Gen Prayuth concerned over security on Jan 13

[Lite Beer]

Gen Prayuth concerned over security on Jan 13

BANGKOK, 12 January 2014 (NNT) – Army Chief General Prayuth Chan-ocha has expressed his concern over security measures on January 13 when anti-government protesters will stage a mass rally.

General Prayuth made his remarks in light of a planned protest to paralyze Bangkok, saying security was his main concern as a huge number of protesters are expected to show up on Monday.

He said he did not want any violence to break out between Thais, adding that everyone was entitled to their opinions, but it should not be an issue that would likely tear this country apart.

The military earlier urged all sides not to draw any conclusions or make negative assumptions following the planned mass rally by the People's Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC) on January 13th.

General Prayuth also reassured the public that the army would abide by the rule of law as well as serving both the people and the nation. He therefore asked everyone concerned not to force the army to take sides and always put the nation’s interest first before making any decisions.

-- NNT 2014-01-12

[ratcatcher]

The most powerful man in the land has wisely done what someone in his situation should do and that is to make sure they are comfortably sitting on the fence with a full view of everything around them.

[Sunisalom]

Hopefully it becomes comfortably 'numb' - before many deaths!

-m.

[ggold]

The most powerful man in the land has wisely done what someone in his situation should do and that is to make sure they are comfortably sitting on the fence with a full view of everything around them.

It also seems to lay to rest (for the time being) the assumption by some posters that a coup is imminent and that somehow the dems will be handed power by the army!

As both Suthep and more recently Yingluck has tried to get the army on their side. I hope Gen Prayuth stays on the fence. I also hope neither sides causes violence in the hope this would bring out the army!

[55Jay]

The stage is set..

Yingluck and her government has been neutered by Suthep in record time with masterful, military-like precision.

Army General making cryptic statements the other day. Yingluck has been warned and held accountable before anything's even happened.

Yingluck's Police force on the ground will be unarmed.

Suthep says if it spirals into violence, which he knows it will and the plan actually counts on it, he will tell the masses to go home; knowing they will be replaced by the Army.

It's a coup without calling it a coup because that would be unacceptable to the international community. Public safety is totally acceptable. Brilliant.

[marcusd]

I feel the Army may be dragged in as the country is in a mess and there seems no way the two sides are going to compromise. This will lead to disorder at some stage and some nutter will ope th flood gates of violence as it is slowly starting to appear. (i refer to the deaths and now larger provincial protests as elections are coming.)

[seminomadic]

Anyone who feels the army is on the fence should contact me about real estate in Florida. The Army is on the protesters' side. It speaks more to the truth to say that the army is acting like it's on the fence.

In the event that a coup does happen, I just hope that there is plentiful video taken of the masses of [cough] Democrats cheering and celebrating news of the coup as incontrovertible evidence of what radical hypocrites they really are. For posterity's sake.

[poisonus]

If there is a coup, you can thank the UDD for it, because they are deliberately pushing red/white shirt protesters closer and closer to the tinderbox.

Question is, how many deaths will the army accept before they step in? 10, 20, 100?

[Ozymandias]

The stage is set..

Yingluck and her government has been neutered by Suthep in record time with masterful, military-like precision.

Army General making cryptic statements the other day. Yingluck has been warned and held accountable before anything's even happened.

Yingluck's Police force on the ground will be unarmed.

Suthep says if it spirals into violence, which he knows it will and the plan actually counts on it, he will tell the masses to go home; knowing they will be replaced by the Army.

It's a coup without calling it a coup because that would be unacceptable to the international community. Public safety is totally acceptable. Brilliant.

I normally dislike this kind of speculative post, but I think this one is pretty plausible. The issue that I do have with what you say here is not whether it's possible/likely but that your implication is that this is an 'endgame', when in fact it will more likely lead to an escalation of Thailand's bitter divide. Remember that many in the army are PTP sympathisers (some high ranking) and won't be happy with what will still be seen as a coup; remember also what happened the last time there was a coup - Thai Rak Thai was no more and Pheua Thai was born from its ashes, the cycle beginning again.

It won't matter long-term if PTP are gone, because a similar entity will replace them; it won't even matter if the Shinawatra's are broken, because now that the power of the rural vote is recognised, another political party will step into the vaccuum. In short:

• the Bangkok elite don't want their power drain away to the provinces
• they don't seem to have any plan to deal with it apart from street protests and coups
• the majority who don't live in the capital will continue to vote for parties who give/promise them a better life
• the elite/Dems won't do this, because it means redistributing resources and wealth which hits their own pockets
• those in the north & Isaan don't trust the Dems anyway, so are unlikely to vote for the party of the BKK elite
• sooner or later, power will be decentralised and the old elite will lose to a new elite who have more enlightened politics
• if the above does not happen peacefully, it will come about through civil war, possibly one that ends in the division of the country

Any thoughts on this?

[diceq]

I normally dislike this kind of speculative post, but I think this one is pretty plausible. The issue that I do have with what you say here is not whether it's possible/likely but that your implication is that this is an 'endgame', when in fact it will more likely lead to an escalation of Thailand's bitter divide. Remember that many in the army are PTP sympathisers (some high ranking) and won't be happy with what will still be seen as a coup; remember also what happened the last time there was a coup - Thai Rak Thai was no more and Pheua Thai was born from its ashes, the cycle beginning again.

It won't matter long-term if PTP are gone, because a similar entity will replace them; it won't even matter if the Shinawatra's are broken, because now that the power of the rural vote is recognised, another political party will step into the vaccuum. In short:

• the Bangkok elite don't want their power drain away to the provinces
• they don't seem to have any plan to deal with it apart from street protests and coups
• the majority who don't live in the capital will continue to vote for parties who give/promise them a better life
• the elite/Dems won't do this, because it means redistributing resources and wealth which hits their own pockets
• those in the north & Isaan don't trust the Dems anyway, so are unlikely to vote for the party of the BKK elite
• sooner or later, power will be decentralised and the old elite will lose to a new elite who have more enlightened politics
• if the above does not happen peacefully, it will come about through civil war, possibly one that ends in the division of the country

Any thoughts on this?

I say you are dead on.

[jimsrant]

• the Bangkok elite don't want their power drain away to the provinces
• they don't seem to have any plan to deal with it apart from street protests and coups
• the majority who don't live in the capital will continue to vote for parties who give/promise them a better life
• the elite/Dems won't do this, because it means redistributing resources and wealth which hits their own pockets
• those in the north & Isaan don't trust the Dems anyway, so are unlikely to vote for the party of the BKK elite
• sooner or later, power will be decentralised and the old elite will lose to a new elite who have more enlightened politics
• if the above does not happen peacefully, it will come about through civil war, possibly one that ends in the division of the country

Any thoughts on this?

A little more sense and more thought provoking than the constant intellectually challenged comments, one normally sees on here, relating this subject.

Edited January 12, 2014 by jimsrant

[salavan]

now come on generals let's move fast your big chance is here at last

on 13 go out and get those reds cos the only good red is on that's d***

you know peace can only be won when you blow them all to kingdom come

[ratcatcher]

The stage is set..

Yingluck and her government has been neutered by Suthep in record time with masterful, military-like precision.

Army General making cryptic statements the other day. Yingluck has been warned and held accountable before anything's even happened.

Yingluck's Police force on the ground will be unarmed.

Suthep says if it spirals into violence, which he knows it will and the plan actually counts on it, he will tell the masses to go home; knowing they will be replaced by the Army.

It's a coup without calling it a coup because that would be unacceptable to the international community. Public safety is totally acceptable. Brilliant.

I normally dislike this kind of speculative post, but I think this one is pretty plausible. The issue that I do have with what you say here is not whether it's possible/likely but that your implication is that this is an 'endgame', when in fact it will more likely lead to an escalation of Thailand's bitter divide. Remember that many in the army are PTP sympathisers (some high ranking) and won't be happy with what will still be seen as a coup; remember also what happened the last time there was a coup - Thai Rak Thai was no more and Pheua Thai was born from its ashes, the cycle beginning again.

It won't matter long-term if PTP are gone, because a similar entity will replace them; it won't even matter if the Shinawatra's are broken, because now that the power of the rural vote is recognised, another political party will step into the vaccuum. In short:

• the Bangkok elite don't want their power drain away to the provinces
• they don't seem to have any plan to deal with it apart from street protests and coups
• the majority who don't live in the capital will continue to vote for parties who give/promise them a better life
• the elite/Dems won't do this, because it means redistributing resources and wealth which hits their own pockets
• those in the north & Isaan don't trust the Dems anyway, so are unlikely to vote for the party of the BKK elite
• sooner or later, power will be decentralised and the old elite will lose to a new elite who have more enlightened politics
• if the above does not happen peacefully, it will come about through civil war, possibly one that ends in the division of the country

Any thoughts on this?

"It won't matter long-term if PTP are gone, because a similar entity will replace them; it won't even matter if the Shinawatra's are broken, because now that the power of the rural vote is recognised, another political party will step into the vaccuum. "

Good points!

One of Suthep's claims has been to try to remove the Shinawatra influence and try to establish a fairer system whereby the poorer areas of the country are looked after rather than being used as a power base because of vote numbers.

If this 'crusade' succeeds and the Shinawatra influence is removed, I believe cooler heads may prevail. The poorer parts of Thailand, particularly the N.E. and North still have major problems with regard to the 'grass roots people trying to make a basic living. Certainly many have benefited from the rice pledging scheme/scam, but many remain unpaid or heavily indebted to banks, middlemen and mill owners etc.

Personally I'd rather see Thida of the UDD as a major player in government because rightly or wrongly I believe she has a more sincere regard for the ordinary people than Yingluck,Thaksin, Plodprasop, Chalerm etc and other assorted multi millionaires.

If this crusade succeeds, the sooner Suthep is out of the picture the better. His job will be over. Let wiser heads try and establish a fairer less corrupt system. Is that possible in modern day Thailand?

[MaiChai]

I find it hard to support the actions of the 'new' elite over the last two years. It not as simple as old money fighting new money. Thailand does not simply have two powerful families. You also have to take into account improvements in democracy, civil movements and people's aspirations to have more rights and equality. Its a constantly moving target. Your average Thai deserve more rights and freedoms rather than being serfs to the rich and powerful.

[ratcatcher]

now come on generals let's move fast your big chance is here at last

on 13 go out and get those reds cos the only good red is on that's d***

you know peace can only be won when you blow them all to kingdom come

Regardless of one's side in this crisis vis a vis Red vs Yellow, how can anyone in their right mind advocate what you just wrote.

What are you smoking? "The only good red is one that's dead" What a stunning thing to say in 2014.

You're talking about Thai people with families and their own beliefs.

[Robby nz]

The reds have a new wonderful idea to get the general on their side :

Sudchai Boonchai, leader of Friends of Thaksin, tells his fb fans 2 hold Gen. Prayuth’s daughters hostage as eye-for-eye method against coup

[Rob8891]

I hope Prayuth has given his family plenty of security too.....

RT@Juarawee: Sudchai Boonchai, leader of Friends of Thaksin, tells his fb fans 2 hold Gen. Prayuth’s daughters hostage as eye-for-eye method against coup

[FWIW]

The most powerful man in the land has wisely done what someone in his situation should do and that is to make sure they are comfortably sitting on the fence with a full view of everything around them.

......while in the sure knowledge that a fair few battalions of heavy tanks are at close hand....

[Prbkk]

So we have the first big lie: they are already closing roads despite repeated assurances from Suthep that this would not begin until tomorrow.

[salavan]

now come on generals let's move fast your big chance is here at last

on 13 go out and get those reds cos the only good red is on that's d***

you know peace can only be won when you blow them all to kingdom come

Regardless of one's side in this crisis vis a vis Red vs Yellow, how can anyone in their right mind advocate what you just wrote.

What are you smoking? "The only good red is one that's dead" What a stunning thing to say in 2014.

You're talking about Thai people with families and their own beliefs.

a well known comedian once said that satire goes over the heads of the stupid

[Prbkk]

I hope Prayuth has given his family plenty of security too.....

RT@Juarawee: Sudchai Boonchai, leader of Friends of Thaksin, tells his fb fans 2 hold Gen. Prayuths daughters hostage as eye-for-eye method against coup

yes,

another nutter we can do without....

[ratcatcher]

now come on generals let's move fast your big chance is here at last

on 13 go out and get those reds cos the only good red is on that's d***

you know peace can only be won when you blow them all to kingdom come

Regardless of one's side in this crisis vis a vis Red vs Yellow, how can anyone in their right mind advocate what you just wrote.

What are you smoking? "The only good red is one that's dead" What a stunning thing to say in 2014.

You're talking about Thai people with families and their own beliefs.

a well known comedian once said that satire goes over the heads of the stupid

[FangFerang]

The stage is set..

Yingluck and her government has been neutered by Suthep in record time with masterful, military-like precision.

Army General making cryptic statements the other day. Yingluck has been warned and held accountable before anything's even happened.

Yingluck's Police force on the ground will be unarmed.

Suthep says if it spirals into violence, which he knows it will and the plan actually counts on it, he will tell the masses to go home; knowing they will be replaced by the Army.

It's a coup without calling it a coup because that would be unacceptable to the international community. Public safety is totally acceptable. Brilliant.

I normally dislike this kind of speculative post, but I think this one is pretty plausible. The issue that I do have with what you say here is not whether it's possible/likely but that your implication is that this is an 'endgame', when in fact it will more likely lead to an escalation of Thailand's bitter divide. Remember that many in the army are PTP sympathisers (some high ranking) and won't be happy with what will still be seen as a coup; remember also what happened the last time there was a coup - Thai Rak Thai was no more and Pheua Thai was born from its ashes, the cycle beginning again.

It won't matter long-term if PTP are gone, because a similar entity will replace them; it won't even matter if the Shinawatra's are broken, because now that the power of the rural vote is recognised, another political party will step into the vaccuum. In short:

• the Bangkok elite don't want their power drain away to the provinces
• they don't seem to have any plan to deal with it apart from street protests and coups
• the majority who don't live in the capital will continue to vote for parties who give/promise them a better life
• the elite/Dems won't do this, because it means redistributing resources and wealth which hits their own pockets
• those in the north & Isaan don't trust the Dems anyway, so are unlikely to vote for the party of the BKK elite
• sooner or later, power will be decentralised and the old elite will lose to a new elite who have more enlightened politics
• if the above does not happen peacefully, it will come about through civil war, possibly one that ends in the division of the country

Any thoughts on this?

You are correct, I think. This is no hope of mine, but I think you are correct.

[h90]

The most powerful man in the land has wisely done what someone in his situation should do and that is to make sure they are comfortably sitting on the fence with a full view of everything around them.

The army started this mess with the mistake of the 2006 coup. Things didn't turn out they way they wanted. Now their bad karma has caught up.

wise? hardly.

2006 coup wasn't the problem. The ineffective Surayud government and the faulty constitution was.

If they would made much stronger laws against corruption/vote buying and on the other hand cut out all the nonsense laws which just cloak the system than the courts would have fixed half the mess already and we would have complete new parties instead of all the old dinosaurs.

[Ajaan]

The most powerful man in the land has wisely done what someone in his situation should do and that is to make sure they are comfortably sitting on the fence with a full view of everything around them.

The "most powerful man in the land" is a military officer, and you applaud this? You should be ashamed of yourself.

The military is crude and evil in every country on earth. It is a necessary evil, to be sure, but evil nonetheless. And in a country such as Thailand, where brute force and intimidation reigns, and the army is actually an autonomous force--not under the control over the country's leader, as it usually is in the West--you APPLAUD this?! Would you applaud and support a military dictatorship in YOUR country?

Basically, you are applauding the fact that Thailand continues to be a backwards, jungle-law nation, that brutes like those in the army continually conspire to keep it from entering the 21st Century. As I said, you should be ashamed of yourself. You're a disgrace to all supposedly educated and enlightened farangs everywhere.

[FangFerang]

I normally dislike this kind of speculative post, but I think this one is pretty plausible. The issue that I do have with what you say here is not whether it's possible/likely but that your implication is that this is an 'endgame', when in fact it will more likely lead to an escalation of Thailand's bitter divide. Remember that many in the army are PTP sympathisers (some high ranking) and won't be happy with what will still be seen as a coup; remember also what happened the last time there was a coup - Thai Rak Thai was no more and Pheua Thai was born from its ashes, the cycle beginning again.

It won't matter long-term if PTP are gone, because a similar entity will replace them; it won't even matter if the Shinawatra's are broken, because now that the power of the rural vote is recognised, another political party will step into the vaccuum. In short:

• the Bangkok elite don't want their power drain away to the provinces
• they don't seem to have any plan to deal with it apart from street protests and coups
• the majority who don't live in the capital will continue to vote for parties who give/promise them a better life
• the elite/Dems won't do this, because it means redistributing resources and wealth which hits their own pockets
• those in the north & Isaan don't trust the Dems anyway, so are unlikely to vote for the party of the BKK elite
• sooner or later, power will be decentralised and the old elite will lose to a new elite who have more enlightened politics
• if the above does not happen peacefully, it will come about through civil war, possibly one that ends in the division of the country

Any thoughts on this?

I say you are dead on.

Sadly, tearfully, me too.

[ultimate weapon]

now come on generals let's move fast your big chance is here at last

on 13 go out and get those reds cos the only good red is on that's d***

you know peace can only be won when you blow them all to kingdom come

Regardless of one's side in this crisis vis a vis Red vs Yellow, how can anyone in their right mind advocate what you just wrote.

What are you smoking? "The only good red is one that's dead" What a stunning thing to say in 2014.

You're talking about Thai people with families and their own beliefs.

a well known comedian once said that satire goes over the heads of the stupid

sar.jpg

Nice i love your comeback especially to the sarcasm/satire mode some use when caught up in their posts.

[MikeThaison]

The stage is set..

Yingluck and her government has been neutered by Suthep in record time with masterful, military-like precision.

Army General making cryptic statements the other day. Yingluck has been warned and held accountable before anything's even happened.

Yingluck's Police force on the ground will be unarmed.

Suthep says if it spirals into violence, which he knows it will and the plan actually counts on it, he will tell the masses to go home; knowing they will be replaced by the Army.

It's a coup without calling it a coup because that would be unacceptable to the international community. Public safety is totally acceptable. Brilliant.

I normally dislike this kind of speculative post, but I think this one is pretty plausible. The issue that I do have with what you say here is not whether it's possible/likely but that your implication is that this is an 'endgame', when in fact it will more likely lead to an escalation of Thailand's bitter divide. Remember that many in the army are PTP sympathisers (some high ranking) and won't be happy with what will still be seen as a coup; remember also what happened the last time there was a coup - Thai Rak Thai was no more and Pheua Thai was born from its ashes, the cycle beginning again.

It won't matter long-term if PTP are gone, because a similar entity will replace them; it won't even matter if the Shinawatra's are broken, because now that the power of the rural vote is recognised, another political party will step into the vaccuum. In short:

• the Bangkok elite don't want their power drain away to the provinces
• they don't seem to have any plan to deal with it apart from street protests and coups
• the majority who don't live in the capital will continue to vote for parties who give/promise them a better life
• the elite/Dems won't do this, because it means redistributing resources and wealth which hits their own pockets
• those in the north & Isaan don't trust the Dems anyway, so are unlikely to vote for the party of the BKK elite
• sooner or later, power will be decentralised and the old elite will lose to a new elite who have more enlightened politics
• if the above does not happen peacefully, it will come about through civil war, possibly one that ends in the division of the country

Any thoughts on this?

To say this is a Bangkok elitist fight against rural farmers is a smack to every hard working class southern thai that supports the Dems and has traveled up to Bangkok. I think a lot people don't realize that Thailand is more than Isaan and Bangkok. There is an entire southern region. They aren't Bangkok elitistests. They don't vote for PTP. Of course its a power struggle, its a struggle to control trillions of baht loans and mega-projects. Sure there is waste and corruption on both sides. PTP bribed the rural farmers with subsidies at the expense of everyone else in Thailand. The rubber farmers have been feeling the squeeze for the last few years and when they ask the gov. for help, Nothing from the current gov. Just my few thoughts.

Edited January 12, 2014 by MikeThaison

[Sunisalom]

I feel the Army may be dragged in as the country is in a mess and there seems no way the two sides are going to compromise. This will lead to disorder at some stage and some nutter will ope th flood gates of violence as it is slowly starting to appear. (i refer to the deaths and now larger provincial protests as elections are coming.)

Dragged?

They can't wait to play tanks!

They practised all day yesterday!

-mel.

[Sunisalom]

The stage is set..

Yingluck and her government has been neutered by Suthep in record time with masterful, military-like precision.

Army General making cryptic statements the other day. Yingluck has been warned and held accountable before anything's even happened.

Yingluck's Police force on the ground will be unarmed.

Suthep says if it spirals into violence, which he knows it will and the plan actually counts on it, he will tell the masses to go home; knowing they will be replaced by the Army.

It's a coup without calling it a coup because that would be unacceptable to the international community. Public safety is totally acceptable. Brilliant.

I normally dislike this kind of speculative post, but I think this one is pretty plausible. The issue that I do have with what you say here is not whether it's possible/likely but that your implication is that this is an 'endgame', when in fact it will more likely lead to an escalation of Thailand's bitter divide. Remember that many in the army are PTP sympathisers (some high ranking) and won't be happy with what will still be seen as a coup; remember also what happened the last time there was a coup - Thai Rak Thai was no more and Pheua Thai was born from its ashes, the cycle beginning again.

It won't matter long-term if PTP are gone, because a similar entity will replace them; it won't even matter if the Shinawatra's are broken, because now that the power of the rural vote is recognised, another political party will step into the vaccuum. In short:

• the Bangkok elite don't want their power drain away to the provinces
• they don't seem to have any plan to deal with it apart from street protests and coups
• the majority who don't live in the capital will continue to vote for parties who give/promise them a better life
• the elite/Dems won't do this, because it means redistributing resources and wealth which hits their own pockets
• those in the north & Isaan don't trust the Dems anyway, so are unlikely to vote for the party of the BKK elite
• sooner or later, power will be decentralised and the old elite will lose to a new elite who have more enlightened politics
• if the above does not happen peacefully, it will come about through civil war, possibly one that ends in the division of the country

Any thoughts on this?

To say this is a Bangkok elitist fight against rural farmers is a smack to every hard working class southern thai that supports the Dems and has traveled up to Bangkok. I think a lot people don't realize that Thailand is more than Isaan and Bangkok. There is an entire southern region. They aren't Bangkok elitistests. They don't vote for PTP. Of course its a power struggle, its a struggle to control trillions of baht loans and mega-projects. Sure there is waste and corruption on both sides. PTP bribed the rural farmers with subsidies at the expense of everyone else in Thailand. The rubber farmers have been feeling the squeeze for the last few years and when they ask the gov. for help, Nothing from the current gov. Just my few thoughts.

I personally thank you for that reminder and insight! (I mean that!)

The population is not all BKK and Esan... far from it.

Maybe a divide between Korat and Korat would be a good start, and leave the rest to the east, BKK and the south.

Then again.... <deleted> do we do with Chiang Mai?

(good wine.... forgiiiivvveeeeee me).

-mel.