Thailand: What the martial law entails

[webfact]

What the martial law entails
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Military commanders in troubled areas have the authority to enforce martial law, if it looks like war or riots may break out.

Martial law gives military officers the power to:

- Take action against war or riots;

- Use arms to suppress unrest;

- Search, confiscate or occupy any premises or vehicles;

- Censor information;

- Block, search and control postal services;

- Activate the military court to judge on crimes within the area under martial law;

- Mobilise civilians to help the military;

- Procure resources such as vehicles or logistical materials to support military operations;

- Prohibit public gatherings, publications, broadcasting, transport,

communication, travel, the movement of people or any action that the Defence Ministry deems necessary;

- Enforce curfews;

- Destroy, remove or adjust any premise or location for the purpose of military operations;

- Arrest and detain suspects for a maximum of seven days.

- People are not entitled to any compensation for damage incurred during such military operations;

- Martial law can only be ended with a Royal Decree.


-- The Nation 2014-05-20

[kingalfred]

No demonstations no protests and round up the ring leaders

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[Tatsujin]

. . . destroy, remove or adjust any premise or location for the purpose of military operations . . . hope my house isn't in their line of fire . . .

[thesetat2013]

No demonstations no protests and round up the ring leaders

Sent from my iPhone using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

We can only hope this happens.

Sent from my GT-S5310 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[The stuttering parrot]

Very strange timing for the army to enforce martial law.

The talks are deadlocked but they have been for months now so I wonder why now?

Maybe suteps threat for his last final push to get a million on the streets which was just another hollow threat however the reds reaction of heading to bangkok might have swayed them to act but why now?

Quite clearly the bias is once again been shown by the army shutting the red tv channel while the yellow channels are free to operate .

The reaction from the reds is going to be interesting as sutep has been allowed free reign in bangkok for 6 months now and all his allies or what he thought were allies in the end did not back so it upped the ante once again.

I don't know why the military moved now as I don't see what's going to achieve in the long run instead of making a bad situation worse.

The people of Thailand once again see demroracy hijacked.!

[96tehtarp]

The OP details what martial law entails very well.

I would like to see more TV posts discussing the legal contortions involved declaring this particular state of martial law.

How did they do it, and on who's authority, legally?

What is the legal framework used to get a state of martial law declared?

Obviously, the situation in Thailand is quite unique. Most developed countries would have the government inform the military that martial law has been declared and instruct them to carry out their duties as required by law. What's the deal here?

Isn't this really a coup? (If it walks like a duck?)

[kalbo123]

This martial law is very convenient for Suthep, It means he will stop protesting and will not report himself later on this month at police, not that he had any intention doing so from the start.

The saga continues.

[kurtgruen]

hmmm...first martial law, then probably a new PM appointed by the Senate...this is all playing out nicely and more or less as expected.

[shigoxin]

The army is out of patience after waiting over six months for Suthep's victory. But Army or Suthep dosen't matter, both dictators.

[ChrisY1]

Quite clearly the bias is once again been shown by the army shutting the red tv channel while the yellow channels are free to operate .

The reaction from the reds is going to be interesting as sutep has been allowed free reign in bangkok for 6 months now and all his allies or what he thought were allies in the end did not back so it upped the ante once again.

Hardly a move based on bias....people being killed by always, unknown assailants.....many people lives in chaos and ever present threats of more violence from the reds......I believe a timely decision.

CAPO disbanded.....thats where real bias has been with threats of arrest to those who spoke out of line with the reds...also the DSI (although not nuetralised yet)....nothing but bias from them as well!

There was never going to be a peaceful and amicable solution.

[ABCer]

"The people of Thailand once again see demroracy hijacked.!" by The stuttering parrot.

The people of Thailand wouldn't recognise democracy if it slapped them on the face.

This martial law declaration is a joke as it is going to be applied one-sidedly and locally. It actually is already.

[huangnon]

Very strange timing for the army to enforce martial law.

The talks are deadlocked but they have been for months now so I wonder why now?

Someone elsewhere spoke of rumours of another momentous event that sparked this.. I hope not.

[chainarong]

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Very strange timing for the army to enforce martial law.

The talks are deadlocked but they have been for months now so I wonder why now?

Maybe suteps threat for his last final push to get a million on the streets which was just another hollow threat however the reds reaction of heading to bangkok might have swayed them to act but why now?

Quite clearly the bias is once again been shown by the army shutting the red tv channel while the yellow channels are free to operate .

The reaction from the reds is going to be interesting as sutep has been allowed free reign in bangkok for 6 months now and all his allies or what he thought were allies in the end did not back so it upped the ante once again.

I don't know why the military moved now as I don't see what's going to achieve in the long run instead of making a bad situation worse.

The people of Thailand once again see demroracy hijacked.!

What democracy, the only democracy in Thailand is Thai democracy, far remove from democracy

[Prbkk]

hmmm...first martial law, then probably a new PM appointed by the Senate...this is all playing out nicely and more or less as expected.

In fact, it means no such thing. The govt remains in office even in the context of martial law. This simply removes from the streets the groups in conflict.

[trainman34014]

Seems to me there is more information than has been revealed about the seizure of the white Mazda full of M16's up North. Can it be coincidence that Martial Law have been declared just a day later or is it to nip in the bud a major armed uprising ? Not scaremongering; just putting two and two together.

[love1012]

Very strange timing for the army to enforce martial law.

The talks are deadlocked but they have been for months now so I wonder why now?

Maybe suteps threat for his last final push to get a million on the streets which was just another hollow threat however the reds reaction of heading to bangkok might have swayed them to act but why now?

Quite clearly the bias is once again been shown by the army shutting the red tv channel while the yellow channels are free to operate .

The reaction from the reds is going to be interesting as sutep has been allowed free reign in bangkok for 6 months now and all his allies or what he thought were allies in the end did not back so it upped the ante once again.

I don't know why the military moved now as I don't see what's going to achieve in the long run instead of making a bad situation worse.

The people of Thailand once again see demroracy hijacked.!

..................by the dictator in Dubai whos paying to come back?? is that the hijacking of democracy youre talking about?? or do you refer to the daily lethal attacks on men women and children protesting that has left 28 dead. not that you would ever comment on that as a decent human being!! Your admissionof not understanding the situation is at least a step forward however, but you have far more to understand before you can make a valid contribution to the forum!!

[noitom]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

. . . destroy, remove or adjust any premise or location for the purpose of military operations . . . hope my house isn't in their line of fire . . .

The line of fire is a moving discretionary target.

[The stuttering parrot]

So prbkk if you are right and the government stays in office what's happens to suteps vow that if the government hasn't fallen by the 27th that he will surrender to the police?

What are the odds of that happening?

[DavidHouston]

Please see Section 188 of the current Constitution which gives the military the right to impose martial law.

David in Phuket

[ginjag]

Very strange timing for the army to enforce martial law.

The talks are deadlocked but they have been for months now so I wonder why now?

Maybe suteps threat for his last final push to get a million on the streets which was just another hollow threat however the reds reaction of heading to bangkok might have swayed them to act but why now?

Quite clearly the bias is once again been shown by the army shutting the red tv channel while the yellow channels are free to operate .

The reaction from the reds is going to be interesting as sutep has been allowed free reign in bangkok for 6 months now and all his allies or what he thought were allies in the end did not back so it upped the ante once again.

I don't know why the military moved now as I don't see what's going to achieve in the long run instead of making a bad situation worse.

The people of Thailand once again see demroracy hijacked.!

Usual stuff...Anything against PTP, is unlawful--hi-jacked-anti democratic---PTP the paradise government.

[seajae]

when the current govt(ptp) are supplying arms to the red terrorists to kill and maim other thais so they can perform their masters bidding it is way past time for the army to step in, especially when the police are also allowing all these killings to happen with impunity. The army hopefully will stop all this sh*t and we might see some sense start to return, capo and their bullsh*t are finally gone which is a great start and we may now see the rule of law start to take full effect, we can only hope.

[MaxLee]

Congratulation on both Anti and Pro-government, you and any other innocent bystander have officially lost your rights for a peaceful democratic life for the next centuries.

Both sides including their greedy leaders got what they asked for, to the dismay if us innocent bystanders.

Do we need any permission to go to the toilet or for grocery shopping?

There'll be a curfew, and we get attacked because we didn't know?

[Just1Voice]

Seems to me there is more information than has been revealed about the seizure of the white Mazda full of M16's up North. Can it be coincidence that Martial Law have been declared just a day later or is it to nip in the bud a major armed uprising ? Not scaremongering; just putting two and two together.

Please provide link that says white Mazda was "full of M16's". I'm not saying you are wrong, but the reports I read didn't say anything about the car being "full of" M16's.

If you can't provide a link, then my other thought is that you are merely "embellishing" the story for your own agenda.

[Publicus]

Very strange timing for the army to enforce martial law.

The talks are deadlocked but they have been for months now so I wonder why now?

Maybe suteps threat for his last final push to get a million on the streets which was just another hollow threat however the reds reaction of heading to bangkok might have swayed them to act but why now?

Quite clearly the bias is once again been shown by the army shutting the red tv channel while the yellow channels are free to operate .

The reaction from the reds is going to be interesting as sutep has been allowed free reign in bangkok for 6 months now and all his allies or what he thought were allies in the end did not back so it upped the ante once again.

I don't know why the military moved now as I don't see what's going to achieve in the long run instead of making a bad situation worse.

The people of Thailand once again see demroracy hijacked.!

..................by the dictator in Dubai whos paying to come back?? is that the hijacking of democracy youre talking about?? or do you refer to the daily lethal attacks on men women and children protesting that has left 28 dead. not that you would ever comment on that as a decent human being!! Your admissionof not understanding the situation is at least a step forward however, but you have far more to understand before you can make a valid contribution to the forum!!

OTT post.

The post is not a matter of disagreement, it is judgmental.

Wrong and wrong.

[MGP]

when the current govt(ptp) are supplying arms to the red terrorists to kill and maim other thais so they can perform their masters bidding it is way past time for the army to step in, especially when the police are also allowing all these killings to happen with impunity. The army hopefully will stop all this sh*t and we might see some sense start to return, capo and their bullsh*t are finally gone which is a great start and we may now see the rule of law start to take full effect, we can only hope.

+1

I entirely agree

[Civil War]

Very strange timing for the army to enforce martial law.

The talks are deadlocked but they have been for months now so I wonder why now?

Maybe suteps threat for his last final push to get a million on the streets which was just another hollow threat however the reds reaction of heading to bangkok might have swayed them to act but why now?

Quite clearly the bias is once again been shown by the army shutting the red tv channel while the yellow channels are free to operate .

The reaction from the reds is going to be interesting as sutep has been allowed free reign in bangkok for 6 months now and all his allies or what he thought were allies in the end did not back so it upped the ante once again.

I don't know why the military moved now as I don't see what's going to achieve in the long run instead of making a bad situation worse.

The people of Thailand once again see demroracy hijacked.!

Red TV is still running, so there is your first red supporter lie.

I also would not feel too confident about being critical of the army during a state of martial law.

A lot of farangs actually have connections with army officials, through their Thai families (I am one) and they may well take an exception to such comments.

[rebelplatoon]

Best thing to do in the circumstances.

The grown ups can t seem to play 'nice' calling reds and yellows to add to the numbers. Guns found on the red side(of course) to be delivered by someone linked to the government (of course) the recent shooting and grenade hurled at Suthep s side. It all adds up. The militairy finally steps up the plate. The Thai people have a sigh of relief. No showdown. Order. Let s see how it evolves.

[Publicus]

Congratulation on both Anti and Pro-government, you and any other innocent bystander have officially lost your rights for a peaceful democratic life for the next centuries.

Both sides including their greedy leaders got what they asked for, to the dismay if us innocent bystanders.

Do we need any permission to go to the toilet or for grocery shopping?

There'll be a curfew, and we get attacked because we didn't know?

The Army acted on its own, at its own initiative, making its own decision.

No one invited General Prayuth to act, no one ordered the Army to act, no civilian authority authorized the military to act.

Everything from now on happens on and during the military's watch, the Army primarily.

This is the Army's show now, entirely and completely. It has full authority, responsibility and liability.

Ordinary citizens or fahlang are nothing in this.

[kurtgruen]

hmmm...first martial law, then probably a new PM appointed by the Senate...this is all playing out nicely and more or less as expected.

In fact, it means no such thing. The govt remains in office even in the context of martial law. This simply removes from the streets the groups in conflict.

First of all, there is no legitimate Government, at the moment. Secondly, declaring martial law, pulled the last few teeth (CAPO and the ability of the Reds to mobilize) from Thaksin and his cronies. The logical next step, is for the Senate to appoint a Prime Minister (who of course will not be a paid puppet of the man in Dubai)

Looks like you have your choice of either the Upper House (Senate) or the military making the decisions, but it will definitely not be the past Government (Thaksin)

[tim armstrong]

There is no power without action. Now at last we have some constructive action. Its a start. I just hope the other rumours are not true.