Despite lack of evidence, Thai media points blame at Uighurs

[webfact]

Despite Lack of Evidence, Thai Media Points Blame at Uighurs
By Khaosod English


A group of more than 90 Uighur refugees were forcibly repatriated from Thailand to China in July. Chinese security forces placed hoods over their heads for the flight to China, where they are branded terrorists. Photo: CCTV

BANGKOK — In the horrific wake of the devastating bomb attack, the need and rush to assign blame in the absence of reliable information has proven a toxic mix for a Thai media too willing to set aside due diligence and cast its own net of suspicion.

One vector of emergent blame has painted the attack as retribution for Thailand’s decision in July to deport more than 90 Uighur refugees back to China, a widely condemned move which prompted the sacking of Thailand’s diplomatic mission in Istanbul.

A report on Daily News, one of the largest-circulated newspapers in Thailand, quoted unnamed police officers saying that “Uighur groups” were behind yesterday’s blast at the popular Erawan Shrine in downtown Bangkok. The bomb killed at least 20 people and injured more than 180.

The Uighurs are a Muslim ethnic group in the far west of China that have at times violently resisted what they describe as oppression by ethnic Han Chinese. China brands them terrorists, and Thailand’s decision to deport them was panned as caving to pressure from Beijing.

However they have never exported their attacks, which usually involve lone agents in low-tech assaults of civilians, often with no more than a knife.

While top officials of the Thai government say it is too early to blame Monday night’s deadly bombing on any transnational terror network, Thai media have been less shy about making unsubstantiated leaps to cast suspicion on usual-suspect ethnic and minority groups.

According to Daily News, the Bangkok bombing was a Uighur plot, a claim it reported without circumspection.

Full story: http://www.khaosodenglish.com/detail.php?newsid=1439896667&typecate=06&section=


-- Khaosod English 2015-08-19

[ourmanflint]

Let's all play Blankety Blank

Despite lack of evidence, the Thai media blames ( _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ )

[manarak]

Yes... strange to blame a particular terrorist group without any evidence, but on the other hand, the Uighurs cannot be ruled out either until evidence is turned up.

[Nice Boyd]

First group I thought of when event occured

[hgma]

This morning i was reading specific news about the victims of this blast.

Especially a Butterworth family who lost all but 2 familymembers (seriously injured)

My heart goes out to those and all other innocent victims and don't give a hood who the media blames.

All i want is a quick solution and get those maniacs of the streets.

[starky]

In the horrific wake of the devastating bomb attack, the need and rush to assign blame in the absence of reliable information has proven a toxic mix for a Thai media too willing to set aside due diligence and cast its own net of suspicion.

Wow that is a pretty accurate description of the majority of posters on Thai Visa, uncanny.

[BSJ]

Uighurs should be on the list of suspects but it's silly to speculate without a shred of proof.

My first thought was that it was the scum from down South....but that's just a guess!

[Bluespunk]

"According to Daily News, the Bangkok bombing was a Uighur plot, a claim it reported without circumspection."

Or evidence.

[ChrisY1]

Thailand' media are not known for their journalistic skills..........IMO, to blame this groupwithout a scrap of evidence and working on intuition, is another face saving experiment after the groups poor treatment by Thailand

[Prbkk]

China would like people to think that Uighur incidents have been lone wolf. The reality is quite different and has involved explosives and the bombing of public transport. This attack, who knows...

[tbthailand]

A horrible attack. We go to Erawan often. It's a beautiful little place.

Given the location, the busy street corner, the time of day, there could have been no doubt that the bomb would have killed many people, indiscriminately. Flower/candle vendors, people making their offerings, folks just crossing the street.

It would be nice if the officials and the media could approach this reasonably, with intelligence, and provide information as it is available. But I fear not. I fear a circus like Koh Tao...

[bkkclio]

The logistics needed to successfully conduct such a terrorist act is not that simple.... More investigation and data needed to point at anybody. TNT, C4 , fertilizer bomb etc.... before finger pointing more serious criminal/ police investigations has to be completed...

[DirtyDan]

Counterpoint: The logistics needed are surprisingly simple and frightfully easy to find thanks to the internet.

However, I agree more investigation should take place before more finger pointing.

[geriatrickid]

The logistics needed to successfully conduct such a terrorist act is not that simple.... More investigation and data needed to point at anybody. TNT, C4 , fertilizer bomb etc.... before finger pointing more serious criminal/ police investigations has to be completed...

Nope. See Boston Marathon bombings for illustration of how easy it is to do.

[geriatrickid]

Ok, let's recap the "official" pronouncements;

1st claim: Hidden in motorcycle and wrapped in white towel.

2nd claim. "Redshirts"

3rd claim: Someone from the north east, and known to security forces

4th claim: Arab looking

5th claim: Uighur

How soon until someone of dark complexion from Issan is given the Burmese" treatment?

[MaxLee]

Investigation Thai style = scapegoat hunting without evidence, whether innocent or not

[bkkclio]

The logistics needed to successfully conduct such a terrorist act is not that simple.... More investigation and data needed to point at anybody. TNT, C4 , fertilizer bomb etc.... before finger pointing more serious criminal/ police investigations has to be completed...

Nope. See Boston Marathon bombings for illustration of how easy it is to do.

Agreed

That's why i included fertilizer bombs...

[chainarong]

First group I thought of when event occured

My (Mine) first thought besides the Junta was frosty the snowman.

Edited August 19, 2015 by chainarong

[Barry Friedman]

Yes... strange to blame a particular terrorist group without any evidence, but on the other hand, the Uighurs cannot be ruled out either until evidence is turned up.

So by your logic, no one can be ruled out. So should we include you in the list of suspects? Seriously, most people could eat a bowl of alphabet soup and crap out a more intelligent sentence than that!

[AlphMichaels]

The man in the video looks much more like someone from "western China" than Chinese or Thai. Not saying he wasn't given a job to do for a fee to throw off the scent from the real perps. It makes a lot of sense.

I've actually been quite impressed with the pace of the investigation and the "openness" to western media.

Edited August 19, 2015 by AlphMichaels

[zaphod reborn]

There is quite a bit of circumstantial evidence now for building a case against Uighur terrorists. First, Khaosodcrap omits a particularly crucial event (typical worthless Thai journalism): the fact that Uighur separatists attacked the Thai embassy in Istanbul on 9 July following the deportation order. Istanbul is considered to be on the border of Europe and Asia. The Uighurs are clearly Asian and most want to create a nice, peaceful Islamo-fascist state, called Uighuristan. How lovely. The fact that they exported violence to Istanbul from their desired homeland, shows that they are capable as any Islamic terrorists of exporting terrorism.

Second, the police have not officially revealed that they have identified the bomber, and have accessed his facebook and instagram accounts. There are pictures of our friendly neighborhood bomber in military fatigues holding a gun on those websites and the media has accessed these as well. Somyet should keep his mouth shut until the investigation is complete (which of course he is not doing, and why hasn't he been sacked yet?). But the media has every right to be taking a hard look at the Uighurs and is not off-base by focusing the public's attention on them.

Edited August 19, 2015 by zaphod reborn

[DirtyDan]

. . .

Second, the police have not officially revealed that they have identified the bomber, and have accessed his facebook and instagram accounts. There are pictures of our friendly neighborhood bomber in military fatigues holding a gun on those websites and the media has accessed these as well. Somyet should keep his mouth shut until the investigation is complete (which of course he is not doing, and why hasn't he been sacked yet?). But the media has every right to be taking a hard look at the Uighurs and is not off-base by focusing the public's attention on them.

Well, let's consider Thai culture for a moment: One cannot be seen as not having the answers and it is better to say something (anything) than admit to not know.

Now, combine the cultural aspects of not wanting to lose face with the questionable translations being published verbatim by English media sources and we end up in a situation with much confusion for us non-Thai speakers. Remember, none of these quotes are directly from the horse's mouth.

[toybits]

Instead of speculating what group this person belongs to, The authorities should give us more information to help apprehend this terrorist. People who have mobile phone videos or still photos taken during the incident should present this to the authorities. Sharper photos could be had. This happened during the Boston bombing. People submitted their mobile phone and videos to the police which helped get a better picture of the person. At the moment, it is pointless to surmise who the person is and what group he belongs to. It will lead you nowhere.

[Card]

Yes... strange to blame a particular terrorist group without any evidence, but on the other hand, the Uighurs cannot be ruled out either until evidence is turned up.

That's not the point. Not ruling them out is nothing like accusing them.

[millwall_fan]

There is quite a bit of circumstantial evidence now for building a case against Uighur terrorists. First, Khaosodcrap omits a particularly crucial event (typical worthless Thai journalism): the fact that Uighur separatists attacked the Thai embassy in Istanbul on 9 July following the deportation order. Istanbul is considered to be on the border of Europe and Asia. The Uighurs are clearly Asian and most want to create a nice, peaceful Islamo-fascist state, called Uighuristan. How lovely. The fact that they exported violence to Istanbul from their desired homeland, shows that they are capable as any Islamic terrorists of exporting terrorism.

Second, the police have not officially revealed that they have identified the bomber, and have accessed his facebook and instagram accounts. There are pictures of our friendly neighborhood bomber in military fatigues holding a gun on those websites and the media has accessed these as well. Somyet should keep his mouth shut until the investigation is complete (which of course he is not doing, and why hasn't he been sacked yet?). But the media has every right to be taking a hard look at the Uighurs and is not off-base by focusing the public's attention on them.

The Uighurs are Turkic people, which is why they chose Istanbul. 'Islamo-fascist'? Where did you dig that phrase up from? Ah I get it - all Muslim peoples are Islamo-fascist. Right?

[nahkit]

There is quite a bit of circumstantial evidence now for building a case against Uighur terrorists. First, Khaosodcrap omits a particularly crucial event (typical worthless Thai journalism): the fact that Uighur separatists attacked the Thai embassy in Istanbul on 9 July following the deportation order. Istanbul is considered to be on the border of Europe and Asia. The Uighurs are clearly Asian and most want to create a nice, peaceful Islamo-fascist state, called Uighuristan. How lovely. The fact that they exported violence to Istanbul from their desired homeland, shows that they are capable as any Islamic terrorists of exporting terrorism.

Second, the police have not officially revealed that they have identified the bomber, and have accessed his facebook and instagram accounts. There are pictures of our friendly neighborhood bomber in military fatigues holding a gun on those websites and the media has accessed these as well. Somyet should keep his mouth shut until the investigation is complete (which of course he is not doing, and why hasn't he been sacked yet?). But the media has every right to be taking a hard look at the Uighurs and is not off-base by focusing the public's attention on them.

"First, Khaosodcrap omits a particularly crucial event (typical worthless Thai journalism): the fact that Uighur separatists attacked the Thai embassy in Istanbul on 9 July following the deportation order."

From the Khaosod opening piece :-

"One vector of emergent blame has painted the attack as retribution for Thailand’s decision in July to deport more than 90 Uighur refugees back to China, a widely condemned move which prompted the sacking of Thailand’s diplomatic mission in Istanbul."

To Sack = to plunder or destroy.

[asdecas]

In the horrific wake of the devastating bomb attack, the need and rush to assign blame in the absence of reliable information has proven a toxic mix for a Thai media too willing to set aside due diligence and cast its own net of suspicion.

Wow that is a pretty accurate description of the majority of posters on Thai Visa, uncanny.

Indeed yes, and a reflection on our species that does it no credit at all.

It's also appalling, in my judgment, to see the refugees in the photo above hooded, numbered and dehumanised, for the crime of wishing to flee from the overarching dictatorship of the Communist Party of China, which is bent on destroying their traditional way of life.

[morpho]

Typical...anybody but a Thai did it.

[Jiggo]

Come on Thai Police out with it.....suspect's, Southern Thai Muslim Group, get the RIGHT please or it WILL happen again....

[The Deerhunter]

In the horrific wake of the devastating bomb attack, the need and rush to assign blame in the absence of reliable information has proven a toxic mix for a Thai media too willing to set aside due diligence and cast its own net of suspicion.

Wow that is a pretty accurate description of the majority of posters on Thai Visa, uncanny.

Why let lack of evidence ruin a perfectly good conspiracy rant? Boring responsible people like you spoil everything for the rest of us fun loving TVF posters.