Thai Army Officer Insists To Court Japanese Reporter Killed By 'Blackshirts'

[rixalex]

can you imagine the city of London being invaded by thousands of protestors blocking off main routes and brandishing weapons and grenades and threatening to burn down the city if their demands are not met (the demand is not important), it would not be the police that would be dealing with such an event it would be the army and they would receive the same instructions/orders the Thai army received in 2010 - people would die

This sort of civil disturbance would not be tolerated in any modern demacracy

I agree although i think in those sorts of places you mention, like London, they have specially trained units within the police, such as the riot squad, that would most likely get the job of dealing with such a situation. But the idea, proffered by some, that in the West the police would continue using water hoses, rubber bullets and gas, against rioters that were armed with AK47s, rocket launchers and grenades, is a nonsense. You only have to see how heavily armed the police go in to situations where there is simply a threat of terrorist activity, to know that they don't mess about with the softly softly approach if their lives are on the line. And why should they? Just as why should the Thai soldiers in 2010 have had to put their lives on the line by using non-lethal weapons against people who were using lethal ones?

[longway]

Yes, the red shirts were armed. We made a few wrong turns one day in bangkok and ended up at a red shirt blockade early in the proceedings. They came screaming and yelling at us that they were in control and motioning that we should GTF out of there. (a) I am not colour blind, I can discern the colour red. ( I know an AK47 when I see one, and that is what I saw being brandished around.

Bottom line is that the red shirt apologists are just as nefarious and dishonest as their political masters, and one tires or reading their BS. The red shirts were clearly armed early in the protest, based on my personal observation. Perhaps they shouldered arms afterwards and let the black shirts do the dirty work, I didn't hang around BKK much longer and hightailed it out of town, but it is a direct lie that the red shirts were unarmed.

I have often wished that I had whipped my camera out and displayed the courage of an idiot and snapped a Kodak moment. But in retrospect, I think my lack of quick thinking bravado was the right level of inaction.

I walked up with the red shirts on the day that they set up barricades at the Silom intersection. I was with them all the way from Rajadamri BTS to the intersection. What I saw was the police, in a very organised way, letting the reds take over that road. When they got to the intersection one of the police officers in charge got onto the red shirt truck and made a speech, with alot of loud cheering taking place as he spoke. He very clearly said ' Dtamruat bpen brachacon duay' , when speaking to the red shirts, pretty much confirming the police are also red shirts. It was quite astonishing in my view to see and hear that.

When the last of the police vans left from Lumpini park you could see several red shirts slapping the departing police on the back as they got into their vans. As the police departed, the army came in to take their place to prevent the protestetors entering Silom road, it was all quite carefully planned from my perspective.

From what i saw the police had very clearly been bought.

Thank you both for relating your personal experiences surrounding the events that led to the Japanese reporter's death.

It's always beneficial to hear of how the events impacted on individuals directly as well as hearing of those real world experiences increases the knowledge base of all of those who are interested in situation.

I did want to go into it in more detail with NN, some points he made were not cogent to what I stated, but I think moderators are fed up with the side track. So will have to leave it for now.

Aside from what I described, there was the farce with Arisman escaping in full view of TV cameras from SC Park hotel from the police.

I lived inside the barricaded area so I knowt on the roads surrounding Ratchaprasong there were 2 checkpoints for vehicles, one a police check point and then a red shirt check point, . It was the RS check point that decided who passed in and who didnt, the police didnt care at all and just lounged about.

All foot traffic into the area was controlled by RS gaurds with no police nearby.

And of course there were the constant references to tomato police on the RS stage and when the seige was ended the RS leaders were detained in very comfortable surroundings with family and friends visiting them.

While the conclusion that the police were actively colluding with the RS to some degree could be wrong, having the impression that they did is very understandable.

[longway]

Yes, the red shirts were armed. We made a few wrong turns one day in bangkok and ended up at a red shirt blockade early in the proceedings. They came screaming and yelling at us that they were in control and motioning that we should GTF out of there. (a) I am not colour blind, I can discern the colour red. ( I know an AK47 when I see one, and that is what I saw being brandished around.

Bottom line is that the red shirt apologists are just as nefarious and dishonest as their political masters, and one tires or reading their BS. The red shirts were clearly armed early in the protest, based on my personal observation. Perhaps they shouldered arms afterwards and let the black shirts do the dirty work, I didn't hang around BKK much longer and hightailed it out of town, but it is a direct lie that the red shirts were unarmed.

I have often wished that I had whipped my camera out and displayed the courage of an idiot and snapped a Kodak moment. But in retrospect, I think my lack of quick thinking bravado was the right level of inaction.

Thank you both for relating your personal experiences surrounding the events that led to the Japanese reporter's death.

It's always beneficial to hear of how the events impacted on individuals directly as well as hearing of those real world experiences increases the knowledge base of all of those who are interested in situation.

I did want to go into it in more detail with NN, some points he made were not cogent to what I stated, but I think moderators are fed up with the side track. So will have to leave it for now.

Aside from what I described, there was the farce with Arisman escaping in full view of TV cameras from SC Park hotel from the police.

I lived inside the barricaded area so I knowt on the roads surrounding Ratchaprasong there were 2 checkpoints for vehicles, one a police check point and then a red shirt check point, . It was the RS check point that decided who passed in and who didnt, the police didnt care at all and just lounged about.

All foot traffic into the area was controlled by RS gaurds with no police nearby.

And of course there were the constant references to tomato police on the RS stage and when the seige was ended the RS leaders were detained in very comfortable surroundings with family and friends visiting them.

While the conclusion that the police were actively colluding with the RS to some degree could be wrong, having the impression that they did is very understandable.

If you want you can take it up with me. But i have more than a hundred images of the combined police/military force that day at Rajadamri.

There were more than just two RS checkpoints at Rajaprasong, as far as i can remember there were about eight such check points.

I have also images of the room Arisaman escaped from, in which you can see that the police used force, such as stun grenades, etc. I have also images of police officers attacked by Red Shirts from that day.

In addition to the references of tomato police there were even more references of melon soldiers on the stage.

The location of the detention was hardly a police decision, but a CRES decision. You are forgetting that this was a emergency decree was declared. I would suggest to read the terms of it.

While it is true that police to some degree colluded with the Red Shirts, military did as well - to a lesser degree. But to state that the police did nothing is factually wrong.

This whole 2010 mess (and all that occurred in the years leading up to it) is a lot more complex than just a few protesters taking over the center of town. Don't forget that many of the leaders have been (and are again) elected representatives, even former and present ministers - which elevates this whole thing into what could be seen as close to a civil war scenario, especially when you look at the initiator of this mess - a military coup in 2006 against a caretaker government which has dissolved parliament in preparation to national elections.

I am aware that many here prefer to disregard the military coup, but this is the most elementary issue that has to be taken into account. And - this is far from over.

Yes there were more than 2 checkpoints obviously. What I meant was at each of the check point locations for vehicular there was the RS checkpoint and the police check point, well on the ones I usually used there was, for example coming towards CW from Chid lom.

You are right that the squadron directly in front of the reds as they advanced up rajadamri was a combined force of police and army. I did post a reply, but the moderator deleted it. If we carry on any longer I am sure this will get deleted too. I have plenty of photos too, I checked back and you are right on this one.

So elements in the army and police both colluded with the reds, it makes sense that elements in both would so and rajadamri could not have been taken and held without collusion IMO. I think this is an important and rarely emphasised point that helps makes sense of some of the decisions taken and the limitations that the authorities worked under.

I don't want to be an apologist for the army firing 100,000 rounds of live ammunition into mainly poorly armed or unarmed civilians, but as you says a very complex scenario that IMO goes well beyond simple one side good other side bad explanation.

Thanks you for pointing out errors in my observations and explaining some of what I saw from a different perspective.

Edited June 26, 2013 by longway

[nicknostitz]

Thanks you for pointing out errors in my observations and explaining some of what I saw from a different perspective.

Thank you as well.