Families of 2010 crackdown victims push their own amnesty bill

[webfact]

Families of 2010 Crackdown Victims Push Their Own Amnesty Bill

BANGKOK: -- Some relatives of civilians caught in the deadly crossfire during 2010 military operation against the Redshirt protests have come up with their own version of amnesty bill and are urging the government to accept it.

The group, which calls itself "Families of April-May 2010 Martyrs", was led by Ms. Payao Akhard, the mother of Ms. Kamonkate Akhard ("Nurse Kate"), the volunteer medic shot dead inside a temple on 19 May 2010 and Mr. Pansak Srithep, father of Mr. Samapan Srithep ("Litter Brother Cher"), the schoolboy killed on a pavement in central Bangkok on 16 May 2010.

Mr. Pansak and Ms. Payao, accompanied by their supporters, today met with Vice PM Pongthep Thepkanchana at the Government House to submit an open letter addressed to PM Yingluck Shinawatra.

The urges Ms. Yingluck to accept the draft of their amnesty bill, which calls for immediate amnesty to all protesters involved in any political incident from 19 September 2006 to May 2010, regardless of any ′colour′, who are still facing criminal charges.

However, the bill would exempt both of the leaders of the Redshirts protests and those responsible for deaths of protesters in 2010 political crisis which spanned from March to May that year and saw tens of thousands of Redshirts occuping parts of central Bangkok for months, before the military operation ended their protests on 19 May.

The operation was authorized by Former PM Abhisit Vejjajeeva and Former Vice PM Suthep Thaugsuban. Both individuals are facing charges of murders and attempted murders for their roles in the crackdown.

This feature is contrary to the drafts written by a number of top politicians in the ruling Pheu Thai Party and the Redshirts movements which would give amnesty to all sides, including the government and the military commanders involved in the 2010 crackdown as well as the Redshirts leaders.

Full story: http://www.khaosod.co.th/en/view_newsonline.php?newsid=TVRNM016azJOVGsxTmc9PQ==

-- KHAOSOD English 2013-07-16

[nachiket]

The operation was authorized by Former PM Abhisit Vejjajeeva and Former Vice PM Suthep Thaugsuban. Both individuals are facing charges of murders and attempted murders for their roles in the crackdown.

Power hunger at both end.

[gl555]

Hey if it the common red street thugs have to have amnesty for reconciliation to take place, I'm all for it. Since this bill exempts the leaders, which I think should exempt the Dubai scum, go for it!

[Tatsujin]

LMAO @ "martyrs"

[LuckyLew]

Why not just say "out families members did the crime .... now we feel they should not do the crime"

They are where they are due to their own doing ... tough luck ... but that is life

I am against all amnesty bills

[reiltin]

Action and consequence crime and punishment help societies evolve,Thailands in a devolution loop.

[rametindallas]

Since this isn't going to happen anyway, why not craft a bill that pardons everyone but Abhisit, Suthep, and the PAD leaders? This government is only interested in pardoning one person and everyone else is a 'smokescreen'. Is there anyone, among those paying attention, who does not know this? Do these families realize that this government only pretends to care about their concerns? I hope they do and are just using this meeting to pressure the government.

[philw]

LMAO @ "martyrs"

"The group, which calls itself "Families of April-May 2010 Martyrs", was led by Ms. Payao Akhard, the mother of Ms. Kamonkate Akhard ("Nurse Kate"), the volunteer medic shot dead inside a temple on 19 May 2010 and Mr. Pansak Srithep, father of Mr. Samapan Srithep ("Litter Brother Cher"), the schoolboy killed on a pavement in central Bangkok on 16 May 2010."

Try reading it.

"Nurse shot dead in temple by army while helping casualties..............." would be a fair description of what happened.

Quite reasonable for her Mother to seek an explanation, do you not think ??

[Neilly]

Mr. Pansak said the ordinary protesters from both Redshirts and Yellowshirts camps deserved amnesty because the political protests were results of conflicting opinion which are normal actions in democratic system, whereas the excessive force by the military operation resulted in deaths and injuries, and the security force should be held accountable for such actions.

<deleted>...the Red Shirts were paid to be there and it had diddly to do with the 'democratic system'

[Issangeorge]

This all happened 3 years ago. Why are the charges not dropped or gone through the court system already. Then the King could pardon the deserving and the true criminals could serve their time. If they feel Abhasit is guilty put him on trial and get it over with, the same with the Red Shirt leaders.

Sent from my i-mobile IQ 6 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[rubl]

I may have lost count, but I think that's draft number seven. Now waiting for the families of the killed army personel, the families of the killed police officers and the family of the lone Thai lady who just wanted to take the BTS to produce their own 'amnesty bill'.

It's almost as if it's one of those 'universal rights', the right to propose your own bill.

[rametindallas]

LMAO @ "martyrs"

"The group, which calls itself "Families of April-May 2010 Martyrs", was led by Ms. Payao Akhard, the mother of Ms. Kamonkate Akhard ("Nurse Kate"), the volunteer medic shot dead inside a temple on 19 May 2010 and Mr. Pansak Srithep, father of Mr. Samapan Srithep ("Litter Brother Cher"), the schoolboy killed on a pavement in central Bangkok on 16 May 2010."

Try reading it.

"Nurse shot dead in temple by army while helping casualties..............." would be a fair description of what happened.

Quite reasonable for her Mother to seek an explanation, do you not think ??

No. It is not reasonable because she is not seeking an explanation; she is seeking amnesty.

Martyr:

1: a person who voluntarily suffers death as the penalty of witnessing to and refusing to renounce a religion

2: a person who sacrifices something of great value and especially life itself for the sake of principle

I didn't read where anyone 'voluntarily' died for Dr. Thaksin's whitewash and restoration of his wealth and power.

Did the nurse or schoolboy 'sacrifice' themselves for Dr. Thaksin?

I believe that neither the 'Families of April-May 2010 Martyrs' nor you have any clue what the word 'martyr' means.

Now, if you/they want to claim they are victims of an overly harsh government reaction to the protests/occupation, you/they might have credible argument.

Still, I see April-May 2010 protest as an attempted 'soft coup' by a Red Shirt mob hired by Dr. Thaksin so he could return to power. I think the government should have shut the whole protest down after the attack on soldiers at Kok Wua intersection that resulted in the murder of Colonel Romklao. Dr. Thaksin should be charged with treason and for murder of all that died during his failed coup.

[whybother]

LMAO @ "martyrs"

"The group, which calls itself "Families of April-May 2010 Martyrs", was led by Ms. Payao Akhard, the mother of Ms. Kamonkate Akhard ("Nurse Kate"), the volunteer medic shot dead inside a temple on 19 May 2010 and Mr. Pansak Srithep, father of Mr. Samapan Srithep ("Litter Brother Cher"), the schoolboy killed on a pavement in central Bangkok on 16 May 2010."

Try reading it.

"Nurse shot dead in temple by army while helping casualties..............." would be a fair description of what happened.

Quite reasonable for her Mother to seek an explanation, do you not think ??

What does "seeking an explanation" have to do with the term "martyr"?

Proof that the nurse was shot dead by the army would be useful too.

[drdoom6996]

LMAO @ "martyrs"

+1

[GeorgeO]

LMAO @ "martyrs"

"The group, which calls itself "Families of April-May 2010 Martyrs", was led by Ms. Payao Akhard, the mother of Ms. Kamonkate Akhard ("Nurse Kate"), the volunteer medic shot dead inside a temple on 19 May 2010 and Mr. Pansak Srithep, father of Mr. Samapan Srithep ("Litter Brother Cher"), the schoolboy killed on a pavement in central Bangkok on 16 May 2010."

Try reading it.

"Nurse shot dead in temple by army while helping casualties..............." would be a fair description of what happened.

Quite reasonable for her Mother to seek an explanation, do you not think ??

It's still a moot point as to which group were brandishing military firearms. The fact that the weapons were the same as those used by the Army in no way provides proof that they were fired by soldiers.

Numerous caches of weapons were removed from Army barracks prior to the troubles of 2010, quite possibly by those with sympathies for the Red Shirt movement, and indeed, a large haul of these weapons was recently recovered.

So the suggestion that "shot dead by the Army" is a 'fair description' would appear to ignore all available alternatives.

[tomross46]

The operation was authorized by Former PM Abhisit Vejjajeeva and Former Vice PM Suthep Thaugsuban. Both individuals are facing charges of murders and attempted murders for their roles in the crackdown.

So if you use the same logic, if Abhisit and Suthep are guilty, than Thaksin is guilty for the murder and attempted murder of 2400 people during the drug crackdown, he authorized. If you want one, then you must accept the other.

If you do not want to accept the guilt of Thaksin for the drug crackdown, and still punish Abhisit and Suthep, you do not have a democracy, you have a dictatorship.

Edited July 17, 2013 by tomross46

[NoshowJones]

Why not just say "out families members did the crime .... now we feel they should not do the crime"

They are where they are due to their own doing ... tough luck ... but that is life

I am against all amnesty bills

You start rioting, and do damage to innocent people, you deserve all you get. So no amnesty.

[Tatsujin]

LMAO @ "martyrs"

"The group, which calls itself "Families of April-May 2010 Martyrs", was led by Ms. Payao Akhard, the mother of Ms. Kamonkate Akhard ("Nurse Kate"), the volunteer medic shot dead inside a temple on 19 May 2010 and Mr. Pansak Srithep, father of Mr. Samapan Srithep ("Litter Brother Cher"), the schoolboy killed on a pavement in central Bangkok on 16 May 2010."

Try reading it.

"Nurse shot dead in temple by army while helping casualties..............." would be a fair description of what happened.

Quite reasonable for her Mother to seek an explanation, do you not think ??

They were not "martyrs", the definition of the word (as has been explained previously) is completely wrong for their situation.

As for seeking an explanation, I couldn't agree more. I'd suggest they go straight to the horse's mouth and talk to our favorite exiled Dictator, Mr Thaksin, as he was the one that instigated the rioting and paid for it.

[Thait Spot]

LMAO @ "martyrs"

 

"The group, which calls itself "Families of April-May 2010 Martyrs", was led by Ms. Payao Akhard, the mother of Ms. Kamonkate Akhard ("Nurse Kate"), the volunteer medic shot dead inside a temple on 19 May 2010 and Mr. Pansak Srithep, father of Mr. Samapan Srithep ("Litter Brother Cher"), the schoolboy killed on a pavement in central Bangkok on 16 May 2010."

 

Try reading it.

 

"Nurse shot dead in temple by army while helping casualties..............."  would be a fair description of what happened.

 

Quite reasonable for her Mother to seek an explanation, do you not think ??

Dying for Thaksin's billions?

Lemmings

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[Thait Spot]

LMAO @ "martyrs"

 

"The group, which calls itself "Families of April-May 2010 Martyrs", was led by Ms. Payao Akhard, the mother of Ms. Kamonkate Akhard ("Nurse Kate"), the volunteer medic shot dead inside a temple on 19 May 2010 and Mr. Pansak Srithep, father of Mr. Samapan Srithep ("Litter Brother Cher"), the schoolboy killed on a pavement in central Bangkok on 16 May 2010."

 

Try reading it.

 

"Nurse shot dead in temple by army while helping casualties..............."  would be a fair description of what happened.

 

Quite reasonable for her Mother to seek an explanation, do you not think ??

Dying for Thaksin's billions?

Lemmings

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[hellodolly]

Well now then the article says

"However, the bill would exempt both of the leaders of the Redshirts protests and those responsible for deaths of protesters in 2010 political crisis which spanned from March to May that year and saw tens of thousands of Redshirts occuping parts of central Bangkok for months, before the military operation ended their protests on 19 May."

Now the way I read it is if some one (Thaksin) pays thousands of people to illegally seize public property build barricades around it shoot rockets at innocent civilians invade hospitals incite them to burn Bangkok down and refuse to move even after they got what they wanted. Vice PM Suthep Thaugsuban to turn himself in.

That man is the one responsible for all the deaths that followed his leadership.

Abhist was doing his job the same as the army. You know the job the one the Thaksin led police refused to do. They were protecting Thailand from an attempted coup by a wanna be dictator.

If these so called caring citizens were really interested in righting the deaths of their relatives they would be in Dubai where the person responsible is not in Bangkok where their relatives made foolish choices.

[Robby nz]

"Nurse shot dead in temple by army while helping casualties..............." would be a fair description of what happened.

If you want truth you will have to change that to :

"Nurse shot dead in temple by men in black while helping casualties..............." would be a fair description happened.

Try again to prove me wrong.

[otherstuff1957]

Thaksin's next Skype instructions will be to tell his minions to nod sympathetically when they get this amnesty bill and promptly put it in the round file. The sole purpose of this talk of amnesty is to get Thaksin back in Thailand, not to see justice done or to promote reconciliation.

The "Families of April-May 2010 Martyrs" group just doesn't realise that they have already served their purpose and it's time for them to go home and be quiet until call upon again by their paymaster.