Coup?

[CTO]

Fidel - one topic you and I will always disagree about. Thing is what makes you think PAD will be better?

 

Their policy of only 30% of member of parliament be elected and the rest nominated? Nominated by who?

 

Frankly if PAD wanted to prove they are democratic - act democratic.

 

Remember regardless previous elections - this one was set up and run by the coup leaders.

 

If the democrats couldn't organize themselves to win with that sort of bias - makes you realize what people want.

[Faustian]

I think the idea of nominations is because the ballot box fails every time in Thailand. Democracy is fine if there is democratic process with the people participating in an informed manner. In Thailand the corruption and conflicting interests of the politicians seem to hamper any possible way forward. So, sure nominations aren't democracy, but I think their view is to remove the corrupt via this nomination process.

 

Of course it could be argued that everyone has their price and who isn't corrupt or corruptible...?

 

 

[CTO]

I was bored (I had to be) and bought The Nation today.

 

Normally rabid to the point of hysterically anti Thaksin pro PAD I was gobsmacked to see that they had page after page AGAINST PAD.

 

Common verdict was PAD overstepped it's bounds and WHY when things are actually going there way - slowly albeit

[Flashermac]

Bangkok Post

27 Aug 2008

 

Northern, southern protesters enter Bangkok

 

Thousands of anti-government demonstrators from northern and southern Thailand joined forces with the Peopleâ??s Alliance for Democracy (PAD)â??s mass rallies in Bangkok on Wednesday, in an attempt to oust the coalition government led by the People Power party (PPP).

 

After the PADâ??s crude attempt to take hold of the state-run National Broadcasting Services of Thailand (NBT), the Government House and other state buildings on Tuesday, the group in the capital will be joined by its allied demonstrators from the northern and southern regions.

 

More than 1,000 protesters in the North staged an anti-government rally in Phichit province on Tuesday, and they marched to Bangkok to unite with the PADâ??s core members. They travelled by railways and public buses in the morning.

 

On Tuesday, thousands of demonstrators from 14 southern provinces also organised a rally in Chumphon province and denied access to the southern gateway on Petchkasem Road for about 10 hours. The demonstration disbanded and travelled to the capital via eight tour buses and personal pick-up trucks since late Tuesday night.

 

 

 

People in Bangkok disagree in PAD's moves: survey

 

 

About 70% of people questioned in a survey conducted by Bangkok University disagreed with the Peopleâ??s Alliance for Democracy (PAD)â??s moves to topple the government.

 

According to the survey, 72.6% of respondents disagreed with PADâ??s blocking of the roads to oust the government. About 70% disagreed with the groupâ??s breaking into the state-run NBT. About 68.2% also disagreed with their move to besiege the government and state buildings.

 

About 42.8% of the respondents said the government should take legal action against PAD core leaders while 31.7% disagreed.

 

Almost half of the respondents said the government should not impose emergency degree in Bangkok to quell unrest while 27.6% said it should.

 

Almost 52% of those questioned in the poll want soldiers to join hands with police forces to control the situation while 38.4% want them to remain neutral. About 4.5% want soldiers to stage a coup.

 

[color:red]The survey questioned 1,023 people,[/color] with more than 18 years of age, in Bangkok on Tuesday

 

[khun_khon_neua]

Court-approved warrants issued to arrest PAD leaders

 

 

 

The Criminal Court has approved the police request to issue warrants to arrest the PAD leaders on charges relating to the Tuesday's unruly protests. The warrants were out in the early afternoon of Wednesday.

 

As soon as receiving the news on the warrants, PAD leader Chamlong Srimuang walked to sit among the crowds on the lawn of Government House to await his arrest.

 

Police are expected to apprehend nine core leaders.

 

The nine are Chamlong Srimuang, Sondhi Limthongkul, Pipop Thongchai, Somkiart Pongpaiboon, Somsak Kosaisuk, Suriyasai Katasila, Chaiwat Sinsuwong, Amorn Amornrattananont, and Therdpoom Chaidee.

 

The Nation

 

 

[khun_khon_neua]

PAD leaders bracing for their arrests

The People's Alliance for Democracy decided on Wednesday that its five leaders would not flee nor surrender to police if the Criminal Court approved the warrants to arrest them later this afternoon.

 

 

PAD leader Somsak Kosaisuk said he and his four colleagues would await for police to arrest them at the rally site inside the compound of Government House.

 

"Police can arrest us anytime as we will be at the Government House and will not use people as shield," he said.

 

 

[Faustian]

Nice, that will provoke...

[Flashermac]

Is "core leaders" English ... or is that a term the Post has invented?

 

 

[Bangkoktraveler]

I thought he was talking about Cheney.

[waerth]

First I am happy my friend was wrong.

 

Second I am happy to see that it seems Samak seems to have learned from his past and he (or the people surrounding him) seems to have kept his head cool. I respect him for that.

 

If Pad would have been smarter then to storm buildings. There is one thing in protesting in front of a building which is pretty much standard operating procedure in demonstrations. Even blocking traffic is normal for demonstrations. But storming government house, a tv stations, minsteries. Like CTO mentioned, that would definately bring out the riot squad back home and get you a few dents in your skull or get arrested. Also bringing weapons .

 

I do not know what the PAD leaders were smoking when they thought this up but it cannot be good. I hope the arrests will be done peacefully.

 

Waerth