BTS Closed -Tuesday April 27 2010

[robbo]

1 dead 10 injured at Lumpini Park.
uk embassy closes.
troops seen gathering few blocks away.
not a good time to go for a morning jog through Lumpini.

[Road Runner]

(robbo @ May 13 2010,19:21) talk of state of emergency spreading to many provinces,not looking good,its deteriorating.

I seriously hope this does not get too bloody and more to the point that it does not spread out to the northern & eastern provinces.
The last thing that they need is for anyone else to die whichever side they appear to be on.

However this mess ends up the divide between the two sides is likely to get bigger rather than smaller.

I was hoping that Abhisit would be able to bring in the reforms that Thailand desperately needs.
Instead I cannot seem him lasting in power to the end of the year  -  maybe not beyond the summer.

That being the case  -  what next?

RR.

[robbo]

who knows,its a wait n see for us spectators,one thing for sure tho is, what next?... id say worse to come whatever shape that takes.

[Torurot]

Rogue Thai general aiding protesters shot in head
By VIJAY JOSHI and JOCELYN GECKER, €“ 1 hr 11 mins ago

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100513/...iland_politics

BANGKOK €“ A rogue army general working with anti-government protesters was shot in the head Thursday while talking to reporters in downtown Bangkok, triggering more clashes that left one demonstrator dead and worsening Thailand's political chaos.

Gunfire crackled well into in the night after the government declared it will blockade 10,000 Red Shirt demonstrators who have occupied and paralyzed the center of the capital for two months.

The developments further eroded chances of re-establishing peace in this deeply divided Southeast Asian nation where the mostly rural, poor protesters are seeking to topple the government and hold new elections that they hope will give them a greater share of power.

The Red Shirts have turned a 1-square-mile (3-square-kilometer) area in the posh Rajprasong neighborhood into a sprawling camp, with portable bathrooms, free food and a stage from which their leaders deliver daily anti-government diatribes.

The streets around it turned into a virtual war zone following the shooting of Maj. Gen. Khattiya Sawasdiphol. Protesters stopped police trucks and forced them to turn back; they hurled rocks at soldiers, who responded by firing live ammunition, said Associated Press cameraman Raul Gallego.

Killed in the shooting was Chartchai Bualao, 25, who was hit in the eye, according to the government's medical emergency center. Soldiers resumed firing after an ambulance took his body away. At least seven other people were injured.

Khattiya was shot in the head while talking to a New York Times journalist near the Silom subway station on the edge of the occupation zone. The station entrance is surrounded by tall office buildings, leading to suspicions a sniper fired the shot.

Times reporter Thomas Fuller, answering questions on the newspaper's website, said he was about a half-hour into the interview when he asked the general, "Do you think the military is going to launch a crackdown, and do you think they'll be able to penetrate the barricades here?"

"And there was a bang as he was answering it, and I think his last words that I heard were, 'The military cannot get in here.' And then immediately (he) just fell, just collapsed," Fuller said. "He was looking right at me. I think the bullet went over my head and hit him in the forehead."

Wearing his trademark camouflage uniform, Khattiya slumped to the ground and one person cradled his head for a while. Moments later, others dragged him by the legs, his head sliding on the ground and leaving a trail of blood.

The emergency center said Khattiya was shot in the head and admitted to a hospital's intensive care unit.

Asked if troops shot Khattiya, government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn refused to give a direct answer. "The operation by authorities was according to international standards and law. So far, we have not found any actions by the authorities that went beyond that," he told the AP.

About 90 minutes before he was shot, Khattiya gave interviews to a series of foreign reporters, including the AP. The 59-year-old Khattiya, known by his nickname Seh Daeng, said he anticipated a military crackdown soon.

"It's either dusk or dawn when the troops will go in," said Khattiya, who was shot soon after night fell.

The Red Shirts demand an immediate dissolution of Parliament. They believe Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva's coalition government came to power illegitimately through manipulation of the courts and the backing of the powerful military.

Tens of thousands of Red Shirts streamed into the capital March 12 and occupied the historic downtown area. An army attempt to clear them April 10 led to clashes that killed 25 people and wounded more than 800. Another four people were killed in related violence in the following weeks.

On Thursday, the government extended a state of emergency to cover 17 of Thailand's 76 provinces to prevent more people from joining the protesters in the capital.

The decree gives the army broad powers to deal with protesters and places restrictions on civil liberties. The government spokesman said it is intended to prevent "masses of people trying to come to Bangkok."

Thursday's violence was expected to deepen fears of more bloodshed.

"I am gravely concerned about the safety of the protesters," said Tyrell Haberkorn, a political scientist at The Australian National University. "Long-term, the outlook for peace and democracy in Thailand is bleak," she said in e-mailed comments.

Khattiya was suspended from the army in January and became a fugitive from justice last month when an arrest warrant was issued against him and two dozen others linked to the Red Shirts for their purported roles in the violence. Yet he wandered freely through the protest zone, signing autographs near government security forces.

The government labeled him a "terrorist" and a mastermind behind some of the violence.

Khattiya helped build the Red Shirt barricades of sharpened bamboo stakes and tires around the protest area, was accused of creating a paramilitary force among the protesters and had vowed to fight the army if it launched a crackdown.

He bitterly opposed reconciling with the government and had become critical of Red Shirt leaders, some of whom had wanted to accept a compromise.

Earlier Thursday, Col. Sansern Kaewkamnerd said security forces were preparing to impose a lockdown on the protest area. The army spokesman said armored personnel carriers and sharpshooters would be sent to surround the zone, and power, public transportation and cell phone service were suspended in the area.

The Red Shirts see Abhisit's government as serving an elite insensitive to the plight of most Thais. The protesters include many supporters of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, a populist leader accused of corruption and abuse of power and ousted in a 2006 military coup.

Thaksin, a former telecommunications billionaire who fled overseas to avoid a corruption conviction, has publicly encouraged the protests and is widely believed to be helping bankroll them. He claims to be a victim of political persecution.

___

Associated Press writers Grant Peck and Thanyarat Doksone contributed to this report, with additional research by Warangkana Tempati.

[Snick]

skytrain is running partial segments today

On BTS Silom line, there are five stations that remain open. They are Chong Nonsi, Surasak, Saphan Taksin, Krung Thonburi and Wong Wien Yai.

On BTS Sukhumvit line, skytrains run from Mor Chit to Ratchathewi and back to Mor Chit, and from On Nut to Asok and back to On Nut.

No update on times or status of Subway.

Hope the bus to Pattaya is unaffected !

[Torurot]

Bangkok battle: Troops fire on rioting protesters
By THANYARAT DOKSONE, Associated Press Writer €“ 45 mins ago
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100514/...iland_politics

BANGKOK €“ Thai troops fired bullets and tear gas at anti-government protesters rioting near the U.S. and Japanese embassies Friday as an army push to clear the streets sparked bloody clashes and turned central Bangkok into a virtual war zone.

Violence escalated after a rogue army general regarded as a military advisor to the Red Shirt protesters was shot in the head on Thursday evening, possibly by a sniper, leaving him in a critical condition. Ensuing street clashes have killed one Red Shirt and wounded 12 other people, including a Thai photographer and a foreign journalist.

With security deteriorating and hopes of a peaceful resolution to the two-month standoff fading, unrest plunged Thailand deeper into political uncertainty, threatening the country's stability, economy and already-decimated tourism industry.

Friday's violence was centered on a small area home to several foreign embassies. Soldiers crouched behind a raised road divider and fired rubber bullets, live ammunition and tear gas shells. Army vehicles were seen speeding on deserted streets littered with stones and debris. Protesters retreated and hurled rocks and insults.

Fighting has now killed 30 people and injured hundreds since the Red Shirts, mostly rural poor, began camping in the capital on March 12, in a bid to force out Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva. They claim his coalition government came to power illegitimately through manipulation of the courts and the backing of the powerful military, which in 2006 forced the populist premier favored by the Red Shirts, Thaksin Shinawatra, from office in a coup.

Last week, Abhisit offered November elections, raising hopes that a compromise could be reached with the Red Shirts, who have been demanding immediate elections. Those hopes were dashed after Red Shirt leaders made more demands.

Late Thursday, the army moved to seal off the Red Shirt barricaded encampment which covers 1-square-mile (3-square-kilometer) in an upscale commercial district of the capital. Some 10,000 protesters, women and children among them, have crammed into the area.

"We are being surrounded. We are being crushed. The soldiers are closing in on us. This is not a civil war yet, but it's very, very cruel," Weng Tojirakarn, a protest leader, told The Associated Press.

On Friday morning, protesters captured and vandalized two military water cannon trucks at a key intersection in the business district, just outside the Red Shirt encampment, which is fortified with bamboo stakes and tires. They ripped the cannon from its moorings and used its plastic barrel to shoot firecrackers from behind a sandbag bunker they had commandeered from soldiers.

They later set fire to tires and a police bus that sent thick plumes of smoke into the sky. Soldiers fired automatic rifles repeatedly.

A Thai photographer was shot in the leg, his newspaper, Matichon, said. A hospital said a foreign journalist was being treated in the emergency ward but did not reveal the identity.

The violence was concentrated on a small area around the Red Shirt encampment, close to the American and Japanese embassies, which were closed to the public. The British, New Zealand and the Dutch embassies, which are in the vicinity, also were shut.

Many shops in the city were closed and traffic was light.

"I'm not scared. We are here only to ask for democracy. Why are we facing violence?" Mukda Saelim, 39, a mushroom farmer from Chonburi province, said inside the Red Shirt encampment. "I don't have anything to fight them, but I'm not afraid. You asked if this is safe? It's not."

Tensions escalated after renegade army Maj. Gen. Khattiya Sawasdiphol, who is accused of creating a paramilitary force for the Red Shirts, was shot in the head Thursday evening at the Saladeng intersection. He was talking to reporters just inside the perimeter of the protesters' encampment when the bullet hit him.

He was taken to a hospital in a coma and was in critical condition. Hospital director Dr. Chaiwan Charoenchokthawee said Khattiya "could die at any moment."

It was not known who shot Khattiya, better known by the nickname Seh Daeng. But the Red Shirts blamed a government sniper.

"This is illegal use of force ordered by Abhisit Vejjajiva," said Arisman Pongruengrong, a Red Shirt leader. "Seh Daeng was shot by a government sniper. This is clearly a use of war weapons on the people."

The army denied it tried to kill Khattiya.

"It has nothing to do with the military. It has never been our policy (to assassinate). We have been avoiding violence," said Col. Sansern Kaewkamnerd, an army spokesman. Only a forensic investigation will determine who was behind the shooting, he said.

The two-day clashes marked the worst continuous episode of violence since April 10, when 25 people were killed and more than 800 injured in clashes between Red Shirts and troops in Bangkok's historic area. Four more people were killed in subsequent clashes.

The Red Shirts see Abhisit's government as serving an elite insensitive to the plight of most Thais. The protesters include many supporters of former prime minister Thaksin whose allies won elections in 2007 after his ouster. Two subsequent pro-Thaksin governments were disbanded by court rulings and Abhisit was named prime minister in a vote by lawmakers.

Thaksin, a former telecommunications billionaire who fled overseas to avoid a corruption conviction, has publicly encouraged the protests and is widely believed to be helping bankroll them. He claims to be a victim of political persecution.



Associated Press writers Vijay Joshi and Jocelyn Gecker contributed to this report.

[Torurot]

Bangkok battle: Troops fire on rioting protesters
By VIJAY JOSHI and JOCELYN GECKER, Associated Press Writers €“ 2 hrs 5 mins ago
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100514/...iland_politics


BANGKOK €“ Soldiers opened fire on anti-government protesters who battled them with firebombs and homemade rockets Friday in a second straight day of escalating violence as troops tried to clear the rioters from the streets of downtown Bangkok.

The clashes have killed 10 people and wounded 125, including two soldiers, the government said. The troops used tear gas, rubber bullets and live rounds on demonstrators, who set fire to tires and a police bus.

Explosions echoed through streets emptied of shoppers and tourists, plumes of black smoke rose amid skyscrapers and hotels, and the deteriorating security raised concerns that Thailand €” a key U.S. ally with Southeast Asia's second-largest economy €” was teetering toward instability because of the two-month political crisis.

The Red Shirt protesters began their campaign to oust the government in March, saying it came to power illegitimately and is indifferent to the poor. In several rounds of violence since then, 37 people have been killed and more than 1,400 wounded.

Protesters have urged 82-year-old King Bhumibol Adulyadej to end his long silence and intervene, but there was no word from the widely revered ailing monarch.

The latest violence erupted Thursday after the Red Shirts' military strategist €” a former Thai general €” was shot and seriously injured, apparently by a sharpshooter, as he spoke to foreign journalists. One protester was fatally shot later Thursday and four were killed Friday, the army said. Among the wounded were two Thai journalists and a Canadian reporter €” all from gunfire.

Witnesses saw several groups of a dozen or more people detained at the scene of several clashes. No figures were released on how many were detained.

As night fell, defiant Red Shirt leaders led followers in Buddhist prayers and called on volunteers to bring more tires for their barricades.

"Death cannot stop us civilians from continuing our fight," said Jatuporn Prompan, a protest leader.

The Red Shirts, mostly rural poor, began camping in the capital March 12 to try to force out Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva. They claim his coalition government came to power illegitimately through manipulation of the courts and the backing of the powerful military.

The military had forced Thaksin Shinawatra, the populist premier favored by the Red Shirts, from office in a 2006 coup. Two subsequent pro-Thaksin governments were disbanded by court rulings before Abhisit became prime minister.

In a Twitter message from exile, Thaksin said the "very cruel and unusual government" will "end up as war criminals" in the International Court of Justice.

About 10,000 Red Shirts have barricaded themselves in a 1-square-mile (3-square-kilometer) protest zone in Rajprasong, Bangkok's premier shopping and diplomatic enclave. They have set up a perimeter of tires and bamboo stakes, refusing to leave until Abhisit dissolves Parliament and calls new elections.

The occupation has forced luxury hotels and high-end shops to close for weeks. Major roads around the protest site were blocked to traffic Friday, and the city's subway and elevated train shut down early. The embassies of the United States, Britain and other countries were also closed.

The political uncertainty has spooked foreign investors and damaged the vital tourism industry, which accounts for 6 percent of the economy.

"Abhisit must dissolve Parliament and return power to the people immediately, and not serve as caretaker prime minister," Jatuporn said from a stage in the protest zone, which is now encircled by the army in a wider perimeter.

As Jatuporn spoke, a series of gunshots rang out close by, panicking the crowd of listeners who shrieked in fear and ducked for cover.

"We are being surrounded. We are being crushed. The soldiers are closing in on us. This is not a civil war yet, but it's very, very cruel," Weng Tojirakarn, another protest leader, told The Associated Press.

The crisis appeared to be reaching a resolution last week when Abhisit offered to hold elections in November, a year early. But the hopes were dashed after Red Shirt leaders made more demands.

Jatuporn said only the king "can stop the killings of civilians by Abhisit."

The beloved monarch has in the past mediated political crises, but he has stayed away from commenting on this one. Observers say he may be reluctant to get involved in a conflict that he may not be able to solve. Another problem is his failing health €” he has been hospitalized since September and the palace has given no updates after initially describing his ailment as a lung infection.

The Red Shirts have kept soldiers at bay by firing guns and homemade rockets, hurling rocks and commandeering government vehicles. Some bolder protesters came close to the soldiers on motorcycles, shouted obscenities and sped away.

Army spokesman Col. Sansern Kaewkamnerd said some protesters also used grenades and other weapons, and have an estimated 500 armed fighters.

The troops have kept their distance and made little progress toward their goal of clearing the streets.

Soldiers addressed the protesters with a loudspeaker, saying: "We are the people's army. We are just doing our duty for the nation. Brothers and sisters, let's talk together."

Sansern said soldiers will tighten the perimeter around the protest site in the next few days and will conduct operations without advance warning.

"The measures we will apply will definitely be more intense than what has been done so far," he told reporters.

The government said authorities are not trying to disperse the protesters forcibly but only pressure them so that they leave voluntarily.

"Security forces have refrained from entering the rally area and the (violence) occurred because the protesters attacked them," he said, adding that authorities "needed to defend themselves."

Among the injured was Canadian freelance journalist Nelson Rand, who works for France 24 news channel. He was hit by three bullets and was recovering after surgery.

Bangkok residents found it hard to come to terms with the violence in their city, which prides itself as an exotic and welcoming gateway to the Land of Smiles, as Thailand is fondly known.

"I've never seen anything like this. I heard gunshots and explosions all day," said Kornvika Klinpraneat, a 7-11 employee. "This is like a civil war. The battle is being fought in the middle of the city."

The two-day clashes marked the worst violence since April 10, when 25 people were killed and more than 800 injured. Four others were killed in subsequent clashes.

___

Associated Press writers Thanyarat Doksone, Denis D. Gray and Chris Blake contributed to this report. Additional research by Warangkana Tempati.

[Road Runner]

Some of the video featured shows Thai soldiers firing automatic rifles through railings which I believe are those around Lumpini Park.

What strikes me is that despite the government's assurances that they would only use live ammunition when threatened,
the body language of the soldiers does not show them to be in fear of their lives.
In fact they appear to be calmly picking targets in the area they are firing into.

OK, I'm not there and the video is too closely framed to give any idea of what is really happening, but it does make me wonder.

RR.

[Snick]

Now that the death toll is close fifty. It time for the govt to shoot all reds who fail to disburse.
50 is a tradgedy. 1000 is a statistic

Flame away

[f0xxee]

(Snick @ May 15 2010,07:28) Now that the death toll is close fifty. It time for the govt to shoot all reds who fail to disburse.
50 is a tradgedy. 1000 is a statistic

Flame away

Ah the famous quote of J. Stalin esq. regarding tragedy and statistics.

Easy to say until it happens on your patch.

I was reading Stephen Fry's "America" and he was mentioning the song Ohio by Neil Young about the Kent State U shootings by the National Guard. I was too young and too far away to understand the emotional grief the US suffered, but I googled it and realised what it means when an apparent democracy shoots it's own.

While I sympathise with the urge to mow 'em down ask yourself if you would feel the same way about demonstrators in your own country.
Remember with the rare and exceptionally well targeted case of Seh Daeng who was readjusted albeit not terminally on Thursday, when the bullets fly it will be the innocents (those illeterate, un educated and poor) who will die, not the greedy, self serving Tacky-puppets.

[Snick]

Consider the alternative if the reds win.
These guys have an agenda and it's not open pluralistic democracy.

The next election would resemble Zimbabwe more than anywhere else.
And the country would follow the same path.

[f0xxee]

Hi Snick, yeah I have considered that....
But how many are there really? The poor and disgruntled from the NE and North, the University Socialists and the paid employees of Thasin. I think it is well documented the crowds of 50,000 from a few weeks ago have dwindled to less than 10,000. They have no support in the South, little across the central plains and west. The leadership is factional and fractured. What general support they enjoed has been mitigated by PR disasters such as the storming and barricading of hospitals.
I just don't see they have the numbers. It seems to me they hang onto Ratchaprasong/Lumpini for one reason only, being high visibility.
Once they leave the lime-light and international arena they can be disbursed, hunted and erradicated. I am sure it is on thier minds....

[Torurot]

Army: Part of central Bangkok is 'live fire zone'
Associated Press writers Thanyarat Doksone, Vijay Joshi, Chris Blake, Grant Peck and Jocelyn Gecker contributed to this report. Additional research by Warangkana Tempati.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100515/...iland_politics
2 mins ago

BANGKOK €“ The Thai army has designated an area in central Bangkok as a "live firing zone" in a warning to protesters and local residents.

Soldiers unrolled razor wire across roads leading to the Ratchaprarop area Saturday and pinned Thai and English-language notices saying "Live Firing Zone" and "Restricted Area. No Entry."

The signs indicate soldiers may shoot protesters still hiding there.

Ratchaprarop is a mostly commercial area with high-rise buildings, hotels, and shops. It was the scene of some of the worst fighting Friday night between troops and Red Shirt anti-government protesters.

Explosions and street fighting have killed 16 people and wounded nearly 160 since Thursday in central Bangkok.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

BANGKOK (AP) €” Thai troops clashed with protesters for a third day in Bangkok on Saturday, as streets in the center of the Asian metropolis became battlegrounds and authorities struggled to contain Red Shirt demonstrators demanding the prime minister's resignation.

Explosions and street fighting have killed 16 people and wounded nearly 160 since the government attempted Thursday to seal off the 1-square-mile (3-square-kilometer) zone the Red Shirts have occupied in one of the capital's most upscale areas.

The spiraling violence, which has shifted from street to street over three days, has raised concerns that Thailand €” a longtime tourism magnet that promotes its easygoing culture as the "Land of Smiles" €” was teetering toward instability because of the two-month-long political crisis.

The army says its troop are not shooting to kill, but protesters during a lull in clashes Saturday crawled along sidewalks to slowly drag away corpses of three people near the city's Victory Monument traffic circle. They told an Associated Press photographer that army snipers had shot all three in the head.

On Friday, encircling troops used tear gas, rubber bullets and live rounds on demonstrators and the protesters in turn set fire to tires and a police bus.

Sporadic clashes resumed in several parts of the city Saturday, and explosions once again echoed through streets emptied of shoppers and tourists, as plumes of black smoke rose amid skyscrapers and hotels.

In a message from New York, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon appealed to both sides to "do all within their power to avoid further violence and loss of life."

But with negotiations terminated, the situation appeared headed toward a final showdown on the streets.

"The situation right now is getting closer to civil war every minute," a protest leader, Jatuporn Prompan, said Saturday morning. "We have to fight on. The leaders shouldn't even think about retreat when our brothers are ready to fight on."