Thai Army chief Prayuth refuses to rule out a military coup

[webfact]

ARMY
Prayuth refuses to rule out a military coup
Panya Thiosangwan
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- For the first time since the anti-government protests began almost two months ago, the Army chief has refused to rule out the possibility of a military coup.

Asked if there was any possibility of one, General Prayuth Chan-ocha retorted: "If there is a coup, will they listen? All these groups are Thai."

When asked again if he ruled out the possibility of a coup, Prayuth said, "That door is neither open or closed. Everything depends on the situation."

He added the military needed support so it could play an acceptable role and not be accused of resorting to old-fashioned tactics. "The Army is at a difficult crossroads," he said. "We cannot go left or right - we have shown a red light to both sides."

Prayuth said that while the government and the anti-government protesters both insisted on their different paths, the Army had to choose a straighter path to a peaceful solution. He told reporters that during a meeting with his personnel, he had made it clear that all evidence of their activities needed to be recorded, so that a scenario similar to that during the protests in 2010 didn't occur. This would ensure any future investigations were able to proceed with ease. "In my view, a group of people instigated violence, which has hurt Thailand's majority. The majority are intent on resolving the country's political problems but another group likes to use violence.

"They might think that without violence, the country's problems cannot be solved and they cannot succeed. I cannot be sure, but it appears their actions are similar to those used in 2010. I'm not sure if this group took part in the [anti-Abhisit Vejjajiva government] protest," he said, calling on those who were allegedly using violence to end it.

However, Prayuth added that violence had also occurred because some police officers had lost their tempers, resulting in some violent scenes.

Prayuth also said shots fired on Thursday from a building near the Bangkok Youth Centre (Thai-Japan), along with the violence at Ramkhamhaeng University earlier this month needed to be thoroughly investigated.

Asked about the military's part in the upcoming MP candidacy registration, Prayuth said according to the law, soldiers would only be able to protect the area chosen for the registration of candidates.

Prayuth then requested that protesters return home to pray and pay their respects to their parents during the New Year festival, so that the situation calmed down.


-- The Nation 2013-12-28

[roamer]

When asked again if he ruled out the possibility of a coup, Prayuth said, "That door is neither open or closed. Everything depends on the situation."

Democracy, don't you just love it.

[noikrit]

Well if the BIB can't (wont) control the place ..........

[Lingba]

Great!..A Coup!...this will really place a lot of confidence with the rest of the world.

[jaidam]

Reading yesterday in the other paper that the red elite would prefer a coup to letting Sutheps reform council prevail. And most educated souls prefer the idea of a coup to a NK style Shinawat dictatorship. It seems we have a solution. Real shame that Thaksin pushed the country again into such desperate state that a coup is neccessary, but it is what it is. A large measure of thanks to the army for being the sane heads in this mess. Education reforms and dismantling the Thaksin cult is the way forward. The red schools that only serve to propagate the cult of Thaksin must be closed immediately.

[MegaRanter]

These event of the last eight years eventually will open up the Thai society a lot better.

By the time all these issues and problems are resolved, the Thai way of doing things or the TIT mentality will not be the first line of the first paragraph.

[Curt1591]

Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock, …...

[SebD]

Great!..A Coup!...this will really place a lot of confidence with the rest of the world.

Should raise the value of my Sterling to the Baht, at least.

Every cloud.........

[Nowhereman60]

I wonder if it was a soldier who was killed instead of a policeman and the taxi driver was a solider what he wold be saying.

[Lingba]

Great!..A Coup!...this will really place a lot of confidence with the rest of the world.

Should raise the value of my Sterling to the Baht, at least.

Every cloud.........

thats about the best thing that will come out of it

[wellred]

So when's it gonna happen then? Election Day? Not before I hope as that's going to ruin my holiday.

[Bender]

the poor guy, in fact he is dreaming to make one more coup,

but he can not!

[KimoMax]

PDRC, Suthep, and the Caretaker Government all know they are at a Stale Mate without the Military inteivining.

[KimoMax]

Great!..A Coup!...this will really place a lot of confidence with the rest of the world.

Should raise the value of my Sterling to the Baht, at least.

Every cloud.........

thats about the best thing that will come out of it

After the 2006 Coup the Baht got stronger and eventually gained to where it was at the beginning of 2013.

Be Cautious askng the Currency Gods to help due to a Coup

[ezzra]

It wouldn't be Thailand if we didn't have a good ol' coup every now and than, the Thais thrives

on it, they like the action, the commotion, the comradery, perhaps a bit of looting here and there,

some fires and lots of singing, dancing and clapping, and of course, no need to got to work for

few weeks, all in lots of fun....and after all that mayhem and a new government/regime, someone will

stand up and declare AMANSTY, to reset, to forgive and forget....I just love Thailand....

[binjalin]

so... from the 'Military won't intervene - we are not good at government' to 'we don't rule it out'

and Thai's wonder why people say you can't take a Thai at their word?

Edited December 28, 2013 by binjalin

[SebD]

Great!..A Coup!...this will really place a lot of confidence with the rest of the world.

Should raise the value of my Sterling to the Baht, at least.

Every cloud.........

thats about the best thing that will come out of it

After the 2006 Coup the Baht got stronger and eventually gained to where it was at the beginning of 2013.

Be Cautious askng the Currency Gods to help due to a Coup

Errrm....The collapse of the banking system in the Western hemisphere won't have had anything to do with that then?!

It was all a result of the world currency markets' positive reaction to the Army Coup in Thailand.

Got it.....thanks for the advice (and the history lesson).

[ramrod711]

However, Prayuth added that violence had also occurred because some police officers had lost their tempers, resulting in some violent scenes.

If he has proof of this, Yingluck should be charged and beheaded. Oh, what the heck, behead her anyway, proof or no.

[Tatsujin]

Isn't an ISA in effect over large parts of the country? Does that not then mean that the Army can be called in to "protect" those areas on demand of the Govt without ANY explanation?

[francescoassisi]

Here you have concrete evidence of why Thailand is not and never has been a democracy. So long as the army consider an itself the final arbiter in all matters of state the country can never claim to be democratic.

[francescoassisi]

Tell the military "Don't Thai me!"

[oldthaihand99]

so... from the 'Military won't intervene - we are not good at government' to 'we don't rule it out'

and Thai's wonder why people say you can't take a Thai at their word?

It's called changing your mind. Only perfect beings may be exempt.

A coup is imminent.

[CMHomeboy78]

It wouldn't be Thailand if we didn't have a good ol' coup every now and than, the Thais thrives

on it, they like the action, the commotion, the comradery, perhaps a bit of looting here and there,

some fires and lots of singing, dancing and clapping, and of course, no need to got to work for

few weeks, all in lots of fun....and after all that mayhem and a new government/regime, someone will

stand up and declare AMANSTY, to reset, to forgive and forget....I just love Thailand....

Spot on, Bro...

and yeah, I love Thailand too.

[Roadman]

Khun General Prayuth knows he is 2nd or 3rd option, but is betting on not having to. IMHO he is hoping it will be in the courts legally where it should be that Thaksin will be stalemated. He will be hoping for just a clean up job.

[MengWan]

Great!..A Coup!...this will really place a lot of confidence with the rest of the world.

​

​Of course, the "rest of the world" is looking at this present mess with a lot of "confidence" !

​

​

​

[brit1984]

very scary story with some even scarier responses

some real psychopaths / comedians on this forum

[Alwyn]

Well if the BIB can't (wont) control the place ..........

When they do try to control things they just get accused of being red-shirt lackeys. I mentioned one time previously that military is for protecting the country from external threats and ploice for keeping peace internally - neither should have policitical affilations and neither should publicly view any political opions. Trouble seems to be that both military and police are sh*t scared that they might offend whoever might win (by that I mean which ever political party wins because the Thai people are on to a loser either way). They are both examples of the original "turncoats".

[Bignose]

If this is indeed an accurate interpretation of Prayuth's words then I am more impressed with the military leadership than the political. Even as a relative newcomer I can see that Thai democracy works differently to what we might be used to in the western world. There appear to be people at the very highest levels with their own (self serving) agenda's, they appear to use shallow populist policy to mask their main intent, the maintenance of the gap between the rich and the poor. The comments from Prayuth appear to me to be reasoned and genuine, with the political landscape that is Thailand they are the comments we "want to hear" from the military. If they cannot maintain some sort of control over extremism then who else do we turn to?

[anon467367354]

Maybe they want to hunker down for as long as they can and a coup will "save face".

Then Yingluck can blame the coup and not her administration. But then again, come the

corruption charges. She made her bed over the past couple of years if not mostly in foreign

countries, there may come a time when she has to sleep in them.

[bigbamboo]

In an ideal world nobody wants the military running a country but if the politicians (elected or otherwise) can't do it then what is the alternative.....anarchy?

At least in the interim it would give the country some breathing room and who knows maybe someone will emerge to give the country the leadership it so badly needs.

Maybe they could give the police a much needed kick up the backside too.