.

While the focus so far has been on the odious Chalerm, it is important that the spotlight does not shift entirely from the DKBA and its multi-named leader, better known as Mr Beard.

The DKBA has operated since 1994 as an arm of the Myanmar government fighting the largely-Buddhist KNLA (Karen National Liberation Army) and running gem, timber and drug smuggling operations into Thailand.

The hold-out element of the DKBA has now fallen out with the Myanmar government (most of it accepted a deal to become "border guards" in 2010). Bangkok, in its desire to mend fences with Yangon, therefore sees Mr Beard's organisation as an easy sacrifice in its efforts to improve relations. Losing out, at least temporarily, on the lucrative cross-border trade of illegal products, is obviously a price worth paying over the long run.

Chalerm is only allowed in the government to make Yingluck look good. Once she goes, so will he.

Unfortunately that is far from true. This pair of ani go back yonks. In fact Chalerm's first act when he became a Minister was to give Thaksin a cable-TV licence back when he was still losing money hand over fist.

In fact I sometimes wonder if the relationship is platonic or not.

Fair dinkum!

Silly Karen army morons... they just don't understand Thainess. Duh.

While the focus so far has been on the odious Chalerm, it is important that the spotlight does not shift entirely from the DKBA and its multi-named leader, better known as Mr Beard.

The DKBA has operated since 1994 as an arm of the Myanmar government fighting the largely-Buddhist KNLA (Karen National Liberation Army) and running gem, timber and drug smuggling operations into Thailand.

The hold-out element of the DKBA has now fallen out with the Myanmar government (most of it accepted a deal to become "border guards" in 2010). Bangkok, in its desire to mend fences with Yangon, therefore sees Mr Beard's organisation as an easy sacrifice in its efforts to improve relations. Losing out, at least temporarily, on the lucrative cross-border trade of illegal products, is obviously a price worth paying over the long run.

Thanks for this informative post and for keeping the eye on the ball.

While the focus so far has been on the odious Chalerm, it is important that the spotlight does not shift entirely from the DKBA and its multi-named leader, better known as Mr Beard.

The DKBA has operated since 1994 as an arm of the Myanmar government fighting the largely-Buddhist KNLA (Karen National Liberation Army) and running gem, timber and drug smuggling operations into Thailand.

The hold-out element of the DKBA has now fallen out with the Myanmar government (most of it accepted a deal to become "border guards" in 2010). Bangkok, in its desire to mend fences with Yangon, therefore sees Mr Beard's organisation as an easy sacrifice in its efforts to improve relations. Losing out, at least temporarily, on the lucrative cross-border trade of illegal products, is obviously a price worth paying over the long run.

Thanks for this informative post and for keeping the eye on the ball.

In addition Mr Beard's gang has few options in terms of a market for their drugs, gems and timber (what little is left) other than Thailand. Having fallen out with Yangon, and while technically re-allied with the KNLA (16 years of infighting is likely to make that relationship tenuous at best), the rump DKBA is hardly in a strong position.

Can anyone point me to the blacklist of drug smugglers (the one that so upset the sensitive Mr Beard) published by the Thai government, should make for interesting reading?

I was at Mae Sot on Friday 4th May at 11.45am. The border was open and there would have been 200-300 Myanmar people lined up trying to get into Thailand. There was no sign of the thai Army.