SURVEY: Are the recent attacks in Bangkok a harbinger of a new and dangerous chapter in Thailand?

[mojorison]

I think there are several layers to understand. I am not convinced Prayut is leading the way. I am not sure that the Uighur (Turkish) boy even if he did do it, was not planted by another entity. the Chinese, the CIA, or another Thai group. It needs to be looked at in a global/regional SEA sense. It is very complex. I don't take it for one minute on "face value". Who and why is key.

[otherstuff1957]

I voted no, because I thought that it was probably a counter-coup bomb that turned out to be bloodier and more deadly than they anticipated. However, if this Turkish/Uighur connection turns out to be true, then that changes things entirely and I would vote yes.

[Keira1]

Maybe no... Not sure.

Just a thought: if it's the Uighur, they did it because they want to "punish" and scare Thailand. Maybe it's a act of desperation, maybe they realise that in fact Thailand is getting more strict (?) with these immigrants etc, and their plan to use Thailand in the future as a way to reach Turkey/Syria (or some other country) has backfired. Actually they maybe think that in the future it might not be that easy anymore to get their way. They're getting desperate. If Thailand can manage to not accept these s c refugees, and not not to give in to their threats, than, we're heading (in my opinion) to maybe a safer place.

I see what's happened in the European countries: we've grown soft and just accept anyone as a refugee.

If the message gets out that it's not that easy anymore - whether in Europe or Thailand - to get what you want as "refugee", than in the long run, we might get some good result.

Btw, I do not support China's undemocratic way, BUT, that does not mean that the Uighur in China have not been doing horrible things. There has been some pretty ugly carnage and attacks done by the Uighur. Sure it's easy to demonise China, but that does not exclude the fact that the Uighur have been doing some really ugly and violent attacks on innocent civilians.

Who wants to take in a group of violent muslims in Thailand? Not me.

[simple1]

Maybe no... Not sure.

Just a thought: if it's the Uighur, they did it because they want to "punish" and scare Thailand. Maybe it's a act of desperation, maybe they realise that in fact Thailand is getting more strict (?) with these immigrants etc, and their plan to use Thailand in the future as a way to reach Turkey/Syria (or some other country) has backfired. Actually they maybe think that in the future it might not be that easy anymore to get their way. They're getting desperate. If Thailand can manage to not accept these s c refugees, and not not to give in to their threats, than, we're heading (in my opinion) to maybe a safer place.

I see what's happened in the European countries: we've grown soft and just accept anyone as a refugee.

If the message gets out that it's not that easy anymore - whether in Europe or Thailand - to get what you want as "refugee", than in the long run, we might get some good result.

Btw, I do not support China's undemocratic way, BUT, that does not mean that the Uighur in China have not been doing horrible things. There has been some pretty ugly carnage and attacks done by the Uighur. Sure it's easy to demonise China, but that does not exclude the fact that the Uighur have been doing some really ugly and violent attacks on innocent civilians.

Who wants to take in a group of violent muslims in Thailand? Not me.

Using the same logic why not ban all Chinese Communist party members (millions of them) from entering Thailand as they have been involved in repression and violence against civilians for decades.

To gain a deeper understanding on the rub between the Uighars and Han Chinese have a read of the content at the URL below.

http://www.hudson.org/research/10480-repression-in-china-and-its-consequences-in-xinjiang

Edited August 30, 2015 by simple1

[Praematura]

This episode of incompetence for me was less about the vulnerability of being bombed and more about the glaring fact that someone can walk up in the heart of Bangkok, cctv everywhere and basically get away with it. If the RTP can't find this guy what protection do I or my family have if a crime is perpetuated? Many "suicides" in Pattaya and we don't have the cctv coverage that exists in Bangkok. For my Thai wife and myself we decided to leave permanently in 5 days as this event evidenced there is no viable, reliable police protection in Thailand,

[hawker9000]

There's "sophisticated", and there's "effective". A bomb can be either, neither, or both. Based on what I've read, the Erawan bomb was relatively unsophisticated, but unfortunately effectively deployed. Just because someone isn't impressed with the technology or inventiveness behind the bomb doesn't mean they can't mourn the deaths & injuries it's caused as much as anyone else.

Maybe think again about whether the bomb was "sophisticated" or not. The details of the bomb is a MAJOR CLUE.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/susancunningham/2015/08/24/thailands-shrine-bombing-the-case-for-turkeys-grey-wolves/

The Erawan pipe bomb, employing industrial pipe and packed with TNT and ball bearings, was much more sophisticated than anything used so far by domestic groups

Yes, what a bomb expert Forbes' Susan Cunningham, who covers "business news not yet on the global radar", certainly must be, eh? SHE says it's sophisticated, so I guess there's no doubting HER expertise. LOL. Well, her oh so impressive demolition credentials notwithstanding, a bit of pipe, TNT, & ball bearings don't seem all that sophisticated, no. More sophisticated than, say, a ready-made grenade, sure. But hardly something requiring any knowledge a 9th grader (ok, maybe a clever 9th grader...) probably couldn't find on the internet - perhaps even from other news stories. Getting hold of the TNT (which I'll bet is more doable in Thailand than most of us would like to believe...), and maybe a timer-detonator (it'll take you less than one-minute to google up instructions for that), would probably be the hardest part. 'Doesn't sound like rocket science to me, but if you say that's beyond the capabilities of a local Thai person on a mission to kill people, then maybe it is.

But I think the authorities would simply prefer the public believe it was "sophisticated" so as to lessen the sense of perceived danger of future bombings by copycats.

I'm really not trying to make a case for or against the Grey Wolves, or push any other theory over another for that matter. Nothing I've heard really seems like a good fit to me. But dismissing or advancing one theory over another because of the supposed "sophistication" of the bomb is a non-starter for me. All terrorism is almost by definition "irregular" and "asymmetric".

Edited August 31, 2015 by hawker9000