Thailand Referendum: Draft constitution wins approval

[DavisH]

13 hours ago, selftaopath said:

I don't think our village people are b/c few voted. I asked why? Ans: They don't want to vote "for free." lol i.e. no Baht for voting so .... I guess no voting. lol Ahhhhhhhhhh is this Thais form of democracy? lol lol lol 

It explains the low turnout. No politicians putting up the cash as they didn't have a dog in the race.

 

I don't get the NO vote though. That just extends the militaries time in power with NO possibility for elections. No constitution (even a bad one) = no elections. 

[kannot]

Looks  like the red  bits on the map wont be  getting much funding in the next 5 years then

Edited August 8, 2016 by kannot

[halloween]

2 minutes ago, kannot said:

Looks  like te red  bits on the map wont be  getting much funding in the next 5 years then

 

The only time I have heard a similar sentiment was from the mouth of Thaksin, in essence why should I help those who didn't vote for me/my party.  Have you heard or seen anything similar from the junta?

[Johpa]

13 hours ago, MaxLee said:

Big brother will rule in Thailand 4EVER....

 

Not forever, but yes, the length of time is the primary question and it may be shorter than you think.  This referendum does little to change the complex regional and ethnic tensions and dynamics that fuel what passes for politics in Thailand.

 

14 hours ago, harada said:

The real fun is yet to start.

 

 

Oh yes indeed, with this diversionary referendum out of the way, I suspect an announcement in the near future that the doggy doo doo has indeed hit the fan and let the fireworks begin. If I were a Farang living in Bangkok I would have an escape plan just in case the fireworks start landing to close to my home.

[metisdead]

Quote

(and YES, I like to stir the pot!)

 

A troll post has been removed:

 

9) You will not post inflammatory messages on the forum, or attempt to disrupt discussions to upset its participants, or trolling. Trolling can be defined as the act of purposefully antagonizing other people on the internet by posting controversial, inflammatory, irrelevant or off-topic messages with the primary intent of provoking other users into an emotional response or to generally disrupt normal on-topic discussion.

[heybruce]

3 hours ago, seajae said:

why is it you red supporters keep pushing that line "against an elected govt". The govt had stepped down on their own volition, the country was under care taker govt and their supporters( the reds) were busy bombing, shooting, killing women and kids all while the caretaker govt were cheering them on which is why the army stepped in and stopped the killing, at least be honest for once and stop the red propaganda. All we are getting now are the same red supporters whinging because they didnt get what they wanted, instead the general populace have voted for it and upset the reds apple cart. All we are getting now are the same red supporters whinging because they didnt get what they wanted, instead the general populace have voted for it and upset the reds apple cart.

" why is it you red supporters keep pushing that line "against an elected govt". The govt had stepped down on their own volition, the country was under care taker govt" 

 

I am not a red supporter, I am a democracy supporter.  Also, the caretaker government was a PTP government, the one elected in 2011.  Are you intentionally twisting facts, or are you that clueless?

 

" their supporters( the reds) were busy bombing, shooting, killing women and kids all while the caretaker govt were cheering them on which is why the army stepped in and stopped the killing"

 

It was obvious to all except the junta enthusiasts that Suthep was doing his best to provoke violence in order to justify a coup, while the PTP government was doing its best to prevent violence.  You and your type have been asked repeatedly to provide evidence of PTP complicity in the violence and have provided nothing.  The army didn't step in to stop the violence, it had largely ended by the time of the coup.  The protests were fading fast, Bangkok was returning to normal, the rest of the country was normal, and there was a good chance of a successful election of July 2014.  The army stepped in to stop the election.

 

" instead the general populace have voted for it and upset the reds apple cart. The thais have decided what they want, you dont like it, stiff. "

 

Funny how the enthusiasts of military rule wouldn't accept the results of the internationally monitored 2011 election, but eagerly accept the fatally flawed referendum with no open debate, no choices other than continued military rule, and no independent monitoring of the vote or count. 

 

Do you actually believe the stuff you post, or do you just object to democracy?

[robblok]

 

6 minutes ago, heybruce said:

" why is it you red supporters keep pushing that line "against an elected govt". The govt had stepped down on their own volition, the country was under care taker govt" 

 

I am not a red supporter, I am a democracy supporter.  Also, the caretaker government was a PTP government, the one elected in 2011.  Are you intentionally twisting facts, or are you that clueless?

 

" their supporters( the reds) were busy bombing, shooting, killing women and kids all while the caretaker govt were cheering them on which is why the army stepped in and stopped the killing"

 

It was obvious to all except the junta enthusiasts that Suthep was doing his best to provoke violence in order to justify a coup, while the PTP government was doing its best to prevent violence.  You and your type have been asked repeatedly to provide evidence of PTP complicity in the violence and have provided nothing.  The army didn't step in to stop the violence, it had largely ended by the time of the coup.  The protests were fading fast, Bangkok was returning to normal, the rest of the country was normal, and there was a good chance of a successful election of July 2014.  The army stepped in to stop the election.

 

" instead the general populace have voted for it and upset the reds apple cart. The thais have decided what they want, you dont like it, stiff. "

 

Funny how the enthusiasts of military rule wouldn't accept the results of the internationally monitored 2011 election, but eagerly accept the fatally flawed referendum with no open debate, no choices other than continued military rule, and no independent monitoring of the vote or count. 

 

Do you actually believe the stuff you post, or do you just object to democracy?

 

Bruce.. your totally wrong with the PTP government doing their best to prevent violence. The Trad massacre prove that.. 2 kids killed reds cheering about it and there were even representatives of the government at that big meeting. 

 

Also.. no arrests of red terrorists were made until the army  stepped in clear signs of PTP not wanting those red terrorists caught. 

 

Kinda blows your whole theory out of the water.. not to mention Charlem who always warned about violence against the protesters but could not stop it (why would he stop his own hit red hit squads)

 

Nope the reds gave the army all the excuses they needed to step in and it all started with the Thaksin amnesty.  

[heybruce]

1 hour ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

I believe, there was something in one of the news reports saying this latest version is something like the 20th (or so) different constitution Thailand has had during its years as a "democracy."

 

I guess about the best thing you say can is, they'll keep trying and trying and trying until they get it right -- someday...

 

You are correct, this is the twentieth constitution since 1932, an average of one every four years three months. http://www.economist.com/news/asia/21693251-some-generals-come-up-new-plan-saving-thailand-democracy-twentieth-time-lucky

 

There have also been twelve successful coups since 1932, an average of one every seven years. 

 

In spite of this abundance of data, none of the junta enthusiasts can give an example of when a coup, rewriting of the constitution or any other manner of hitting the reset button on democracy has lead to a better democracy.  It seems everything has been tried except a few back to back elected governments without intervening coups.

[heybruce]

4 minutes ago, robblok said:

 

 

Bruce.. your totally wrong with the PTP government doing their best to prevent violence. The Trad massacre prove that.. 2 kids killed reds cheering about it and there were even representatives of the government at that big meeting. 

 

Also.. no arrests of red terrorists were made until the army  stepped in clear signs of PTP not wanting those red terrorists caught. 

 

Kinda blows your whole theory out of the water.. not to mention Charlem who always warned about violence against the protesters but could not stop it (why would he stop his own hit red hit squads)

 

Nope the reds gave the army all the excuses they needed to step in and it all started with the Thaksin amnesty.  

As stated earlier, you have no evidence of the PTP government being involved in this or any other act of violence  You have one example of a few people who may or may not have realized what they were cheering for before the microphone was taken from the idiot.

 

Also, no arrests of the Suthep thugs that used violence and intimidation to disrupt the February election, before or after the coup.  They also have never caught the yellow shirt that threw the grenade that blew off the policeman's leg, or the one's that killed the redshirt poet.  I can't even recall the Suthep thugs who beat up the army officer being arrested, even though they should have been easy to identify.  So the incompetent police work was even handed.

 

So, no evidence of PTP complicity in the violence, and it clearly was in the PTP's interest to prevent violence.  Like many other fans of military rule, you invent 'facts' to support your fictitious account of events.

[robblok]

1 minute ago, heybruce said:

As stated earlier, you have no evidence of the PTP government being involved in this or any other act of violence  You have one example of a few people who may or may not have realized what they were cheering for before the microphone was taken from the idiot.

 

Also, no arrests of the Suthep thugs that used violence and intimidation to disrupt the February election, before or after the coup.  They also have never caught the yellow shirt that threw the grenade that blew off the policeman's leg, or the one's that killed the redshirt poet.  I can't even recall the Suthep thugs who beat up the army officer being arrested, even though they should have been easy to identify.  So the incompetent police work was even handed.

 

So, no evidence of PTP complicity in the violence, and it clearly was in the PTP's interest to prevent violence.  Like many other fans of military rule, you invent 'facts' to support your fictitious account of events.

 

I keep to what i have read and what i consider the truth. You just keep to the red book its better for you. 

 

History clearly shows that the reds were the violent faction and killed 4 kids. Reds are the PTP armed wing kinda like the IRA and Sinn fein. 

 

Your accounts are fictivious and thank god that the clips are still out there proving the reds cheering about the attack and having government representatives there from the PTP. That is not preventing violence.. that is supporting it.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

24 minutes ago, heybruce said:

 

In spite of this abundance of data, none of the junta enthusiasts can give an example of when a coup, rewriting of the constitution or any other manner of hitting the reset button on democracy has lead to a better democracy.  It seems everything has been tried except a few back to back elected governments without intervening coups.

 

I'm not a junta enthusiast and never have been. But like you, I consider myself a democracy enthusiast.

 

Speaking personally, and recalling the recent PTP government past, things were SO BAD in the country during the time of ongoing undeterred political shootings and bombings and killings (done by whomever...) that some of us -- and the many thousands of ordinary Thais protesting in the streets -- hoped that the ending of that government could be a transition to something better. That was the promise.

 

But as the saying goes, those who fail to learn the lessons of history are doomed to repeat them. And there's been a lot of past Thailand history being repeated these past couple years.

 

About the only thing I can say about the current situation is there probably won't be another coup anytime soon on the horizon, because those with the power to make coups will continue to hold onto effective power and those running the country on the surface will be beholden to them.

Edited August 8, 2016 by TallGuyJohninBKK

[nisakiman]

My wife mentioned to me earlier today that she'd read on one of the Thai language websites she reads (probably not available in Thailand) that one of the wats near chatuchak had three hundred and something people registered to vote there, and returned six hundred and something 'yes' votes. I have no idea how much truth there is in that report, but it rather makes one wonder. To be honest, the way the whole thing was conducted, with no discussion and particularly no critisism permitted, it was a foregone conclusion that the 'yes' vote would prevail, regardless of whether there was any ballot box stuffing.

[Smarter Than You]

6 minutes ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

 

I'm not a junta enthusiast and never have been. But like you, I consider myself a democracy enthusiast.

 

Speaking personally, and recalling the recent PTP government past, things were SO BAD in the country during the time of ongoing undeterred political shootings and bombings and killings (done by whomever...) that some of us -- and the many thousands of ordinary Thais protesting in the streets -- hoped that the ending of that government could be a transition to something better. That was the promise.

 

But as the saying goes, those who fail to learn the lessons of history are doomed to repeat them. And there's been a lot of past Thailand history being repeated these past couple years.

 

About the only thing I can say about the current situation is there probably won't be another coup anytime soon on the horizon, because those with the power to make coups will continue to hold onto effective power and those running the country on the surface will be beholden to them.

Whether things were SO BAD or not is really a matter of perspective TallGuyJohn, unfortunately the Thai people have been denied the opportunity to pass THEIR judgement on the previous PTP government by the anti-democracy groups (military, bureaucrats and elites....Yellows).

 

Had Suthep not led his mercenary mob into the streets there would have been precisely ZERO deaths and ONE election - the exact opposite of what the Yellows wanted (i.e. many deaths to justify a coup and have ZERO elections).

 

There'll be more attempted coups, either via the unelected appointed Senators or the Judicial System - what there won't be is anymore successful coups.

[heybruce]

27 minutes ago, robblok said:

 

I keep to what i have read and what i consider the truth. You just keep to the red book its better for you. 

 

History clearly shows that the reds were the violent faction and killed 4 kids. Reds are the PTP armed wing kinda like the IRA and Sinn fein. 

 

Your accounts are fictivious and thank god that the clips are still out there proving the reds cheering about the attack and having government representatives there from the PTP. That is not preventing violence.. that is supporting it.

So the February election wasn't disrupted by Suthep's people?  The army officer wasn't hospitalized by Suthep's thugs for removing an illegal roadblock?  The grenade didn't blow off the policeman's leg while he and others were trying to clear an illegal, violent Suthep demonstration?  The murdered redshirt poet?  Do you deny these things happened?  Are they 'fictivious'?

 

By the way, it was one of the PTP government representatives that snatched the microphone away from what's his name, the idiot announcing the bombing that killed the children.  As always, you have no evidence linking the government to this crime, and it made no sense for them to have promoted this or any other kind of violence.

 

Violence was committed by both sides, but logic and evidence show that the PTP government was trying to minimize it to avoid a justification for another coup.  Suthep clearly wanted to justify a coup.  The military was clearly the armed wing of the anti-Democrats and Suthep.

 

 

Edited August 8, 2016 by heybruce
grammar correction

[Winniedapu]

23 minutes ago, nisakiman said:

My wife mentioned to me earlier today that she'd read on one of the Thai language websites she reads (probably not available in Thailand) that one of the wats near chatuchak had three hundred and something people registered to vote there, and returned six hundred and something 'yes' votes. I have no idea how much truth there is in that report, but it rather makes one wonder. To be honest, the way the whole thing was conducted, with no discussion and particularly no critisism permitted, it was a foregone conclusion that the 'yes' vote would prevail, regardless of whether there was any ballot box stuffing.

 

 

I seriously doubt that would come as a shock if it were true. As to whether it will make any difference - I don't know. I hope it would, but this is Thailand, not known for a surfeit of principles...

 

A bit surprising that the backlash is coming so quickly though - 24 hours seems like a short time. I understand from Thai TV this evening that multiple provinces in Isaan and the North of Thailand have said they do not accept the referendum results. Don't know where it will go though...

 

Winnie

Edited August 8, 2016 by Winniedapu

[Squeegee]

11 minutes ago, robblok said:

 

I keep to what i have read and what i consider the truth. You just keep to the red book its better for you. 

 

History clearly shows that the reds were the violent faction and killed 4 kids. Reds are the PTP armed wing kinda like the IRA and Sinn fein. 

 

Your accounts are fictivious and thank god that the clips are still out there proving the reds cheering about the attack and having government representatives there from the PTP. That is not preventing violence.. that is supporting it.

 

So stupid to continue bleating after you had your backside handed to you.

 

Just a mindless, content-free, broken record....

 

heybruce:

 

"Like many other fans of military rule, you invent 'facts' to support your fictitious account of events."

 

 

robblok:

 

"History clearly shows..."

 

 

This is pure Seajae-level nonsense

 

 

 

Another little point is the way robblok has twice now tried to associate the PTP government with those people applauding. It's so transparent and disingenuous. According to his nonsense logic, anyone there was equally implicated. Conveniently ignoring heybruce again blowing his nonsense away with a dose of realism: the point that even those applauding may not have fully known what was actually being conveyed.

 

The prospect of anything other than nonsense, EVIDENCE of claims made for instance, terrifies these people. Ironic their hive-like mentality draws them towards the obsession of saying "reds" in every sentence when they are so yellow both in name and nature.

 

 

robblok used to do better than this but he had nowhere left to go.

 

 

 

[Smarter Than You]

2 hours ago, halloween said:

I forget that reds never do anything wrong - they think they are winning when they've just been handed their butt on a plate. Keep moaning, I love it.

BTW  Today was a win for Democracy, but not in the way you meant it.

Nobody has said the Reds never do anything wrong - stop diverting with falsehoods.

 

The real (but gerrymandered) election will (may) occur next year, lets see what happens then.

What will Abhisit do?? Could he join with PTP to form a coalition that outnumbers the unelected Junta appointees?

If the turnout is 80% instead of 55%, who will the extra 25% support - it won't be the Junta or they would have shown up on Sunday.

 

The Junta used every trick in the book and could only muster 1/3 of eligible voters to support them, what's going to happen when the playing field is slightly more levelled - another Red landslide is coming and it will be followed by a dedicated campaign to re-write the constitution. 

 

Nobody is moaning - stop diverting with falsehoods.

 

If you think the recent referendum was an example of democracy then it explains a lot about what you post what you do.

 

Pyrrhic victory...... know what it means?

[Winniedapu]

7 minutes ago, Squeegee said:

 

So stupid to continue bleating after you had your backside handed to you.

 

Just a mindless, content-free, broken record....

 

heybruce:

 

"Like many other fans of military rule, you invent 'facts' to support your fictitious account of events."

 

 

robblok:

 

"History clearly shows..."

 

 

This is pure Seajae-level nonsense

 

 

 

Another little point is the way robblok has twice now tried to associate the PTP government with those people applauding. It's so transparent and disingenuous. According to his nonsense logic, anyone there was equally implicated. Conveniently ignoring heybruce again blowing his nonsense away with a dose of realism: the point that even those applauding may not have fully known what was actually being conveyed.

 

The prospect of anything other than nonsense, EVIDENCE of claims made for instance, terrifies these people. Ironic their hive-like mentality draws them towards the obsession of saying "reds" in every sentence when they are so yellow both in name and nature.

 

 

robblok used to do better than this but he had nowhere left to go.

 

 

 

 

I've recently started using the ignore function. As I'm sure that many who don't like my posts do to me.

 

I have to say that not reading Baerboxer, Halloween and a few others whose posts are not to my liking makes for a much less apoplectic evening... I recommend it.

 

Winnie

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

It's pointless at this point -- and a waste of forum space -- to re-debate the red-yellow war and who was responsible for the worst violence. One thing that is clear, to me at least, is that those in charge at the time did virtually nothing to prevent it or apprehend those responsible.

 

But I will say this, I knew some of the ordinary Thai citizens who participated in the street protests. And they weren't violent, thugs, didn't carry weapons or anything like that. Just simple, working BKK people who wanted an end to the violence and a government with less corruption. They certainly did not particularly want military rule. They wanted democracy, via fair elections.

 

Edited August 8, 2016 by TallGuyJohninBKK

[halloween]

4 minutes ago, Smarter Than You said:

Nobody has said the Reds never do anything wrong - stop diverting with falsehoods.

 

The real (but gerrymandered) election will (may) occur next year, lets see what happens then.

What will Abhisit do?? Could he join with PTP to form a coalition that outnumbers the unelected Junta appointees?

If the turnout is 80% instead of 55%, who will the extra 25% support - it won't be the Junta or they would have shown up on Sunday.

 

The Junta used every trick in the book and could only muster 1/3 of eligible voters to support them, what's going to happen when the playing field is slightly more levelled - another Red landslide is coming and it will be followed by a dedicated campaign to re-write the constitution. 

 

Nobody is moaning - stop diverting with falsehoods.

 

If you think the recent referendum was an example of democracy then it explains a lot about what you post what you do.

 

Pyrrhic victory...... know what it means?

Calling yourself smarter than you doesn't make it true. What has the junta lost that makes their clear victory pyrrhic?

 

You keep making your baseless claims that a red victory is coming, like the claims that the No vote would win. It has zero credibility with me.

 

As for trying to reduce the size of the 61% win by claiming it was 1/3 of eligible voters, try explaining why all those millions of red supporters couldn't be bothered to vote. I have one - they just don't care. All the moral outrage expressed by farang "democracy lovers" is just a piss into the gale of Thai apathy.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

Honestly, I don't know whether a YES vote or a NO vote in this instance was likely to move Thailand any closer to any real form of democracy in the foreseeable future.

 

As best as I can see it, no matter what way this particular vote went, the future was not looking especially bright.

 

Edited August 8, 2016 by TallGuyJohninBKK

[Gweiloman]

16 hours ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

It's pointless at this point -- and a waste of forum space -- to re-debate the red-yellow war and who was responsible for the worst violence. One thing that is clear, to me at least, is that those in charge at the time did virtually nothing to prevent it or apprehend those responsible.

 

But I will say this, I knew some of the ordinary Thai citizens who participated in the street protests. And they weren't violent, thugs, didn't carry weapons or anything like that. Just simple, working BKK people who wanted an end to the violence and a government with less corruption. They certainly did not particularly want military rule. They wanted democracy, via fair elections.

 

 

I also knew some of the ordinary Thai citizens that participated in the street protests. All they knew was that they wanted PTP out (every evening, I was listening to their on stage speeches and "op bpai Yingluck" because they were fed up with the corruption and seeming incompetence of the PTP government.

 

Sadly though, as was expected, they had no idea and no solutions as to what alternatives there were. They just did not think it through enough (par for the course I guess). 

 

Another thing to note is that most of the protestors were non-Isaan people. The Isaan people that I know that were there were there to buy some stuff, food, drinks etc. They were not camped there, supporting the protests.

[Gweiloman]

16 hours ago, Winniedapu said:

 

 

I seriously doubt that would come as a shock if it were true. As to whether it will make any difference - I don't know. I hope it would, but this is Thailand, not known for a surfeit of principles...

 

A bit surprising that the backlash is coming so quickly though - 24 hours seems like a short time. I understand from Thai TV this evening that multiple provinces in Isaan and the North of Thailand have said they do not accept the referendum results. Don't know where it will go though...

 

Winnie

 

In the Isaan village I know, they can't believe the results of 52% against and 48% for. In that village, they reckoned that the vote went 80/20 against and believed that to be representative throughout most of the NE.

[cumgranosalum]

The choice is quite a simple one

Do you want to continue with the Junta as government or do you want a military-run government?

[halloween]

Just now, cumgranosalum said:

The choice is quite a simple one

Do you want to continue with the Junta as government or do you want a military-run government?

And the answer was Yes.

[Hawk]

17 hours ago, nisakiman said:

My wife mentioned to me earlier today that she'd read on one of the Thai language websites she reads (probably not available in Thailand) that one of the wats near chatuchak had three hundred and something people registered to vote there, and returned six hundred and something 'yes' votes. I have no idea how much truth there is in that report, but it rather makes one wonder. To be honest, the way the whole thing was conducted, with no discussion and particularly no critisism permitted, it was a foregone conclusion that the 'yes' vote would prevail, regardless of whether there was any ballot box stuffing.

 

 

It seems that there were indeed "discrepancies" in favour of the government, other people have also noticed "strange" voting at totally unguarded polling stations in various parts of the country, there already has been a call for a proper recheck of the tickets cast.  But of course that is not going to happen.

[heybruce]

17 hours ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

It's pointless at this point -- and a waste of forum space -- to re-debate the red-yellow war and who was responsible for the worst violence. One thing that is clear, to me at least, is that those in charge at the time did virtually nothing to prevent it or apprehend those responsible.

 

But I will say this, I knew some of the ordinary Thai citizens who participated in the street protests. And they weren't violent, thugs, didn't carry weapons or anything like that. Just simple, working BKK people who wanted an end to the violence and a government with less corruption. They certainly did not particularly want military rule. They wanted democracy, via fair elections.

 

" One thing that is clear, to me at least, is that those in charge at the time did virtually nothing to prevent it or apprehend those responsible."

 

What did you want the government to do?  Send in the police with batons swinging, tear gas and live ammunition?  That would have provoked the coup that Suthep wanted and the military insisted upon.

 

They tried using reasonable force, but the results speak for themselves.  http://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/19/world/asia/2-killed-including-officer-as-thai-police-move-in-on-protests.html?_r=0  Perhaps your friends were unarmed, but that clearly was not the case for all the protesters.

 

The government pulled back and chose to wait out the protests.  It worked; the violence ended, everything outside of Lumpini park returned to normal, and the state of emergency was lifted.   http://www.aljazeera.com/news/asia-pacific/2014/03/thailand-lift-bangkok-state-emergency-201431862033939528.html    Only after the violence ended and things returned to normal did the military stage the coup under the pretext of....something about peace and reconciliation. 

 

Clearly the military had made up its mind to have a coup, and it wasn't going to let absence of a proper excuse prevent it.

 

" Just simple, working BKK people who wanted an end to the violence and a government with less corruption. "

 

And now they have a government led by: 

 

"While there are wide-ranging examples of Thai military units or individuals involved or complicit on organised crime, there is no concrete evidence to suggest that the government or the military see this connection as a serious problem or working actively to alleviate it. There is extensive evidence of the military's involvement in criminal networks associated with narcotics, prostitution, human trafficking, and illegal casinos. Military and paramilitary officers have been involved individually, at senior and lower ranking levels. Evidence suggests that security officials are illegally paid "protection" money to ensure that illegal mafia operations are allowed to continue. Tackling this issue is difficult given that those responsible for enforcing the law may also be implicated in illicit activities."  http://government.defenceindex.org/downloads/docs/thailand.pdf 

 

I'm curious, are your friend happy with the results of their efforts?

Edited August 9, 2016 by heybruce
addition

[halloween]

6 minutes ago, Hawk said:

 

 

It seems that there were indeed "discrepancies" in favour of the government, other people have also noticed "strange" voting at totally unguarded polling stations in various parts of the country, there already has been a call for a proper recheck of the tickets cast.  But of course that is not going to happen.

And now the losers come out with conspiracy theories, on top of all the pathetic excuses and misdirections. Tell me, do you think the junta managed to stuff 7,000,000 fake votes into ballot boxes?

[heybruce]

5 minutes ago, halloween said:

And now the losers come out with conspiracy theories, on top of all the pathetic excuses and misdirections. Tell me, do you think the junta managed to stuff 7,000,000 fake votes into ballot boxes?

No.  But I don't rule out that the junta counted the ballots, unsupervised, didn't like the results, and announced results they did like.

[Gweiloman]

5 minutes ago, heybruce said:

No.  But I don't rule out that the junta counted the ballots, unsupervised, didn't like the results, and announced results they did like.

 

Surely you are mistaken. Didn't I read earlier that there were independent observers from Timor-Leste, Bhutan, Nepal, Turkmenistan or something like that?