INTERNAL SECURITY ACT

Police will ask PM to lift ISA today

The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Police yesterday stopped blocking roads around Government House and Parliament and planned to have the prime minister lift enforcement of the Internal Security Act today.

The Centre for the Administration of Peace and Order (CAPO) ordered police to stop blocking the roads a day after the Pitak Siam group abruptly ended its anti-government rally at the Royal Plaza.

Police Commissioner-General Pol General Adul Saengsingkaew, who is the CAPO director, held a meeting of the CAPO at the Royal Thai Police headquarters and the CAPO decided to lift the road blockades, Police spokesman Pol Maj-General Piya Uthayo said.

Speaking at a press conference after the meeting, Piya said the CAPO resolved to rescind all of its four orders that prohibited people from entering certain government agencies, using vehicles and travelling on nine roads and carrying weapons out of residences.

He said police had lifted barriers on the nine roads where public access had been restricted by the orders. The roads around Government House and Parliament are now passable, he added.

Piya said police blocking the roads had been withdrawn. He said only Parliament was still under protection by Metropolitan Police forces and anti-riot police. The number of police inside Government House had been reduced to the normal level.

The CAPO also resolved to ask Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra to make an announcement lifting the ISA in Dusit, Phra Nakhon and Pomprab district, Piya said.

The lifting of the ISA would take immediate effect after the prime minister makes the announcement, the spokesman said.

He said the prime minister would also report the operations under the ISA enforcement to the House and Senate.

Piya said the National Police chief also sent back police officers mobilised from police stations nationwide to their stations yesterday.

The spokesman said the CAPA would cease its operation and police would turn to use its operations control centre instead.

Piya said the police chief had also ordered senior officers to compile lessons learnt from the latest operations to see which measures were successful and which operations had yet to be improved so that police could handle future protests more effectively.

The spokesman said operations at Makhawan-Rangsan Bridge and the Misakawan intersection were seen as being successful. The operation at Makhawan Bridge was under the command of Nongbua Lampu police chief Pol Maj-General Chob Siladung and the Misakawan operation by Chon Buri police chief Pol Maj-General Katcha Thatsart.

Piya said police would review speeches of speakers on the stage and messages posted on websites, Facebook pages and Twitter pages to see whether they were illegal.

Piya said police were considering whether to slap attempted-murder charges against the driver of a six-wheel truck who allegedly tried to run the vehicle through the police line at Makhawan Bridge.

After the CAPO announced its decision, policemen from the provinces cheered and many were seen making phone calls back to their families.

The road blocks on the main roads around Government House and Parliament were cleared at about 2.30pm.

-- The Nation 2012-11- 26

Great choice of an acronym. CAPO. From the Italian Mafia days... ORIGIN late 19th cent.: from Italian capo tasto, literally ‘head stop.’