Flashermac Posted May 18, 2010 Report Share Posted May 18, 2010 Gunmen target innocent people: CRES 10:29pm There were about five to ten armed men firing at innocent people from a building near the Century Hotel, Col Sansern Kaewkamnerd, Centre for the Resolution of Emergency Situation (CRES) spokesman, said on Monday night. These men dressed like soldiers, he said. According to Col Sansern, they fired shots from the 24th floor of Cheewathai building. Authorities were trying to pressure them, but the operation was done with difficulty because the building was under construction, he said. Col Sansern also said that these gunmen must be supporters of the red-shirts, since no one can enter the area except red-shirt protesters. BP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThaiHome Posted May 18, 2010 Report Share Posted May 18, 2010 Could you elaborate where you see the bias? TH Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pom Michael Posted May 18, 2010 Report Share Posted May 18, 2010 Guys - Ok - what happened? Last night went to sleep early (for me) and slept in. Today walked to work - it is a complete change. Most shops on Sukhumvit from Soi 8 to Asoke open, vendors back on the street, construction work restarted, traffic moving - basically the noise of city life is back on. Only thing lacking was the skytrain sounds and the buses on the street. People walking around like the events of the last 2 days are over - and life (at least in this area of town) is back to normal. Did stopping the money flow make a big immediate impact? Sukhumvit Asoke update at 09:30 Traffic moving in all directions (and much more traffic than yesterday) No police or army presence Skytrain closed - but skybridge over Asoke open MRT closed Many more street vendors (push cart type) open for business, and the fixed sidewalk vendors where starting to open also. Even most of my staff came to work today. Good signs from here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
acockasian Posted May 18, 2010 Report Share Posted May 18, 2010 This is great news- hope it continues. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bust Posted May 18, 2010 Author Report Share Posted May 18, 2010 18 May 2010 (Adrees Latif/Reuters) Is this the end of democracy in Thailand? Thailand's fledgling democracy is now all but dead; bloodied and battered on the streets of Bangkok. How did this happen? In 2005 we were in a northern Thai village undertaking field research on local economic and political issues. Our research coincided with the national election held in February that year. Thaksin Shinawatra's now disbanded "Thais Love Thais" party, backed up by a formidable campaign machine, stormed to victory with strong support in the rural north and northeast. It was Thailand's most comprehensive election victory ever. In the country's rural heartlands Thaksin's policies of universal health care, infrastructure investment, local economic stimulus, and agricultural debt relief were wildly popular. Even the murders that punctuated his bloody "war on drugs" were applauded by many rural Thais who were fed up with the nightmare of narcotic abuse. To succeed at the ballot box, Thaksin learned to speak the language of rural Thailand in a cadence that alternated between populism and brutality. In the northern village where we were working, Thaksin's policies were not embraced uncritically. Vigorous debate about the positive and negative impacts of government action on local livelihoods was an everyday aspect of electoral culture. Many commentators say that rural people don't care about government corruption. Of course they do, but they have their own ways of weighing up the contentious trade-off between private gain and public benefit. In 2005, these debates informed a vigorous local tussle between the sitting "Thais Love Thais" candidate and a popular opposition figure who had served the area well in previous governments. This was a very real contest. On election day the village hall was set-up to meet the strict requirements of Thailand's electoral laws. Officials, conscripted from the ranks of local school teachers and village leaders, managed the hundreds of voters who came to exercise their franchise. The turnout was more than 80 per cent. Scrutineers nominated by the main candidates amiably watched over proceedings. At the end of the day, once the lines of voters had fulfilled their obligations, the ballot boxes were sealed with string and wax and then transported, under police guard and with a sizeable escort, to the electorate's vote-counting centre in the grounds of a provincial high school. The ballot boxes from far-flung villagers were assembled for the count. Groups from each village waited patiently to empty their ballot box into the huge tub from which the votes were retrieved. College students were enlisted to count the votes and write the growing tallies on results boards. For those, like us, for whom elections involve a night in front of the television, this was an extraordinarily open and participatory event. It was held, quite literally, in the public gaze. By the end of the night it was clear that Thaksin's man had won, despite a strong showing from his opponent in many villages. Thailand's voters have been through this process twice since then. In 2006 Thaksin called a snap election in response to street protests in Bangkok. The opposition, lead by the current prime minister, Abhisit Vejjajiva, boycotted the election, knowing they had no chance of victory. Thaksin attracted over 60 per cent of the valid votes cast. He was eventually overthrown in the coup of September 2006 and another election was held in December 2007. Thaksin was in exile, but his political allies won again, falling just short of an absolute majority. But the anti-Thaksin forces could not accept this result either and they managed to manoeuvre Abhisit Vejjaiva into power on the back of the yellow shirt occupation of Bangkok's international airport and the dissolution of the pro-Thaksin governing party. The detailed history of the tactics of the red shirts, since they began their current round of protests in Bangkok on March 12 will be written in the coming months and years. There have been mistakes, miscalculations and some unedifying displays of thuggery and provocation. But the underlying motivation of the protesters is clear: they are fed up with having election results overturned. They have gone peacefully to the ballot box three times since 2005 and each time elite forces associated with the palace, the military, the judiciary and Abhisit's Democrat Party, have disregarded their decision. The red shirts have been told that their votes don't count, that they are uneducated country bumpkins, and that they sell their votes to the highest bidder. It is unsurprising that many of them were suspicious about Abhisit's offer to hold yet another election on November 14. There were even more suspicious about the willingness of the forces that back Abhisit to respect its result. The elite's disregard for electoral processes has opened the door for violent elements on both sides of the political spectrum. So where to now? [Removed - KS] When the shooting and burning in Bangkok finally subsides Thailand is going to have to rebuild faith in its basic democratic institutions. Cultivating a more respectful attitude to the political choices of its many rural inhabitants would be a good place to start. [color:blue] Andrew Walker and Nicholas Farrelly[/color] are Southeast Asia specialists in the ANU's College of Asia and the Pacific. They are the co-founders of New Mandala, a blog on mainland Southeast Asian politics and societies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave32 Posted May 18, 2010 Report Share Posted May 18, 2010 As in what' date=' at all, did your post of some political propaganda have to do with anything I wrote? I've noticed a trend on here of red promoters seeking to dismiss critics as 'yellows' or defenders of the status quo. What a crock of shit. Eg. Troll. [/quote'] Settle down sport....had nothing to do with your post at all. Just an interesting piece I thought worthy of sharing. As far as your "trend" goes care to share some examples? Sport. That's good. I like that. Alright, I was a wee bit out of line calling you a troll. Just a wee bit mind you. My mates and I here are brutal with each other and it's OK --sometimes I need to remind myself that etiquette dictates you behave otherwise on a public forum. And it was an interesting piece. And I am ignorant on many things Thai, but learning quickly. The learning curve is exceptionally steep. To be honest, my own visceral response to what is happening is a surprise. Have a made a couple close friends in Bangkok over the past year whom I speak with now almost daily -- and, surprise, I actually give a shit about what is happening. Not kidding. Hope this current (sad) state of conflict doesn't become the new norm. As for critics of the Reds being discounted as 'yellow' or pro status quo, c'mon, do you really want me to start calling people out and posting examples?. Surely you've read the threads. Rest ssured I'm not. I think the enormous extent of past corruption and instability is the path that lead to the present. I also think there a lot of thugs in the red camp who are driven by a thirst for power and have little regard for the consequences, especially to the people in the city -- whom they apparently hold in contempt. I might be wrong, but I don't think so... Godspeed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chuckwoww Posted May 18, 2010 Report Share Posted May 18, 2010 This trouble in Thailand is making a lot of people think about things. I know I am. I'm even missing Larry David... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
USVirgin Posted May 18, 2010 Report Share Posted May 18, 2010 This trouble in Thailand is making a lot of people think about things. I know I am. I'm even missing Larry David... Despite all the the admonitions from our first times in the bars, we farang still try to think. How stupid are we? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chuckwoww Posted May 18, 2010 Report Share Posted May 18, 2010 Yeah, just when I thought I was braindead the Thais have to pull another stunt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drogon Posted May 18, 2010 Report Share Posted May 18, 2010 Don't know if it has been posted already http://www.bangkokpost.com/breakingnews/178285/govt-extends-holiday-until-friday What a suprise... http://www.bangkokpost.com/breakingnews/178280/tourist-arrivals-down-by-half http://www.bangkokpost.com/business/economics/37487/thai-smiles-fade Interesting article and probably quite objective and based on hard facts http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/10119415.stm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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