Thailand: What the martial law entails

[mojorison]

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.

So do you see the irony in having a user name "civil war". (Please sir, don't hunt me down.)

[aripengu]

So far http://www.asiaupdate.tv/live Red

and http://www.blueskychannel.tv/ Yellow

are not broadcasting.

[tonglen]

In the United States it includes the suspension of the Constitution and all Habeus Corpus ad sub jiciendum (spelling?) rights.

Its very primal - sounds that way with Thailand as well.

[Taco]

Declaring martial law and tightening tourist's visa runs should be a massive boon for tourism. Should be great for job growth, consumer spending and foreign investment!!

[Jim walker]

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.

And you think that the Thai military did this on their own initiative you can think again, the Privy Council decides their every move control the army same way as they decide any government legislation, been the same for the last 80 years and it won’t change

[IMA_FARANG]

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.!

---------------------

The people of Thailand once again see demroracy hijacked.!

------------------------------

Oh, for God's sake ...... stop all that nonsense now and get on with your homework. playtimes over now and you've got schoolwork to do.

Get on with it.

And tidy up this room a bit before I have to come back and give you a spanking.

Edited May 20, 2014 by IMA_FARANG

[wingman662]

For the forseeable future all Tea money will be collected by the army and not the BIB, once Martial law has ended please return to previous arrangments

[bangkokpoppys]

Does anyone have any expertise as to whether insurances (car/health etc) are still valid under martial law?

Why??

Are you planning to have an accident in the near future!!!

Ha ha - well errrrr no however I'm pretty sure that car insurance is not valid in cases of civil war and it maybe the case under martial law. The same for most kinds of insurance. So I'm wondering about - say - I get diagnosed with a serious illness whether I have any net to fall on for example.

[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.

And you think that the Thai military did this on their own initiative you can think again, the Privy Council decides their every move control the army same way as they decide any government legislation, been the same for the last 80 years and it won’t change

Prem is a general and I know this well. I was going to write Prem into that post but I figured with martial law I'd better leave him out. I've been well aware of who Prem is and his role and impact. Prem is a former PM, a retired Army general who as PM put down an anti-royalist coup attempt, and president of the Privy Council.

I've also mentioned in posts that the Pentagon and the State Department know what time Prem got up this morning, every morning, what time he make his first call and the number he calls each and every time. Sometimes the number is a Pentagon number.

[wooloomooloo]

Martial law rule #207: be a good citizen and go about your daily business. It's good for your health.

[beautifulthailand99]

[DavidHouston]

Section 188. The King has the prerogative to declare and lift the martial law in accordance with the conditions and manner under the Martial Law. In the case where it is necessary to declare the martial law in a certain locality as a matter of urgency, the military authority may do so under the Martial Law.

Obviously this is a translation, so not sure what the intent here is re: "(the) military authority", and if a "certain locality" can encompass the entire Kingdom?

มาตรา ๑๘๘ พระมหากษัตริยทรงไวซึ่งพระราชอํานาจในการประกาศใชและเลิกใช กฎอัยการศึกตามลักษณะและวิธีการตามกฎหมายวาดวยกฎอัยการศึก ในกรณีที่มีความจําเปนตองประกาศใชกฎอัยการศึกเฉพาะแหงเปนการรีบดวน เจาหนาที่ ฝายทหารยอมกระทําไดตามกฎหมายวาดวยกฎอัยการศึก

Perhaps the moderators will allow the use of Thai outside the language forum this one time. This is the provision from the 2550 (2007) Constitution which discusses martial law. The phrase of the martial law statute is "กฎอัยการศึก". The geographic limiting phrase is "เฉพาะแหง" (specific locations) and the temporal phrase is "เปนการรีบดวน" (on an urgent basis).

It would be helpful if there were a Thai lawyer who could comment on this provision but I suspect that the original purpose was to allow the military to respond immediately to emergency situations like floods or earthquakes and to civil disorders which may arise therefrom, without regard to civil rights or criminal procedure. Whether the law imposes limits on action is yet to be seen. I have not yet seen the provisions of the Martial Law and the purpose of the law may be clarified in that context. For those with a continuing interest in this question, let's see what we can find out.

Edited May 20, 2014 by DavidHouston

[hawker9000]

All thai tv & radio stations (or maybe just the govt-run ones?) are currently pre-empting normal broadcasting with what appears to be an official proclamation or announcement. Can anyone provide a summary of what they're saying?

(The Martial Law original statement made by the general yesterday and being repeated in the news is NOT what I'm talking about.)

Edited May 21, 2014 by hawker9000

[beautifulthailand99]

From George Orwell's 1984

• It was a bright cold day in May , and the clocks were striking thirteen.

• On coins, on stamps, on the covers of books, on banners, on posters, and on the wrappings of a cigarette Packet — everywhere. Always the eyes watching you and the voice enveloping you. Asleep or awake, working or eating, indoors or out of doors, in the bath or in bed — no escape. Nothing was your own except the few cubic centimetres inside your skull.

• In a way, the world-view of the Party imposed itself most successfully on people incapable of understanding it. They could be made to accept the most flagrant violations of reality, because they never fully grasped the enormity of what was demanded of them, and were not sufficiently interested in public events to notice what was happening. By lack of understanding they remained sane. They simply swallowed everything, and what they swallowed did them no harm, because it left no residue behind, just as a grain of corn will pass undigested through the body of a bird.

• In the long run, a hierarchical society was only possible on a basis of poverty and ignorance

• War, it will be seen, is now a purely internal affair. In the past, the ruling groups of all countries, although they might recognize their common interest and therefore limit the destructiveness of war, did fight against one another, and the victor always plundered the vanquished. In our own day they are not fighting against one another at all. The war is waged by each ruling group against its own subjects, and the object of the war is not to make or prevent conquests of territory, but to keep the structure of society intact. The very word "war", therefore, has become misleading. It would probably be accurate to say that by becoming continuous war has ceased to exist.

• The aim of the High is to remain where they are. The aim of the Middle is to change places with the High. The aim of the Low, when they have an aim—for it is an abiding characteristic of the Low that they are too much crushed by drudgery to be more than intermittently conscious of anything outside their daily lives—is to abolish all distinctions and create a society in which all men shall be equal.

• Always, at every moment, there will be the thrill of victory, the sensation of trampling on an enemy who is helpless. If you want a picture of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face — forever.

[kurtgruen]

So far http://www.asiaupdate.tv/live Red

and http://www.blueskychannel.tv/ Yellow

are not broadcasting.

PDRC have found other ways to get their message out live...

also here...

Thai-reading/speaking followers --

Ways of keeping up-to-date with PDRC and the muanmahaprachachon during BLUESKY Channel's temporary suspension:

1. Kamnan Suthep Thaugsuban (สุเทพ เทือกสุบรรณ)'s facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/suthep.fb

2. PDRC spokesperson Akanat Promphan (เอกนัฏ พร้อมพันธุ์ (ขิง))'s facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/KhingAkanat (pictured here)

3. Kor Por Tor/NSPRT livestream link: http://new.livestream.com/accounts/5960351/events/2912289

4. The Thai Energy Network's page: www.thaienergynetwork.org

5. Livestream from the PDRC Ratchadamnoen stage (by unidentified providers):

- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pckBWXL6ZWE&app=desktop

- http://m.ustream.tv/channel/live-กปปส

I would think, that the Reds are doing the same somewhere

[SICHONSTEVE]

Because he's hardly been one for carrying out what he said given all his final push/last battle marches so it's hardly surprising nobody believes much if of what he says is it?

Sent from my iPad using Thaivisa Connect Thailand

It's irrelevant now!!!

[beautifulthailand99]

So far http://www.asiaupdate.tv/live Red

and http://www.blueskychannel.tv/ Yellow

are not broadcasting.

PDRC have found other ways to get their message out live...

also here...

Thai-reading/speaking followers --

Ways of keeping up-to-date with PDRC and the muanmahaprachachon during BLUESKY Channel's temporary suspension:

1. Kamnan Suthep Thaugsuban (สุเทพ เทือกสุบรรณ)'s facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/suthep.fb

2. PDRC spokesperson Akanat Promphan (เอกนัฏ พร้อมพันธุ์ (ขิง))'s facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/KhingAkanat (pictured here)

3. Kor Por Tor/NSPRT livestream link: http://new.livestream.com/accounts/5960351/events/2912289

4. The Thai Energy Network's page: www.thaienergynetwork.org

5. Livestream from the PDRC Ratchadamnoen stage (by unidentified providers):

- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pckBWXL6ZWE&app=desktop

- http://m.ustream.tv/channel/live-กปปส

I would think, that the Reds are doing the same somewhere

Thanks for that some nice links to see waht's going on - on Suthep's facebook page is this photo which got me thinking about this song - which sums it all up really.

[TPI]

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

Hear him, hear him!

[lcp0761]

Thailand's "Martial Law" provision for tourists is touted to protect tourists.

The question you have to ask is "protect tourists from whom"?

The answer is from "Thai people".

The reality after reading the Thai news is it's a corruption and assault is on Thailand, other Thai people, and foreigners.

The Thai PM needs to impose a "back to the basics" law enforcement effort.

1). Stomp out corruption (i.e. Govt, various Mafia, others)

2). Stomp out crime (i.e. rape, murder, theft, financial and killings)

3). Address alcohol & drug abuse, and connected crimes

4). Institute a marketing blitz to "Thai people" to improve their morals and values

The penalty for the above crime(s) needs to be severe and violators will serve as a lesson for others.

Note --- Does it make sense to impose martial law on the people who are being assaulted?

ACTION --- The PM needs to address Thai people and in a separate effort foreign nationals.

Edited October 17, 2014 by lcp0761

[hawker9000]

The reality is that none of those things, nos. 1-4, are at all likely to happen anytime soon.

Stomp out corruption? Not even a starter.

Stomp out crime? Can't happen without appropriate corrections, and adequate & appropriate punishment is almost as against the grain as eliminating corruption. And crime against foreigners is almost undefined in Thailand; it tends toward open season on farangs most of the time.

Addressing alcohol & drug abuse? Kind o' flows from 1 & 2... (There's lots of money in drugs, and where there's corruption, and where crime goes unpunished or lightly punished except for those who can pay, there's going to be drug trafficking.)

Marketing blitz? It's going to take more, much more, than catchy slogans, colorful billboards, and media hype to "improve morals & values". I see it as "restoring morals & values", and that starts in the home, and must be supported and reinforced in the schools. I recently had a conversation with someone who grew up in the PI, talking about their public education. And what I heard was that teachers were perenially so consumed with having to toe the bureaucratic line and remain in favor with their superiors, that education was mostly just about getting kids to memorize things they needed to know to weather whatever political wind was blowing at the time. Not much learning; not much understanding; just memorizing. No continuity; no real involvement in academic "growth" or achievement; just getting over the next politically derived hurdle. In other words - just another system of political patronage. And I suspect much the same is true in Thailand. Maybe worse as I understand kids "can't fail" in Thai schools... Effective education just can't be like this. And of course it's all lost when parents aren't doing THEIR job, not instilling discipline, not promoting social as well as individual responsibility, and instead spoiling their kids, esp. the males, into believing they can expect and must insist on special treatment all their lives. (This recent incident on AirAsia is a perfect example.)

Not easy. None of it. It takes a lasting motivation and commitment that I just don't see much of. Instead I see lots of class warfare, plain old greed, "me first", and complacency & acceptance when it comes to corruption. None of this is the fault of martial law, which was a result, not a cause... Even martial law can't just dictate fresh new attitudes & values. It can try & tackle corruption (and I think is trying - they're just aren't any simple solutions); it can try and tackle crime (and again I think is trying - but, well, the RTP is already a frequently discussed topic...). And so on & so on. Some have committed themselves to a never ending campaign to paint martial law the bogeyman, and the cause of Thailand's ills. Not so. Thailand's ills brought about martial law; martial law didn't bring about Thailand's ills.

Edited October 25, 2014 by hawker9000