Deaths in Bangkok

[bumper]

This has been a no winner from the beginning we might just get a taste of what it's like to live with the freedom fighters. I hope its a flash fire that burns out quickly. Worse day I have seen in Thailand.

[FrazeeDK]

2000-0600 Curfew applies to ALL Provinces/Amphoe that are currently under EMERGENCY Decree.

[FrazeeDK]

Note Nattawuat's speech after his arrest (paraphrased), I'm sorry I cannot go home with you, we will continue the struggle."

The end of the Rajaprasong protest and arrest of most of its principal "hard-core" leaders certainly is not the end of all of this. The inequities that are the crux of the Reds protests (yes there are indeed some real complaints) and the external financial support and influence of the square-headed one will cause this to go on and on.. Add to it the ill-will within military factions that has been generated by Col Rhomklao and MG Khattiya's assasinations and the failure of the police force to aggressively support the current government and we've got trouble in River city!! In Bangkok, we've got roaming Reds and Black shirts who are intent on disrupting the city. Up in the provinces those that didn't go to Bangkok to demonstrate are intent upon leaving their mark and having their say. As I've said many times, 'wheels-within-wheels" beyond our imagination. Expect mucho jockeying within the various political parties over the next couple of months if the PM does go forward with November elections (he hasn't ruled them out)..

[parrot]

"if the PM does go forward with November elections "

Will he last that long?

[immortal1977]

Just read that hardcore leader Arisman also has been arrested (according to the BKK Post).

[FrazeeDK]

Parrot,

Mister "Mark" fine well-spoken Oxford educated man that he is, will last as long as his various sponsors (military, coalition partners) want him to last. That said, due to mr Mark being left holding the bag for the deaths and injuries (he is the top dog on paper), I really don't seem him going much longer than the 14 November date he initially proposed for elections. The question is how will Thailand dig itself out of this mess. Which folks can all parties trust to oversee a full sit-down of all concerned to explore the PM's 5 point plan (which is pretty good overall).

[hereinudon]

Over the last couple of days, I've tried to pinpoint the 'problem route cause'.
When this is solved, we'll then see 'democracy'.
Quite simply, the 'problem route cause' is 'Vote buying'.
Yes, there are a multitude of factors too numerous to list (social, economic and historic). However, as a first step, solving this problem will result in democracy.
Is vote buying not illegal during elections? If a political party and or a candidate buys votes, does this not invalidate an election win?
If voters are sincere and want 'democracy' and no 'corruption', then the first step is to deal with 'voting'
Easy for me to say, sat at my computer, harder in reality to implement.
So people of wonderful Thailand, we know what needs to be solved, but the question is how to implement the solution?

[luangtom]

Problem "Root" Cause.......

[jackspratt]

Some photos from yesterday in Bangkok.

http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2010/0 ... ngkok.html

[wazza]

This is a good timeline for the breaking news

http://live.reuters.com/Event/Bangkok_protests

[nkstan]

I see they arrested Arisman!He is the Red leader that escaped out of the hotel window awhile back.I saw a utube video of him telling the Reds to come to bangkok with empty glass bottles to be filled with petrol,saying don't bother filling them in Khon Kaen,as they could fill them in Bangkok and if the Gov't cracked down ,to burn Bangkok down!
I have tried to find it again on Utube,but I have been unable to find it!

I would guess he is in deep doodoo!

[pompui]

I see they arrested Arisman!He is the Red leader that escaped out of the hotel window awhile back.I saw a utube video of him telling the Reds to come to bangkok with empty glass bottles to be filled with petrol,saying don't bother filling them in Khon Kaen,as they could fill them in Bangkok and if the Gov't cracked down ,to burn Bangkok down!
I have tried to find it again on Utube,but I have been unable to find it!

I would guess he is in deep doodoo!

Also according to Bangkok Post today,there is a video of Natthawut Saikue,another of the leaders, telling the protesters to 'burn them,brothers and sisters' so seems some big bills will be coming their way to be paid or will the one abroad cover all costs

http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/local/1 ... s-continue

[Laan Yaa Mo]

Yes, there will be a price to pay. To be fair and consistent, one would expect it to be in the same range that Sondhi, and the rest of the PAD leadership, had to pay for the rampage by the yellow shirts.

[FrazeeDK]

Zen of Central World comes out ahead on insurance..
http://www.bangkokpost.com/breakingnews ... r-6-months

The rear section of CentralWorld mall could possibly be rebuilt in six months, but the rest will take a lot longer, a Central Pattana Plc executive member said on Friday.

CentralWorld mall, the second-biggest retail complex in Southeast Asia, suffered massive damage due to arson on Wednesday when troops dislodged protesters from Ratchoprasong intersection, which they had occupied since April 3.

The fire raged out of control because authorities had cut off electricity and water supplies to the Ratchaprasong area. This hindered firefighters and disabled the mall's sprinkler system.

"We have industrial all risks insurance of 13 billion baht and another US$100 million for riot and terrorism,'' said chief financial officer Naris Cheyklin.
"Zen was badly hit but the back bit hasn't been affected that much and can be renovated. The cost of rebuilding and renovating everything shouldn't reach 10 billion baht, within the insurance limits.''CPN invested 26 billion baht to open the store in 2006, aiming to draw 150,000 shoppers per day. About 5,000 people worked there in at least 500 shops.
Zen has seven floors totalling 50,000 square metres, topped by 13 floors of Zen World with another 30,000 sq m. It sold clothes and other goods targeted at younger customers, tourists and affluent Thais.
The store expected to lose 1.35 billion baht in sales if it has to close for renovations for at least six months. Zen had targeted sales of 2.7 billion baht this year.
CPN closed 12 of its 15 stores in Bangkok and the surrounding area on Thursday because of the security situation, but said all of them opened today except for those in the Silom and Chidlom areas. Its store in Chiang Mai, which also experienced public disorder on Wednesday, was also closed.
Delaying the planned temporary closure for renovation of another flagship department store on Lat Phrao "could be an option'' to compensate for lost revenue, said Mr Naris.

and I'm betting the other heavy hitters in Central World also had plenty of "terrorism" insurance. That of course, leaves out the lower level fashion stores and "Mom and Pop's" stores althought they certainly would be high end....

[FrazeeDK]

power and water was cut off to Rajaprasong?? In some places.. But, I'd be utterly surprised if Central World didn't have fire water resevoirs on the roof and their own power generating system...

[wazza]

Nobody inside to activate it though.

[bumper]

Well doesn't sound like this is over yet. What I see now is the blame game. I hope they can get past all that and deal with the real issues.

AFTERMATH
PM reassures kingdom
By The Nation
Published on May 22, 2010


Abhisit vows rehabilitation, says situation improving; Premier cancels Russia trip to lead restoration of peace; Red shirts return home but promise to carry on struggle

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said yesterday that normalcy was returning to the country and that the government would begin to bridge the deep divide as well as heal the emotional wounds of people who were victims of the military crackdown.

"The government would continue the road map for national reconciliation as announced earlier and we would have an additional plan to repair all the damage brought about by the conflict - mental, economic, social and even political," he said.

"The restoration and reconciliation plan needs the intensive participation and cooperation of people from all walks of life. We will help each other rebuild our nation for the happiness of all," Abhisit said in a televised address.

The military crackdown since late last week has killed 52 people, mostly civilians, and injured more than 400 others while many buildings were burned down by angry protesters.

Abhisit expressed his gratitude to all concerned officials, including rescue workers, who took risks to help the government disperse the red-shirt protesters from the Rajprasong business and shopping centre.

"This is one of the worst situations the country has ever faced. The government regrets the losses and thanks those who sent supportive messages to the authorities. The decision is to bring the country back to normalcy and maintain the rule of law," he said.

The immediate task is to ensure the safety and the full restoration of normalcy, he added. In the medium and long-term, restrictions due to the emergency rule will be gradually lifted in keeping with the pace of normalisation.

Prime Minister Abhisit will return to Government House to resume his duties on Monday and conduct the weekly cabinet meeting on Tuesday to build confidence and demonstrate that the situation had returned to normal.

The premier cancelled his plan to visit Russia from June 7-9 to continue overseeing the restoration of normalcy in the country, a government official said.

However, some officials remained diffident about the situation after a number of bombs, including C-4 explosive substances, were found hidden in cars abandoned in many locations in Bangkok yesterday. They believed other similar attempts must have been made. The authorities have asked people to inform them if they found any suspected cars.

Meanwhile, red-shirt protesters who returned to their hometowns in the North and Northeast declared they would not give up the struggle for democracy and social justice and would resume the fight soon.

Somyot Pruksakasemsuk, a social activist, said he would form a new group called Democratic Conference to revive the red-shirt group's struggle.

Former communist insurgent Surachai Danwattananusorn, the leader of Red Siam, said the group would stage a rally at Sanam Luang to carry on the reds' fight once the state of emergency was lifted.

Government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn said the authorities were closely monitoring some armed militants who were still active and would never give up their fight easily. The authorities were worried they would go underground. They might split themselves into small groups or cells to conduct sabotage or assassinations in other provinces, he said.

The Centre for the Resolution of the Emergency Situation said yesterday that authorities had conducted inspections of 10 buildings in Rajprasong and nearby areas to secure them from armed militants. The buildings included Rajdamri Hotel, Regent House, Erawan Hotel, Centre Point and Four Seasons, where authorities suspected militants might have been hiding.

The authorities lifted some restrictions to enable restoration of public utility supplies such as electricity and power, said Army spokesman Sansern Kaewkamnerd.

The centre opened yesterday for registration of business owners who suffered losses during the Army crackdown and riots to claim compensation from the government, he said.

Workers yesterday cleaned up the Rajprasong intersection after officials had finished their inspection and secured the area, said Sansern.

[Aardvark]

The Calm after the Storm.......http://www.nationmultimedia.com/home/20 ... 30000.html

[nkstan]

This sums up what basicly happened,putting responsibility on the shoulders of Thaksin.who,IMO,should be arrested,extradicted and tried for high treason along with his paid hirelings!

KEYNOTE SPEECH

The truth today points to the big lie of Thaksin
Published: 22/05/2010 at 02:31 AM
Online news: Opinion

We are asked today to talk about the future of Asia, but back home my Prime Minister, as well as over 60 million other Thais are addressing the very immediate issue of the future of Thailand.


Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij.
I believe what has happened in Thailand provides critical lessons for the rest of developing Asia. Whether I like it or not, therefore, this is the subject I need to discuss with all of you.

My objective in coming to Japan to represent my government and the Thai people at the Nikkei International Conference, is not to sugar-coat the situation back home by saying that the recent political crisis in my country is insignificant. Nor will I downplay what has transpired by claiming that the events were not as disruptive, violent nor disturbing as was portrayed in the international media, because the events were indeed disruptive, violent and extremely disturbing.

Ladies and Gentlemen, this is not a ``welcome back to the Land of Smiles, let's go shopping and invest in Thailand'' speech. No doubt there will be a time soon when I will come back to Tokyo to make that speech. But today the purpose of my visit is to explain to you, our friend and partner, the truth of what happened. An honest and uncensored explanation of what happened, because as long-term political and economic partners, we at least owe you the truth.

The truth is this: as of yesterday independent bodies reported that the total human toll of Thailand's political crisis amounted to over 400 casualties and close to 80 deaths, including Mr Hiroyuki Muramoto, a Japanese cameraman with Reuters news service.

A little over two months ago, the court had found former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra guilty of corruption and seized a portion of his assets. What he then engin eered was to rally political supporters and pay gang members to come to Bangkok for a large-scale protest. Using messages of anger and hate to enrage the crowd, the former prime minister video-linked with the crowd on a nightly basis and asked them to fight to bring the government down and beat a path for his triumphant return.

Many of you, including government leaders, have seen first-hand what the red shirts are capable of, when they violently stormed the Asean leaders' summit in Pattaya last year.

To minimise further losses on both sides, Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva offered an olive branch by agreeing to dissolve Parliament more than one year before his term officially ends, and agreed to endeavour on a comprehensive path of national reconciliation and reform to do away with injustices in the economic and political structures.

As part of the process, the government also agreed to improve social welfare, education and health care for the masses.

The act of reconciliation split the protesters in two; the doves agreed but the hawks under the supervision of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra kept shifting the terms of negotiation, making settlement difficult, if not impossible.

After two weeks of stalling and when it was assessed by all sides that the protesters were unwilling or incapable of coming to the negotiation table, coupled with a thoughtless move by the red shirts to storm a public hospital and threats of rape against hospital staff, public sentiment overwhelmingly turned against the protesters and the government moved to secure the streets, causing the leadership of the protesters to surrender.

It was a different story however, for hundreds of hardcore armed protesters who refused to believe that the ride had ended. Armed with everything from home-made Molotov cocktail bombs to military grenade launchers, they began to senselessly loot and burn Bangkok one building at a time _ 36 buildings in all, ranging from banks and shopping malls to government offices.

The trick of telling a big lie successfully is to attach it to a big truth. The Big Lie of the leaders and of ex-prime minister Thaksin was that this fight was about democracy and income inequality. Not once did the red shirts offer any solutions or suggestions as to how they would address these issues.

The opposition party in parliament which openly supports the red shirts, meanwhile boycotted parliamentary activities in order to allow the continuation of the street protests, thus crucially and cynically giving up the chances of a democratic and parliamentary solution to the conflict.

Having said that, by attaching a Big Truth to the lie, they were able to build on a critical base of moral support.

That Big Truth is that in Thailand there remains poverty and there remains income inequality. Is it worse than other developing economies? I doubt it, but nevertheless it is a problem.

If there is a lesson for Asia on this issue therefore, and at the risk of being too simplistic, the lesson might be that open, competitive and relatively equal access to resources and opportunities is more important than the need to follow strict Western models of democracy.

But then another important lesson from Asia also is that we are a diverse continent and with a diverse culture. This means what works for one isn't necessarily best for another.

Democracy can be hard work, and can be even painful at times. The key is not that political crisis doesn't occur, the key is that when it does, how does society deal with it. The challenge over the past two months for Thailand has been: how does a democratic government deal with an armed insurgency and rebellion that so successfully uses innocent citizens as a human shield?

I will not give ourselves high marks in terms of implementation, but I would give our government the highest marks for intent. And that intent has been to ensure that we give a negotiated outcome that causes the least damage to society the chance it deserves, even at the expense of strictly exercising the right to uphold the rule of law.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/opinion/opin ... of-thaksin

[Laan Yaa Mo]

Along with the PAD leadership and hirelings, I presume.