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Thailand Het laatste Thailand nieuws
61

RED-SHIRT RALLIES
PM declares national holiday after traffic turmoil in Bangkok

By The Nation
Published on April 10, 2009

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**Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva last night declared today a public holiday as he stood firm against the red-shirt protesters who caused traffic turmoil in Bangkok. (Check which roads are closed insideX **

With today an additional holiday, the long Songkran break will be extended to six days.

Abhisit flew back from Pattaya for the national television address.

He announced the government would start strictly enforcing the law against any troublemakers among the protesters.

The prime minister said the number of protesters yesterday had dropped 70 per cent from an estimated 100,000 on the first day of the rally on Wednesday. That was possibly due, he said, to many people having decided the protest was intended to become violent.

“The government is aware that the remaining protesters want to incite confrontation and violence with the aim of causing a riot,” he said.

He also ruled out protesters’ demands for him to resign or dissolve the House of Representatives.

The prime minister insisted his government was working for the national interest, not personal benefit.

“I will never place my personal interest above the country’s benefit,” he said.

Meanwhile, the** red shirts **wreaked havoc with Bangkok’s traffic when they blocked a number of major thoroughfares in the city, including Victory Monument.
ASEAN SUMMITS TARGETED

Protest leaders asked for the** red shirts to gather in Pattaya today at the start of the Asean summits with dialogue partner countries. They threatened to obstruct the events, in which leaders from the 10 Asean **member countries are to meet with their counterparts from China, Japan, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand and India.

A government source said the authorities would not declare a state of emergency but might do so if difficulties caused by the protest became “unacceptable”.

Thaksin yesterday apologised to Bangkok residents for the road blockade by the taxi drivers, but added that such “small inconveniences” were necessary for political changes that were “for the betterment of the country”.

In his speech last night broadcast to his supporters, the ex-leader called for “the last revolution of the country to root out all the elite members who are behind the coup of 2006”.

“The power of the people is paramount. There must be no other power beyond the power of the people any more,” said the fugitive ex-premier.

Thaksin also joked that Army chief General Anupong Paochinda should publicly call for the prime minister to resign like he did when Thaksin’s brother-in-law, Somchai Wongsawat, was the government head last year.

Traffic in many areas of the city became paralysed in the evening after red-shirt protesters on the second day of their major rally gathered at the Constitution Court,** Democrat Party **headquarters, the Foreign Ministry, Victory Monument and Democracy Monument.

Dozens of taxi drivers sympathetic to the** red shirts **parked their vehicles on roads around the Victory Monument roundabout and with the help of red-clad protesters blocked all traffic from entering.

The blockade paralysed traffic for several kilometres around Victory Monument.

Protest leader Jatuporn Promphan, speaking at the main rally site outside of Government House, apologised to commuters for the road blockade.

“It’s necessary. We must opt for a method that causes the least effects. The seizure of airports by the** PAD **caused more damage,” he said, referring to the anti-Thaksin People’s Alliance for Democracy.

The protesters, calling themselves the Great Masses of the Red-Shirt People, issued a statement rejecting the status of the** Abhisit Vejjajiva **government “both de jure and de facto”.

The statement, read out to the demonstrators by protest leader Veera Musigapong, also described the rally by the** red shirts **as “a legitimate exercise of citizens’ rights against an illegitimate government”.

In addition to Bangkok,** red shirts **staged protests in 21 provinces, mostly in the North and the Northeast.

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Bron: The Nation

62

Honderden Thaise demonstranten bij top ASEAN

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Copyright 2008, Novum

(Novum/AP) - Honderden Thaise demonstranten hebben hun protest tegen de regering vrijdag verplaatst naar de badplaats Pattaya, waar de jaarlijkse top van de Asean (Associatie van Zuidoost-Aziatische Landen) wordt gehouden. Ze dreigen de bijeenkomst te verstoren als premier Abhisit Vejjejiva niet aftreedt.

De in het rood geklede demonstranten, aanhangers van de afgezette premier Thaksin Shinawatra, drongen door een kordon heen dat de politie had opgetrokken rond het congrescentrum waar de top wordt gehouden. Er waren geen meldingen van geweld, maar dat kan veranderen na aankomst van honderden soldaten in oproertenue die naar de plek onderweg zijn.

Op de top worden behalve de tien leden van de Asean ook Japan, China, Zuid-Korea, India, Australië en Nieuw-Zeeland verwacht. Vicepremier Suthep Thaugsuban verzekerde de bezoekende staatshoofden dat hun veiligheid zal worden gegarandeerd.

De demonstranten lieten auto’s met afgevaardigden passeren, maar zeiden dat zei hun strategie zullen wijzigen en de toegang tot het congrescentrum blokkeren als Abhisit hun eis om af te treden blijft negeren.

*Bron: MSN Nieuws / www.msn.nl *

63

Protesters to stop blocking Victory Monument at 5 pm.

After creating traffic chaos in inner Bangkok, the red-shirted protesters will stop blocking the Victory Monument at 5 pm.

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Anti-govt protesters lied down under a tow truck of police to block police from towing their vehicle out. They blocked Suthisarn Intersection on Vipavadi Rangsit road on Thursday.//Charnnarong Porndilokrad

Jatuporn Promphan, a red-shirted leader, told reporters that protesters would stop blocking the roads at the Victory Monument at 5 pm.

He said the Victory Monument was no longer important strategic location after the government decided to make Friday an extra national holiday.

He said protesters at the Victory Monument would move back to join the rally at the Government House.

He said some red-shirted protester would return to their home provinces during the Songkran holidays by the red-shirted movement would have enough force to maintain our position outside the Government House.

The Victory Monument is a major intersection in the heart of Bangkok. Protesters managed to paralyse traffic in inner Bangkok by blocking the intersection Thursday afternoon.

Jatuporn was speaking to reporters after he and Weng Tojitrakan, another red-shirted leader, went to address protesters on the stage at the Victory Monument.

Jatuporn said the fight by the red-shirted became successful because it at least forced the government to give an extra holiday.

Jatuporn told the protesters that the red-shirted movement would hold another mass rally after the long Songkran holidays.

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Police try to convince pro-Thaksin protesters to stop blocking Suthisarn Intersection on Vipavadi Rangsit road on Thursday. However they refused and lied down to block tow trucks

“This time it will be do-or-die battle,” Jatuporn said.

He told the crowd that the red-shirted movement would deploy protesters to hound Prime Minister** Abhisit Vejjajiva **during the Songkran holidays.

Speaking to the crowd at the Victory Monument, Weng said the road blockade at the Victory Monument cause hardship to hospitals in the area.

“We don’t want to cause hardship to the hospitals but we want to terrify the government,” Weng said.

Speaking to reporters after addressing the crowd, Jatuporn said he did not believe the statement of the Rajvithi Hospital that it was running out of oxygen for patients.
“The claim was only an act of play by the Public Health Ministry. We did not block ambulances or vehicles of the hospital. Doctors should not have allowed themselves to become tools of the government,” Jatuporn said.
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Bron: The Nation

64

Round Two: Everyone Loses !!!

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Police and soldiers and red shirted protesters engage in a scuffle as the protesters tried to reach hotel which is hosting Asean Summit on Friday.

By Tulsathit Taptim
Even though Thaksin Shinawatra may be laughing, there is no winner after the Pattaya infamy.

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Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva makes a gesture during a press conference to mark launching of Asean Summit in Pattaya on Friday

Pattaya will lose billions of baht. Prime Minister** Abhisit Vejjajiva has lost his face, and his job is under greater threat. To other Thais, Songkran has been pretty much spoiled. Thailand’s image as a whole has taken a new hit. Economically struggling Asean has to defer discussing some crucial plans. The red-shirted movement, while having achieved a key objective of preventing the Asean summit with dialogue partners, can’t be content with the glaring truth that, like its rival People’s Alliance for Democracy, it has become its own worst enemy.
And**[URL=“http://www.nationmultimedia.com/search/adsearch.php?keyword=+Thaksin+”] Thaksin **Shinawatra **will only get brief satisfaction from the turmoil in Pattaya that led to the cancellation of the summit and declaration of state of emergency which leaves everything hanging in the balance. He will be cheering a “triumph” of his supporters in the next address through video link, but deep down he must know that he is not fighting to win, that to get even is the best he can get. He has been way past of the point of no-return, and what happened in Pattaya on Saturday only serves to lengthen the distance between the man and his motherland.
The biggest loss, however, belongs to us, no matter what colours of the shirts we are wearing. The political divide was not about to be bridged any time soon, but the Pattaya incident has further dimmed the fragile hope. We had wanted things to improve, but now we would be glad if they don’t get any worse.
It’s been an-eye-for-an-eye showdown. You can seize Government House, so we can block city traffic. You can take over the airport, so we can torpedo an international summit. You fight for democracy that rejects corrupt polticians, we can fight for democracy that respects the voices of the poor.
A common sense of national values has been a long-time victim, who was beaten to near death on Saturday. The nation has lost its way for some time, and the Pattaya infamy ensures there will remain no light at the end of the tunnel in the foreseeable future. The vunerable national harmony has been dealt a new blow, and the threat to nationhood has never looked more real.
Those involved in the years-long power struggle have done their best to make sure that politics affects everyone’s life. Too bad the general Thais have only been feeling the negative effects of a war that those responsible insisted was for a greater good. We have come to learn that perhaps people go into war not because they are different. Maybe what has been happening was caused by the fact that we are all too much alike.
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Bron: The Nation

65

Red shirts run amok

PM narrowly avoids protesters’ attack / Furious UDD supporters vow to `fight to the death’

By: POST REPORTERS Published: 12/04/2009 at 11:47 PM Military and police forces were on alert Sunday night as the government stood firm behind its order for rioters to clear the streets or face harsher measures under a state of emergency.
Armed soldiers supported by armoured personnel carriers and police in riot gear were deployed across the city on Sunday as members of the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship vowed to fight to the death to overthrow the Democrat-led government.

The government declared a state of emergency over Bangkok and surrounding provinces after red shirt protesters went on a rampage, attacking senior government officials, bodyguards and police.

The prime minister narrowly escaped himself after protesters stormed the Interior Ministry where he had just addressed the nation on television.
Earlier report: State of emergency in Bangkok
Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva warned in his television address that the red shirts had crossed the line and this required a firm response.

“I want to tell protesters that you have no right to break the law or to restrict other people’s rights,” Mr Abhisit said. "Otherwise the government must implement further measures under the state of emergency.

“I ask the public to remain calm. I’m confident the government will restore normalcy to our country.”

Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban also appeared on television, telling soldiers and police to strictly enforce the law against the protesters.

“I am now in charge,” he said. “I will take full responsibility for your actions in enforcing the law to restore peace.”

The trouble began when the demonstrators blocked traffic in front of the Criminal Court on Ratchadaphisek road and the Royal Thai Police Office on Rama I road to demand the release of a key UDD leader, Arisman Pongruangrong, who was arrested at his home yesterday morning.

Bands of red shirt protesters, angered by the arrest, held rallies in several areas of the capital to demand his release.

The government replied by declaring a state of emergency over Bangkok, Samut Prakan, Pathum Thani and Ayutthaya.

About a thousand red shirts responded by surrounding the Interior Ministry in a bid to capture Mr Abhisit and Mr Suthep who used the venue to make their televised announcements.

The two narrowly escaped the protesters who stormed into the ministry compound and smashed the prime minister’s limousine and other cars with wooden sticks and pavement slabs.

They believed the leaders were in the vehicles The attack caused serious damage to the vehicles but the prime minister and Mr Suthep managed to slip out of the compound in a separate car unharmed.

A gunshot was heard as the crowds were trying tried to stop the motorcade. The prime minister’s limousine was able to get away but a station wagon belonging to his bodyguard was stopped and smashed.

One of the prime minister’s security guards and a police officer were assaulted and taken to the red shirts’ demonstration site at Government House.

A dozen other people including red shirt protesters were also injured in the brief clash.

The prime minister’s guard and the policeman were locked in a container close to the UDD stage at Government House before being given first aid and released.

Also attacked and injured was the prime minister’s secretary-general, Nibhon Phromphan.

Mr Nibhon was taken to hospital after red shirt protesters chased his car as it was about to leave a parking building inside the Interior Ministry compound.

They dragged him from the car and beat him. His driver was also injured.

After leaving the Interior Ministry, Mr Abhisit was reached by a reporter on the telephone.

“I am safe and unhurt but my people were arrested,” the prime minister said. “The gunshot was an accident … a guard’s gun was being snatched and it went off accidentally. We did not mean to fire at people.”

Despite the possibility the army and police might use force to disperse them, demonstrators continued to join the UDD rally at Government House and separate rallies at intersections throughout late yesterday.

Some rioters seized at least two armoured personnel carriers from troops who were sent to guard public areas, while others seized public buses to set up road blockades.

More road blocks were also reported at key intersections around the main rally ground as night fell, in open defiance of the government’s order for the protesters to disperse.

The demonstrators’ spirits were kept high by UDD leaders’ speeches and phone-in messages from former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

In one phone-in, Thaksin said he would return to Thailand if authorities dispersed his supporters using violence.

Thaksin said he was closely monitoring the state of emergency.

“I will monitor the situation and if necessary I will return to Thailand and lead a long march of people. I will not allow them [authorities] to use force,” Thaksin said.

Bron: Bangkok Post

66

Abhisit plea for 4 days to restore order

**PM says he ‘won’t make the same mistake again’ **

By: Veera Prateepchaikul
Published: 13/04/2009 at 12:00 AM
Newspaper section: News

Soldiers shooting in the air and firing tear gas have cleared the first small group of red shirts from an area near the Victory Monument. Dozens of people were injured.

Troops began moving in to disperse red-shirt protesters at about 4 a.m. Monday morning in their attempt to open traffic at Din Daeng intersection which has been blocked since Sunday.

Army spokesman Col Sansern Kaewkamnerd said that troops first ordered the protesters to leave, but they answered with tear gas, gunshots and petrol bombs hurled from the expressway.

He added that a protester rammed a hijacked bus into the troops, injuring some.

In retaliation, the troops fired tear gas and their automatic rifles into the air as they moved in to break up the protesters. The troops managed to disperse the rowdy crowd and open part of the road to traffic half an hour later.

About 10 troops and 49 protesters were injured, mostly from tear gas.

Despite the clash at Din Daeng, the red-shirt protesters were still blocking traffic at several main road intersections, including Si Ayuddhaya and Ratchadamnoen. Most protesters were in front of the Government House and its surrounding areas as their leaders urged on the protesters to resist the government.

The situation is still very tense with the likelihood of more violence or, in the worst case scenario, a riot, if government forces decide to break up the protest at and around the Government House.

The spokesman also said some of the red-shirt core leaders were held in custody at an undisclosed location. He did not give details.

Government spokesman Panitarn Wattanayakorn insisted that the government would “do everything within the limits of the law to restore order and peace in the country”. He urged the public in general to understand and to have trust in the government and to report to authorities any suspicious movements.

Meanwhile, authorities said that three M79 grenades were fired into the Constitution Court building around 1am on Monday, causing some damage but no casualties.

Police said that only one grenade exploded and it was unknown who the perpetrators were.

In Pattaya, one improvised explosive device went off, apparently detonated by a mobile phone, causing damage to a water pipe. Three other IEDs were also found at the scene.

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva went on the nationwide television with the commanders of the three armed forces at about midnight on Sunday.

He repeated the need for the government to take tougher actions against the red-shirt protesters charging of blatantly breaking the law under the guise of struggling for democracy.

Supreme Commander Gen Songkitti Jakkabat has been appointed director of peace-keeping in Bangkok to enforce the state of emergency law.

Earlier report:
Several hundred troops opened up with tear gas against a few hundred red shirts near the Din Daeng intersection.

Hospitals and protesters reported that 49 people were injured, several of them seriously. No deaths were reported.

Most of the reported injuries were from tear gas inhalation.

There were no other reports of clashes between the security forces and protesters. Under the Emergency Decree, troops are authorised to take any steps to break up groups of more than five people, and can detain anyone at any time.

The 4am military attack was shown on TV. Footage showed protesters scattering as the troops moved in.

*Bron: Bangkok Post / www.bangkokpost.com *

67

CRACKDOWN BEGINS

At least 77 were injured as troops, firing tear gas and shots into the air, moved in to retake the Din Daeng intersection near Victory Monument from protesters.

Troops, firing shots into the air, have apparently retaken control of the Din Daeng intersection from red-shirted protesters, according to TV news reports. There were reportedly some injuries but no immediate reports of death.

At least 77 people suffered minor injuries, many from tear gas, according to hospital reports. About five persons were seriously injured. The red-shirted movement claimed “several” of its members suffered gunshot wounds, and condemned the authorities’ use of live bullets in the crackdown.

TV news footage showed soldiers firing shots into the air. Tear gas was also fired, TV reporters at the scene said. A few hundred troops were involved in the operation.

At around 7.20 am, the government announced it was in control of the situation at Din Daeng.

The clash took place around 4 am and left about 50 soldiers and protesters injured, it was reported. Gunshots were still heard after 5 am, but not as intensely as when the crackdown began.

One TV reporter quoted “runaway” protesters as saying that there might have been some deaths. The government reported no death.

The troops were pushing from the Din Daeng intersection toward the Victory Monument. Protesters were scattered and retreated from the intersection to the moment. It appeared that the troops were in almost complete control of the Din Daeng intersection after 6 am.

Col Sansern Kaewkamnerd, Army spokesman, said 300 protesters were in the area when security forces including soldiers and police moved in. He said the troops first tried to negotiate with the protesters, who were allegedly armed with molotov cocktails and tear gas themselves.

He said the talks broke down after some protesters tried to ram buses against the troops.

“The troops had to fire into the air. I repeat. They fired into the air and took action against the protesters,” he said.

Some arrests were made, he said, adding that “reluctant participants” of the protest who were forced to stay by fellow protesters were released.
“Similar operations will be carried out in other areas,” he said.

Protesters have burnt tyres on a few spots in the Din Daeng area, and there have been concern that red-shirted protesters would resort to arson in response to the crackdown.

Several intersections were still occupied Sunday night by the protesters, who used buses to barricade several major roads, spawning massive traffic jams. Police said up to 30,000 demonstrators were scattered around the city. Police vans at some intersections were abandoned and looted, AP reported.

Protest leaders have woken up red-shirted demonstrators at Government House to inform them of the Din Daeng incident and tell them to prepare themselves for a possible crackdown.

Gunshots at Din Daeng intersection could still be heard around 5 am, but not as intense as an hour earlier. TV footage showed some wounded protesters taken into military vehicles.

Earlier, Prime Minister** Abhisit Vejjajiva **has assured the nation that there is no disharmony within the government as well as key agencies responsible for enforcing law and order.

In a late-night television address, Abhisit was flanked by all key government, military and police leaders, a setting apparently intended to stamp out persistent speculation that he was losing support of top police and military officers.

He said the rumours were intended to weaken the government which has been trying to restore law and order through peaceful means.

“There have been a lot of rumours and I would like the Thai media to report on the truth to the Thai public,” he said.

Among false reports, he said, were claims that security forces had already resorted to violence to suppress the red-shirted protesters.

The prime minister insisted that a united government remained confident that the situation would improve in the next few days.

Abhisit had vowed not to bow to the red-shirted protesters’ demand for him to either step down or dissolve the House, and expressed confidence that the military and the police, whom he had reportedly criticised in private, were still firmly on his side. It had been reported that Abhisit singled out police chief Patcharawat Wongsuwan for sharp criticism following Saturday’s collapse of the** Asean **summit with dialogue partners.

Coup rumours were intense late Sunday afternoon but seemed to subside late into the night. Speculation now was focused on when security forces would move against protesters occupying some key areas in the city.

*Bron: The Nation / http://www.nationmultimedia.com/ *

68

LIVE UPDATE
Black Songkran claims first death.
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Red-shirted protesters alleged shot and killed a vendor, as Thailand faces another black day in politics. Follow the developments as they happen here.
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Tension remains very high in Bangkok, with retreating protesters running amok in some areas following troops’ success in retaking the Victory Monument area in the morning. Protesters have burned several buses and public vehicles. Following is our live report. Please refresh the page regularly to see the updates:
9.30 pm: Details of the Nang Lerng Market shooting remains sketchy. Apparently, the victim was shot during a confrontation between Nang Lerng residents and some red-shirted protesters who allegedly caused fears that they might set fire to the market.
Earlier, many vendors have helped troops confront protesters who were armed with a lot of molotov cocktails. The residents booed the protesters and cheered the troops, according to the Manager website. The website said up to 10 people may have been injured in the shooting. It said several protesters were armed with guns.
The website said the protesters claimed they were intimidated by the presence of hostile Nang Lerng residents.
8.40pm: Red-shirted protesters entered Nang Lerng Market Monday evening and pushed the vendors outside. PM’s Office Minister Satit Wongnongtoey tells NBT channel that three were injured and one guy named Pom aged 54 years old have died at the hospital after being shot by redshirted protesters, according to eye-witnesses who phoned Satit.
There have been fears the protesters would set fire to the market. Increasing red-shirted aggression has prompted reports about tension with residents in certain areas. In certain spots, residents have reportedly formed groups to boo protesters or confront them.
6.30pm: Narenthorn Emergency Centre’s director Chatree Charoenchivakul in his interview with Thai PBS denies the rumour of death caused by the crackdown. “We are doctors and we have medical ethics. We’ll certainly report the death if there is any.” He says that the latest report shows 94 people injured of which 24 are in serious conditions. The injured people are both civilians and military officers and they are treated equally.
**5.50 pm: **Gunshots have been heard for around 10 minutes around the Army headquarters. Initial TV reports say it might be the result of a clash between red-shirted protesters and some people angry at their aggression. No injury is immediately reported.
5.45pm: Troops take control of the Royal Plaza area and there is no report of casualty. However,NBT reports that there are still a number of protesters left near the Education Ministry. The TV report says there is a sign of fire near the ministry and the officers now deploy force to investigate.
**5.30pm : **Audience in Khon Kaen and around 10 provinces in the upper Northeast are unable to watch news report on NBT channel as the red-shirted group demanded the station to cease broadcasting. After the rally in front of the station, the protesters are reportedly moving to block part of the Mitaparb Road and traffic has started to be congested.
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**4.35pm : Army Spokesman Col Sansern Kaewkamnerd dismissed reports that soldiers who dispersed the red shrits in many areas used live bullets and have killed many protesters.
In a live broadcast, Sansern said the soldiers used blank bullets and fired into the air as warning shots.
“Reporters and camera men who accompanied the troops are our witnesses to prove that we used only blank bullets on the protesters. We also used practise bullets which created loud noise. The protesters distorted these, claiming that the soldiers fired live bullets and killed many protesters,” he said.
He insisted that no one was killed during the crackdown.
4.20pm : Government spokesman Panithan Wattanayakorn says the authorities manage to clear red shirted protesters from many areas on Monday afternoon, resulting in resuming of traffic near Victory Monument and nearby roads.
All roads from the Foreign Ministry to Phaya Thai intersection and to Victory Monument were now safe for motorists and people.
However the authorities have still tried to disperse the red shirts **rallying near Yommarat express toll and Manangkasila Residence.
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**3.30 pm: **Supreme Commander Songkitti Jakkrabat, head of the committee enforcing the state of emergency, goes on TV to reiterate that the operation to retake key traffic areas has been carried out with all democratic principles respected.
“We base our operation on the principles that everyone is Thai who has right to gather in peace without infringing on rights of others. We will never hurt Thai citizens but we reserve the rights to self-defence,” he told a TV address.
According to Songkitti, people coming back from Songkran retreat could face inconvenience as road blocks and searches will be required to make sure no weapons are sneaked into the city. He suggested travellers come back earlier or later in order to spread out traffic.
3 pm: Army spokesman Sansern Kaewkamnerd says that despite sporadic incidents. the operation to retake control of the Victory Monument and nearby areas has been “satisfactory”. He denies claims that some protesters had been killed. There had been no death, he insisted.
He also says footage of soldiers aiming and firing at protesters could have misled the public, because the soldiers were only firing blank bullets.
3.10 pm: Scattered protesters in the Sri Ayutthaya intersection are said to have fled toward the Urupong area.
2.45 pm: Tension is very high between flat residents and the protesters. One TV reporter reports seeing protesters beating and chasing some residents.
2.30 pm: Din Daeng flat residents and some officers try unsuccessfully to negotiate with red-shirted protesters who parked a gas truck near the flat the community. Gas valve has been secured and the authorities shower water on the truck. Although the protesters claimed the use of the gas truck was only meant as a blockade, there was increasingly fear among the residents about an explosion.
1.30pm: Thick smoke is spotted at the Victory Monument. Red-shirted protesters reportedly set tyres on fire just opposite the Rajvithi Hospital and some protesters also drove a car over a fiberglass police statue near the monument. Police also ask people to get out of the pedestrian bridges around the monument but the skytrain station was not closed yet.
**1pm : **it was reported that soliders manged to take hold of all corners of the Din Daeng triangle and the red-shirted protesters backed towards Rajaparop Road. Twenty people were reported to be injured from the clash there.
**12.15pm : an explosive sound is heard followed by smokes from a public park near the Victory Monument, where there are only the red-shirted protesterd.
While soliders continue to push the protesters out of Din Daeng area towards the Victory Monument direction, the demonstrators set on fire a bus that was parked in the middle of the road.
12.10pm : soldiers continue to clash with the red-shirted protesters at the entrance to the Din Daeng elevated road. As the lastest, the protesters reportedly tried to drive a bus into the soldiers but the officers counter that with gunshots thus the bus crash into the bridge railing. There was no report yet if anyone was killed.
12.30pm : PM’s deputy secretary-general Panitan Wattanayagorn, on TV, ensures foreigners’ safety and that the government is gaining control of the situation.
Red Shirt’s D Station black out.
12.10pm: Pheu Thai MPs threaten to mobilise more people to join protesters if the government does not stop using weapons, open an urgent joint-meeting among MPs and the Senate.
12.03pm : The gas truck is removed from King Power.
12pm : Protesters burn a bus at Din Daeng Triangle. Gun shots were heard.
11.45am : Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva addresses live on TV, denying death report in the morning. He added that 23 soldiers and 47 protesters were injured. Four soldiers suffered bullet wounds.
He calls on people to cooperate by filing information. He also tells people to be confident that the government is trying to restore order as soon as possible.
11.20am : The director of Rajavithi Hospital insists Monday that no protester was killed during the crackdown at the Din Daeng Intersection early Monday.
10am : Protesters park an LPG gas truck at King Power Shopping Mall.
9.50am : Protesters confront and throw molotov cocktails (bottle bombs) at soldiers around Din Daeng Intersection while (the protesters) retreating to Din Daeng flats.
9.30am : Weng Tojirakarn tells protesters to seize four buses and use them to block Orathai Bridge and Misakawan intersections.
8.45am : Police beef up force from 200 to 300 officers to secure Democrat Party headquarters on speculation that protesters would raid the place. Police later ask reporters and cameramen to move away from the area for fear that they would be injured in a possible clash with protesters.
8am : Protesters seize buses and use them to block Si Ayutthaya road. Some burn tyres at nearby intersections.
7.30am : Protesters at the Royal Plaza round up 15 journalists, saying they reported unfairly. The group attempt to attack, forcing journalists to leave.
7.20am : Deputy PM’s Secretary-General Panitan Wattanayagorn tells a press conference Monday morning that some protesters were arrested, detained unharmed. Army Spokesman Col Sansern Kaewkamnerd said the protesters were detained at “proper place” without elaborating.
7.15am : Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva **sets up a committee to direct the implementation according to Emergency Decree, authorising the Supreme Commander as the director to fix emergencies and prohibiting blockade of any roads in Bangkok and other effective areas.
6.40am : Protesters park 10-wheel gas truck on in-bound Vibhavadi-Rangsit road in Din Daeng Triangle area to prevent soldiers from coming in. Both directions of the road are closed.
Protesters drive truck fuelled by NGV gas into the compound. The truck uses several NGV cylinders and the protesters shouted that the flat residents should leave immediately, prompting speculation that the protesters would explode the gas tanks
6.00am : Army spokesman says soldiers fired tear gas at Din Daeng Intersection only after protesters threw molotov cocktails at them and tried to hit them with a bus.
4.30am : Red Shirt leader Jatuporn Promphan says another leader Arisman Pongruangrong had been bailed out.
4am : Anti-government protesters and military officers are injured as the government has employed a force to disperse the protest near Din Daeng Intersection in Bangkok. Gunshots were heard until 5.30am. Soldiers insisted they fired the shots to the air.
1.30am : Three bombs are shot to Constitutional Court. One exploded while two did not. Police said the bombs could be M79 type.
discuss this topic in Thaivisa forum

Bron: The Nation

69

BLACK SONGKRAN
Thaksin accuses Abhisit govt of covering up deaths

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Fugitive ex-PM says he is ready to return when the time is right.

Former premier****[URL=“http://www.nationmultimedia.com/search/adsearch.php?keyword=+Thaksin+”] Thaksin **Shinawatra accused Abhisit government of lying to cover deaths in the army crackdown on anti-government protesters on Monday.
Speaking to CNN, the convicted tycoon claimed Thai soldiers who were seen firing rounds into the air to disperse the red shirted protesters in Bangkok had killed “many.”
“They trapped the people … Many people died … They even take the dead bodies up on the truck and take them away. They’re trying to confuse everything,” Thaksin **told the channel.
“You try to lie to the whole world, you try to lie to the people, but … it’s impossible,” he added.

His claims came as Thai government repeatedly claimed that there were no deaths during the crackdown.
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70

DAY OF INFAMY
Central Bangkok a war zone

By Pravit Rojanaphruk
The Nation
Published on April 14, 2009

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Festive holiday |is turned into a black nightmare.
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The bloodstained start to Songkran - which transformed large swathes of downtown Bangkok into urban guerrilla war zones, leaving dozens of people wounded - was marked by the first shots around the Din Daeng triangle before dawn.

Less than an hour later, the crackle of sporadic live gunfire from soldiers could still be heard, alternating with angry shouts from red-shirted, anti-government Democratic Alliance against Dictatorship (DAAD) protesters who refuse to simply retreat.

DAAD leaders claim some red-shirt protesters were killed during the clashes.

The government has denied a report that officials covered up protesters’ deaths by removing the bodies in a GMC truck. It cited reports by hospitals that no one receiving treatment for injuries died.

Everyone, including me, has to run for cover every now and then.

“There can be no end if no one wants to admit defeat,” says a motorcyclist who volunteered to drop this reporter off at the nearby hotspot. He says he is an off-duty police officer and his wife and children are among the demonstrators.

Protesters curse the military for firing real, not rubber, M16 bullets at them. Some were aimed at the sky, others apparently not.

Not everyone is sympathetic with the pro-Thaksin Shinawatra reds, however.

“They deserve it,” says Pairoj Somjaipeng, a cabby in the area who supports the People’s Alliance for Democracy, the nemesis of the reds.

“Last night they carried wooden clubs and other weapons. I think what the military did was right. And nobody died,” he says.

“I want to ask how the reds love the King … I think they love** Thaksin **more,” he says, referring to the frequent allegation that the reds are out to destroy the royal institution.

The military side is led by Lt-Colonel Chinnuphan Rodsiri, who commands 200 or so troops dispatched from Aranyaprathet on the Thai-Cambodian border.

A lone monk defies the 200 armed soldiers, stepping out to address them with a loudspeaker at 6.40am, just a few metres away from the troops. He urges the soldiers not to shoot at people.

“This area has become lawless,” Chinnuphan complains to me. “They shut the roads down and search people. Even the** Asean **Summit [last weekend], which was the face of the country, wasn’t spared. Everyone demands their rights but do not know their responsibilities.”

Soon another monk emerges on the other side of the triangle as the jittery soldiers shout. “How can a monk carry guns” cries one, as the monk slinks away.

Some distance beyond the front line of soldiers, groups of reds sit in front of Santiphab Park, or Peace Park. “We only have rocks, bottles and slingshots,” says one. The two bottles nearby are Molotov cocktails, however.

On the other corner of the triangle, protesters claim they saw a driver of a bus full of red protesters get shot and collapse while trying to run over soldiers before dawn.

“Please help us,” pleads one lady, in despair. “Please don’t allow them to die in vain.”

The reds no longer believe in much of what most of the local media report, as they are convinced that the media are anti-Thaksin and conclude that the reports of deaths must have been covered up or censored.

Protesters here and at other locations appear to be acting at least semi-independently of the** DAAD **leaders who are still holding out at Government House with supporters.

And as the day progresses and more shootings are seen and heard, more Molotov cocktails are being prepared at various spots.

Public buses were set ablaze at several sites, accompanied by the sound of M16s firing. At least three LPG gas tankers were commandeered by protesters by afternoon, but disaster was avoided. The shootings, clashes and burnings were disastrous enough.

A** DAAD **leader who asked not to be named tells this writer in the afternoon that the torching of Bangkok is virtually inevitable. “They have all the stuff prepared and we can’t control them. People died, but the media censored the fact.”

Protesters fight and retreat, soldiers shoot and advance. Victory Monument was abandoned, Sri Ayutthaya Road retaken, but the protesters - portrayed by most Thai media as a paid mob - regroup and resist.

Would they have risked their lives for Bt500 or Bt5,000 on Thai New Year’s Day

The skirmishes and retreats and regroupings go on well into the evening as protesters scatter to some dozen pockets in the 2 or 3 square kilometres of downtown Bangkok.

Most shopping malls shut down on their own.

“This is guerrilla warfare,” one foreign journalist tells me as we watch a scene so surreal, as if it came straight from some apocalyptic movie. But it was all real.

Some children, oblivious to the chaos falling on the city, are still seen splashing water as they would on any Songkran.

For many others it was red blood that had splattered, mixed with tears, irritation, anger, desperation or shock, depending on whom you ask.

Bron: The Nation

71

Demonstrators will disperse: leader

By: BangkokPost.com
Published: 14/04/2009 at 10:25 AM

Red-shirts core leader Veera Musikhapong announced an end to the current anti-government protest in Bangkok on Tuesday morning as hundreds of soldiers surrounded the Government House camp where the remaining demonstrators had gathered.

The decision came a day after skirmishes in Bangkok, which left two dead and 113 injured.

“All of my brothers and sisters, please give up and board these buses provided by police,” Mr Veera said to the crowd. “Police will take good care of you.”

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Mr Veera said the leaders of the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) agreed to end the rally because they were worried about the safety of the protesters.

“This does not mean that we loose,” he told the protesters, some of whom appeared to be angry with the decision.

Weng Tojirakarn, another core leader, said the UDD would continue its opposition to the government through the international stage.

“We have stopped the protest but we haven’t stopped the fight for democracy. We will continue the movement,” said another core leader Nattawut Saikua.

About 2,000 protesters remained at the only rally site in Bangkok, according to army spokesman Sansern Kaewkamnerd.

The decision to disband was announced half an hour after Col Sansern said in a nationalised television broadcast that red-shirt protesters blocked traffic at 15 locations in Bangkok early on Tuesday, but soldiers and police were able to control the situation.

“The situation at all locations has eased,” Col Sansern said, including Uruphong and Yommarat intersections and Victory Monument.

The protest was now confined to Government House where there about 2,000 protesters, he said.

He said there were two attacks on soldiers in Bangkok overnight. One soldier was seriously wounded.

Two men on a motorcycle opened fire at a military check point near Mahboonkrong shopping centre at 11.30pm on Monday, criticially wounding one soldier. He was being treated at an emergency unit at Police Hospital.

About 2.45am Tuesday a group of men in a pickup fired at soldiers at Thukchai intersection. There were no injuries.

Col Sansern attributed the attacks to “ill-intentioned people trying to create unrest in the country”.

*Bron: Bangkok Post / www.bangkokpost.com *

72

Two red-shirt leaders surrender

By: BangkokPost.com
Published: 14/04/2009 at 12:33 PM

Two red-shirt core leaders, Veera Musikhapong and Suporn Uttawong, surrendered to police on Tuesday after they told protesters to disperse.

Mr Veera and Mr Suporn are leaders of the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD), the major support group in Thailand for convicted former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who fled to exile,
The two contacted police and asked to be picked up at Misakawan intersection, near Government House where the red-shirts have been camped out since March 26.

Their surrender was disrupted briefly as some supporters tried to stop them.

Their arrest followed their announcment that the protest had ended for now and their followers should disperse after days of rioting in the capital. Troops dispersed the rioters in several violent clashes in Bangkok on Monday.

Troops then surrounded the remaining 2,000 protesters at Government House overnight and made plans to disperse them.

Another core UDD leader, Arisman Pongruangpong, was arrested after the invasion of the Asean summit venue at Pattaya on Saturday.

*Bron: Bangkok Post / www.bangkokpost.com *

73

COMMENTARY
Round Five: Can we make this the last round?

By Tulsathit Taptim

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We have fallen as a nation, and getting up together is all we must do.


The close call could not have been closer. But having relied on miracles to get back from the brink, Thailand now has to muster every ounce of collective determination and ability to forgive and forget in order to deal with the seemingly indelible scar of the last few days and get forward as a nation. It will be a long road of rehabilitation, if rehabilitation can really begin at all, that is.
It’s an irony that, to sympathizers of the red shirted protesters, they came to rally in Bangkok because they felt alienated, and now they have to go back home having alienated themselves through aggression that for some time made everyone fear a civil war. The government, having politically benefited from the red shirted protesters’ self-alienation, now has an ironic job of quickly fixing what must be a deep sense of isolation. Prime Minister** Abhisit Vejjajiva has rightly approached the crisis with “Everyone is a Thai” principle, and now he has to implement that philosophy post-crisis to heal national wounds.
Nobody has been the winner, and the nation as a whole has been down for a nine count. While Abhisit has come through a major challenge and should be commended for his cool-headed response to a series of emergencies, which could have easily degenerated into something much worse, the next challenge is simply bigger. He more or less has won over some neutrals, but unless he seriously reaches out far beyond his political comfort zone, rehabilitation will prove very difficult indeed.
For the red-shirted movemet, it has been a campaign of a frustrated, angry young man who turned to violence when all else failed. Further autopsy is needed to determine if that angry young man was also badly confused. Was he really upset with the Privy Council and honestly convinced that a constitutional monarchy democracy can still drive Thailand but for some manipulative advisers to the King? Did he or did he not love Thaksin Shinawatra? Was he campaigning for the rich fugitive whom he liked as a leader, or was he fighting for real values far beyond that highly-controversial politician?
Whatever the answers, the angry young man may have only been temporarily subdued after making a big blunder. The “victory” declared after the cancellation of the Asean summit in Pattaya was apparently mistaken as a license to up the stakes and run amok. What the angry young man did not realize was that, as he seemingly was chasing his opponent around the ring, he totally lowered his own guards. He forgot the rules of the game and the rest is history.
Will he get even angrier when waking up from the daze? To understand that angry young man is as difficult as making him understand you back. It’s Abhisit’s duty to find out if a political movement seen as deeply associated with**[URL=“http://www.nationmultimedia.com/search/adsearch.php?keyword=+Thaksin+”] Thaksin **Shinawatra in fact possesses some other driving energies that everyone may have overlooked.
As for Thaksin, his calls for HM the King to intervene at the height of the crisis still had the characteristic doubled meanings. The former leader may have been shocked by how fast things were deteriorating and thus probably come back to his senses. Or it could have been just another one of his politically-motivated statements that couldn’t be taken too seriously. After all, with the rampaging red shirted protesters looking up to him as the ultimate idol, Thaksin **was in a better position than anyone else to calm them down.
Rehabilitation without Thaksin’s involvement will be difficult, though still possible. Rehabilitation with Thaksin’s sincere participation will make things much easier, though the scenario is far less possible. He has become even more adamant than before that he was a victim of a anti-democracy conspiracy and never admits that he has been a big part, if not root cause, of the Thai crisis.
The wounds will leave a deep scar. Although in terms of casaulties the Black Songkran is less cursed than the October 6 bloodbath, the 1992 May Crisis and last year’s October 7 infamy, we all know that this could have easily been the worst of them all. It’s simply a close call of the kind that makes people with common senses review their own acts, not others’, in its aftermath.
It’s our duty to find hope when desperation seems to prevail. We can take heart at the way troops generally handled the situation, and how the majority of the protesters at Government House responded to the setbacks and sacrificed “victory” for common interests. Some good principles have seemed to exist on both sides, and merging them instead of making them clash is the only way forward.
Extremely difficult as it looks, we don’t have other choices. Reconcilation has been a fashionable word for too long, during which both sides of the divide were firmly on their toes ready to pounce on each other. As a result, we have fallen as a nation, and only through realising this can we get up together again.

Bron: The Nation

74

Asean chief welcomes end of Bangkok rally

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Asean Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan said Tuesday that he welcomed the end of the anti-government protest in Bangkok on Tuesday.

“I hoped and prayed for normalcy to return to Thailand quickly, so that the Thai people can celebrate Songkran peacefully this week in the tradition of family reunion, friendship, and forgiveness,” he said in a statement.
The red shirted protesters abruptly ended their rally on Tuesday. Their leaders claimed that the pull-back was not the defeat of the movement and they would resume the protest after Songkran Day.
He also referred to the collapse of** Asean Summit plus dialogue partner countries in Pattaya last week. During the period, the red shirts **led by Arisamun Pongruengrong stormed into meeting building of the Summit, forcing the Thai government to cancel the meeting.

“I am grateful to Prime Minister** Abhisit Vejjajiva of Thailand and the Thai Government for the safe evacuation of the Leaders of Asean **member States and their Dialogue Partners from Pattaya following the cancellation of the “Related Summits” on 11-12 April 2009.”
Those affected leaders, as well as their ministers and senior officials, agreed with the decision Surin said, adding they also sympathized with Abhisit for trying to avoid violence and bloodshed at all costs.

Surin also put on record the followings;

  • What had happened in Pattaya and Bangkok will not erode the credibility and dignity of Thailand’s chairmanship of Asean. On the contrary, the restrained government responses showed the integrity of the Thai Government in restoring law and order with admirable respect for life, safety, and constitutional rights of all.
  • The cancellation in Pattaya was a serious setback to Asean, an irrevocable loss of great opportunity. But it will not weaken Asean. Neither will it discourage Asean.- The other** Asean Leaders and their Dialogue Partners were actually in Pattaya (except the Prime Minister of Australia who was on his way, and the Prime Minister of India who could not attend); they were there, ready to meet and cooperate, with us in Asean **, even when many protesters were trying to block traffic and create commotion.
  • The centrality of** Asean has not been questioned. In fact, many Asean Leaders and their Dialogue Partners have expressed support for Asean to re-schedule the “Related Summits” as soon as possible.
    He said he is now in Bali, preparing to attend the meeting of the Third Bali Regional Ministerial Conference. "I will take advantage of the presence of several     Asean **ministers and those of Dialogue Partners and their senior officials to begin a round of consultations on the next steps to regain momentum for Asean."

Bron: The Nation

75

Warrants out for Thaksin, cronies

Published on April 15, 2009

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The Criminal Court yesterday issued arrest warrants for ousted premier****[URL=“http://www.nationmultimedia.com/search/adsearch.php?keyword=+Thaksin+”] Thaksin **Shinawatra **and 13 of his supporters over Monday’s riots, police said.

The court issued the warrants late in the afternoon after protest leaders told the** red shirts **camped out at Government House to go home before turning themselves in around noon.

The warrant said** Thaksin was sought for inciting unrest that led Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva to cancel the Asean **summit in Pattaya and impose a state of emergency that led to military crackdowns on protesters.

“Thaksin and his allies are charged by court for illegal assemblies of more than five people, threatening violence and breach of peace, punishable by five years in jail,” the warrant said.

It said the former PM was also accused of inciting people to break the law and cause unrest, a charge punishable by seven years in prison.

Red-shirt protest leaders, Veera Musigapong, Natthawut Saikua and Dr Weng Tochirakarn turned themselves in at the Metropolitan Police Bureau headquarters.

Before surrendering, Weng told the** red shirts **that they had to move out of Government House not because they had lost but because they had to change their stronghold and rally strategies. He said basing themselves at Government House would put them at a great disadvantage, adding that he would take legal action against Abhisit for killing citizens.

Natthawut told the** red shirts **that the rally had to be called off temporarily because they did not want more losses of lives.

As their leaders were telling them to disperse, the red-clad protesters objected saying they wanted to continue fighting in Sanam Luang. However, upon refusal, they got upset and some even broke into tears.

Protest leader Jakrapob Penkair, who disappeared while others were surrendering to police, told reporters on the telephone later that he would definitely not turn himself in, adding that the** red shirts **would continue protesting, but their strategies would be discussed later.

He also said that though he did not know the whereabouts of** Pheu Thai **Party MP and fellow protest leader Jatuporn Prompan, he knew that he was safe.

After being interrogated by police, the three protest leaders held a press conference. Natthawut said he was against moves to have him and his counterparts detained at a different unit or a military camp because their charges were for wrongdoings they had allegedly committed before the state of emergency was imposed.

Later their lawyers said police agreed to detain them at the Metropolitan Police Bureau Headquarters until they were granted bail.

Apart from Thaksin, the 13 people wanted are Veera, Jatuporn, Natthawut, Jakrapob, Weng, Adisorn Piangket, Sirawit Pimklang, Peera Pringklang, Narongsak Mani, Nattapong Intanang, Shinawatra Habunpad, Arisman Pongruangrong and a man only identified by his photo.

Police yesterday issued arrest warrants for five men suspected of leading red-shirt protesters for wreaking havoc in Pattaya on Saturday. The five are Siriwan Nimitsilapa, Tornchai Sakmangkorn, Surachai Danwattananusorn, Sakda Noppasit and Pol Lt-Colonel Waipot Apornrat.

Yuthana Cherngproey, a representative of the** Asean **meeting venue, Royal Cliff Beach Resort, filed a complaint with police estimating damages to the hotel at Bt141,824.

Arisman, who was detained on charges of inciting unrest in Pattaya, won temporary release yesterday.

The Pattaya Provincial Court approved his request for bail despite objections from the police on grounds that protesters in Bangkok had been dispersed.

*Bron: The Nation / http://www.nationmultimedia.com *

76

PM: Emergency decree to stay in force.

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By: BangkokPost.com Published: 14/04/2009 at 06:28 PM The state of emergency in Bangkok and surroundings will remain in force until security forces can ensure complete stability, Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said on Tuesday night.
Police and soldiers would remain in hot spots, he said. They were under orders to remain on alert.
Although protesters had dispersed from around Government House, there were political gatherings at other locations on Tuesday afternoon, the prime minister said.
“What has changed is that they do not wear red shirts anymore,” Mr Abhisit said.
“But the government is trying to understand their feelings and trying to negotiate with them to reduce tension.”
He reiterated that the soldiers had taken no lives during the crackdown on protesters.
“I would like to assure you that all operations have been done transparently,” he said.
Mr Abhisit said althought the protesters had been dispersed, nobody could rightfully claim victory.
He said another three protest leaders were charged in connection with the violent demonstrations.
The three are Veera Musikapong, Weng Tochirakarn and Nattawut Saikua. They face criminal charges of breaking traffic laws, inciting people to break the law, and illegal assembly of more than 10 people.
The prime minister said they would receive full justice.

Bron: Bangkok Post

77

Red-shirt revolution

Timeline: How the red-shirt protest developed and ended

By: BangkokPost.com, AFP Published: 14/04/2009 at 07:44 PM March 26: Thousands of Thaksin supporters in trademark red shirts begin rallying in Bangkok, calling on Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and his government to resign and allow fresh elections.

They are spurred on by Thaksin Shinawatra, who starts a series of almost nightly addresses to the crowd by telephone and video link.

March 27: Thaksin accuses Privy Council president Prem Tinsulanonda, privy councillors Surayud Chulanond and Charnchai Likitjitta of being behind the 2006 military coup that toppled him.
March 28: Gen Surayud rejects Thaksin’s claim, saying privy councillors are not involved in politics.
April 2: Red-shirt leader Jatuporn Prompan says a mass rally planned for April 8 is aimed at pressuring Mr Abhisit, Gen Prem and the privy councillors to resign.
April 3: Thaksin refuses an invitation by Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban to negotiate with the government, and calls on his supporters to come out in force for a mass rally on April 8.
April 7: Mr Abhisit’s car is attacked by red-shirts in Pattaya as he heads back to Bangkok after a cabinet meeting. Thaksin’s three children and ex-wife leave Thailand.

April 8: More than 30,000 red-shirts rally at Government House, their main protest site.
April 9: Taxi drivers block main roads and Victory Monument, bringing the city to a halt. Mr Abhisit vows tough action against red-shirts who break the law, but no action is taken.
April 10: Thaksin’s supporters, already spread out across Bangkok, launch a separate protest in the beach resort of Pattaya, where 16 Asian leaders are to meet for a major Asean-sponsored summit, with Asean chairman Thailand as the host.
April 11: Thousands of protesters storm the venue of the summit, forcing its cancellation. A state of emergency is declared as foreign leaders are evacuated - some by helicopter from the hotel roof.
April 12: A state of emergency is declared in Bangkok and surrounding areas as new anti-government demonstrations spring up. Pattaya protest leader Arisman Pongruangrong arrested in Bangkok. About 50 protesters force their way into the Interior Ministry grounds while Mr Abhisit is inside. He escapes. Thaksin says he will lead an uprising if there is a coup.
April 13: Army cracks down on protesters in Bangkok. Two people die and 123 treated for injuries in army assaults on groups of protesters and several ugly confrontations between red shirts and local people who formed neighbourhood militias.
April 14: Thousands of demonstrators who had retreated to their main camp outside Government House agree to disperse in the face of an overwhelming military operation to close down days of protests.
Government extends the three-day Songkran holiday for two more days.

Bron: Bangkok Post

78

UDD’s ‘final stand’ ends in a whimper

Protesters vow to return to the fray if called upon.

By: Sirikul Bunnag and Apiradee Treerutkuarkul
Published: 15/04/2009 at 12:00 AM

Tears and disappointment filled Ratchadamnoen Nok Avenue on Tuesday as thousands of frustrated protesters packed their belongings after giving up what was supposed to have been their “final stand” at Government House.

It took several hours for military and police to search bags for weapons before allowing the protesters to board buses waiting to take them home from the Royal Plaza.

Police photographed the protesters holding their identity cards.

End of a rebellion: Through a gauntlet of soldiers.

Another police unit searched the demonstration site - littered with rubbish, empty tents and the wreckage of burnt mobile toilets - for weapons and home-made bombs.

About 500 demonstrators holding out at the Wang Daeng intersection behind the Education Ministry refused to leave and shouted at approaching troops and members of the media to back off.

A pocket of resistance was also reported at the nearby Phan Fa bridge.

They said they would not leave until the government dissolved the parliament.

But both groups moved during the course of the day to Sanam Luang, where they were still gathered last night.

Despite ending the protest without the victory promised them by their leaders, the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) supporters do not believe they have lost the fight and vowed to return whenever their leaders call on them.

“I couldn’t believe it when Veera Musikhapong [a UDD leader] said on stage that the time had come to end the protest for the sake of our own security,” said Tuenchit Iamkong, a 57-year-old from Bangkok’s Din Daeng district.

"It’s very sad because we did not want to see it end that way.

“The authorities are using different standards in handling political demonstrators these days.”

Many of the protesters were angry that, unlike the People’s Alliance for Democracy, who were allowed to occupy the Government House compound for months on end, the UDD members were forced from the area.

Mrs Tuenchit said she did not fear a violent crackdown.

She believes “an invisible hand” was responsible for the mayhem of recent days, not the red shirts.

Another protester, Sorasak Tanankat, said the UDD’s road blockades had backfired because they had stopped provincial people from joining the Bangkok rally.

Prajak Kaokreusudta, 32, a red shirt guard, said the protest leaders had acted unfairly by calling off the fight.

“We have lost today,” he said. “But the day will come when we’ll be able to put an end to the country’s aristocracy and win back our democracy.”

A 32-year-old resident of Kanchanaburi’s Lao Khwan district, who asked not to be named, said he was convinced Privy Council president Prem Tinsulanonda was pulling the strings of the Abhisit administration.

*Bron: Bangkok Post / www.bangkokpost.com *

79

Police hunt fleeing protest leaders.

Red-shirt leaders on the run

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Police hunt fugitive leaders of the Songkran riots as a state of emergency remains in force

Published: 15/04/2009 at 02:29 PM Two wanted leaders of the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) remained at large on Wednesday - Jakrapob Penkair and Jatuporn Pompan - as order returned to riot-hit Bangkok.
Police said they had arrest warrants for the two men and were confident they would be arrested.

There was no evidence the two men had fled the country to join their exiled leader and outlawed politician Thaksin Shinawatra, he said.

Three other core members of red-shirt uprising surrendered to police on Tuesday after arrest warrants were issued - Veera Musikhapong was later sent to a Border Patrol Police base in Pathum Thani province, Nattawut Saikua to Naresuan military base in Prachuap Khiri Khan and Weng Tojirakarn to a border police station in Kanchanaburi.

Bangkok Metropolitan Police chief Worapong Chewpreecha confirmed police had arrest warrants for former prime minister’s office minister Jakrapob and opposition Puea Thai MP Jatuporn. He was confident investigators would find them.

Reports said the intelligence services were actively involved in the hunt for the two men.

Pol Lt-Gen Worapong said investigators were compiling evidence to back applications to the court for arrest warrants for minor leaders who played a part in instigating the chaos of the weekend and Monday riots.

Arrest warrants would also be sought for protesters who had destroyed property and injured civilians, including those who shot two people dead.

A warrant has also been issued for the arrest of Thaksin Shinawatra, the fugitive former prime minister who exhorted his UDD supporters by phone and video-link to rise up against the government. He is accused of inciting unrest.

Thaksin fled the country to avoid a conviction and jail sentence for abuse of power while prime minister. He was removed from power by a coup in September 2006 amid a storm of corruption allegations.

From abroad, he has repeatedly called on his red-shirt followers to overthrow the government.

The latest protest, which began on March 26, escalated with the storming of a regional summit in Pattaya on Saturday, forcing its closure, before a showdown in Bangkok between demonstrators and troops on Monday. The protest collapsed on Tuesday.

Security checkpoints were still in place on Wednesday around the capital, which was quiet as residents enjoyed a final day of Buddhist New Year, or Songkran, celebrations ahead of an extra two days of public holiday for government employees announced in the wake of the riots. Water-splashing festivities were also extended for two days in tourist areas of the city.

The unrest began with a red-shirt protest on March 26. Demonstrators demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and members of the privy council who Thakskin accused of being behind the 2006 coup. The council is an advisory body to His Majesty the King and claims to be above politics.

The protesters dispersed from their main camp in Bangkok on Tuesday amid threats of further military action.

A court issued warrants Tuesday for Thaksin and 12 supporters, three of whom have been charged, for breaching the state of emergency put in place Sunday, threatening acts of violence and inciting others to break the law.

Soldiers used tear gas and fired automatic weapons to disperse demonstrators who sent buses hurtling towards troops and tried to torch a government ministry with petrol bombs on Monday.

Calm returned to the capital on Tuesday after the army fenced protesters into their main protest site at Government House, threatening to advance. They decided to abandon the rally and go home.

Several countries have advised tourists not to travel to Thailand or to exercise caution if already there, while the US State Department condemned the “unacceptable violence” by the protestors.

Bron: Bangkok Post

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Thaksin’s passport revoked, retains citizenship.
http://www.bangkokpost.com//media/content/20090415/c2_140652.jpg

Published: 15/04/2009 at 04:53 PM The passport of fugitive former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra has been revoked for his role in inciting the protests that caused the cancellation of the weekend Asia summit in Pattaya and subsequent rioting, the chief government spokesman said on Wednesday.
Thaksin still retains his Thai citizenship.
‘‘The foreign ministry has cancelled his passport,’’ spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn said.
''The incident on the 11th [of April] is the reason.
‘‘The decision to cancel his passport was based on passport issuing regulations, which state that the ministry can cancel or recall a passport if it can prove that a person has caused damage to the country,’’ he said.
“The cancellation will hinder Thaksin’s foreign travel as a Thai, although his Thai citizenship remains intact,” the spokesman said.
Thaksin’s diplomatic passport, issued to him as a former prime minister, was revoked on Dec 12 last year, days after the Abhisit Vejjajiva government came to power.
Thaksin was ousted in a military coup in 2006 and lives in exile to avoid a two-year jail term for a corruption conviction. He has made a series of speeches to his red-shirted supporters in Thailand by videolink and phone in recent weeks urging them to overthrow the government .
A Thai court issued an arrest warrant for Thaksin and 12 of his key supporters on Tuesday over the anti-government protests in Bangkok that left two people dead the previous day.
The demonstrators abandoned a three-week vigil outside Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva’s offices at Government House on Tuesday after troops cleared rioting protesters from the streets on Monday.
The withdrawal of his ordinary Thai passport is the latest in a series of actions against the outlaw politician, who fled Thailand to avoid a conviction and two-year jail sentence for abuse of power while in office.
His assets in Thailand, worth an estimated 76 billion baht, were also frozen. He faces additional corruption charges if he returns, and arrest for inciting the unrest which led to the holiday weekend riots and cancellation of the Pattaya summit.
The government spokesman said the Foreign Affairs Ministry had not reported cancelling the passport of any other person wanted over the Songkran riots.

Bron: Bangkok Post