The RED SHIRT Crisis in Bangkok!

[spare wheel]

Me thinks the army are waiting on that call to move in and ship the protestors out ?
i get the feeling its gonna be messy over the weekend.

SW„¢

[robbo]

we are talking a shit load of red shirts tho,some sources have put it at 10,000,other news sources on the ground have said....double that!
you dont just ship out 10 or 15000 people with a goodie bag and and handshake or wai,this is how it has potential to be very bad. the numbers involved are big.
men women and children in the encampment,i dread to think that kids are gonna be caught up in the violence which will ensue,not good.

[mardhi]

Are you in Thailand now - my impression is that the numbers had fallen vastly - down to like couple of thousand at most ? The more I hear about this the more its like a game of chess - the pawns are seriously cannon fodder which is a huge shame but in the bigger scheme, totally dispensible with the real strategists on both sides, not even ON the playing board.

My personal view is that the reds will start to clear out and quickly - the previously thought leaders have done a runner already (oh sorry strategic retreat for safety reasons) and the bulk of the others will not be far behind once they realise that everyone else is leaving. What remains to be seen is what happens to the hardcore "rent an anarchy" mob who will be drugged up and drunk on Rice whiskey proclaiming to be able to withstand bullets. The whole thing will then move underground and more martyrs will appear at various points to almost becoming like a supposed holy war.

A sad situation made worse by totally allowing it to get out of control in the first place.

Cheers
Mardhi

[Snick]

Yea
Lots of rumors that one of the red leaders went to UK days ago, and that 2-3 others are ready to pack it in.
But the Black Shirts (aka Ninjas) might want to get some revenge attacks in before they disperse.

Big question is whats next, will the reds resort to guerrilla tactics and sabotage ?; or will they try and revive the govts (withdrawn) offer for November elections.

Hope someone in Dubai is happy with all the trouble he's causing.

[deepthroat]

Fu#*, Steff is in Pattaya right now. Hope this doesn't affect his travel when he is ready to fly home.

[Snick]

so far Airport is completely unaffected, don't see that changing

[manarak]

Seh Daeng had it coming sooner or later.
It is just sad that it came that way... They should have locked him up months ago.
Now they got a martyr.

The red's refusal to disperse after the Govt's proposal of nov. elections and the subsequent ridiculous demands about the deputy PM's arrest, etc. clearly showed that there is more behind this mob than just the demand for elections and "democracy".

But the red rallies are failing.
Thaksin has fired his (hopefully) last ammo.
If this guy could just quietly "disappear" from the scene.

[deepthroat]

Getting closer to Nana now:

(Reuters) - Thai troops fired tear gas and rubber bullets toward protesters on Friday following overnight fighting that killed one and wounded 11, including a rogue general, as a two-month political crisis deepened.

WORLD  |  THAILAND

A foreign journalist was shot during the afternoon skirmishes, a Reuters witness said. No other details were immediately available.

The protesters had gathered outside the famous Suan Lum night market to stop soldiers from sealing off roads around their main fortified encampment in Bangkok's commercial heart.

They set fire to a bus, motorbike and tires as they retreated, and soldiers took control of an intersection leading to a road lined with hotels, the U.S. ambassador's home and several embassies, which were closed and evacuated.

Troops fired rubber bullets into Lumphini Park in central Bangkok after gunshots were heard near an encampment that anti-government protesters have occupied the past five weeks, Thailand television said.

Soldiers used tear gas and water cannon before dawn at the Nana intersection, packed with shops and racy go-go bars. Skirmishes flared in other parts of the city as the protesters remained defiant, vowing to fight to the death.

"They are tightening a noose on us but we will fight to the end, brothers and sisters," a protest leader, Nattawut Saikua, told a cheering crowd of about 10,000 at the main protest site.

Despite repeated warnings, troops had yet to seal all roads leading to the area of luxury hotels and ritzy department stores occupied by protesters for nearly six weeks, raising questions over whether the government will end the protests soon.

"An operation to seal off the area has just begun. It will take time. We are doing it in a way that does not cause heavy casualties but tightens the protest area," said government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn.

The crisis, in which 30 people have been killed since April and more than 1,400 wounded, has paralyzed parts of Bangkok and sparked Thailand's deadliest political violence in 18 years, decimating tourism and pushing away foreign portfolio investors.

The flare up in violence sent ripples through financial markets and prompted investors to buy government bonds, considered a safe-haven asset, and sell stocks. The yield on five-year government bonds, which moves inversely to the price, dropped to a nine-month low. Stocks fell 1.2 percent.

Five-year credit default swaps, used to hedge against debt default but also to speculate on country risk, jumped by more than 30 basis points to 142 basis points.

"The city is pretty much shut off right now. Everyone is on edge and tensions are just very high," said Kiatkong Decho, a strategist with stockbroker CIMB Securities in Bangkok.

"At this point, I think there are not many options left for Abhisit but to forcibly remove the protesters."

Foreign investors have sold $584 million in Thai shares in the past six sessions, cutting their net buying so far this year to $607.6 million in an emerging market seen at the start of the year as one of Asia's most promising.

CRACKDOWN

The latest violence followed tough security measures imposed on Thursday evening to reclaim Bangkok's commercial district after the collapse of a reconciliation plan proposed last week by Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva.

Abhisit is under enormous pressure to end the protests, which began with festive rallies on March 12 and descended into violence that is stoking concerns over the outlook of Southeast Asia's second-biggest economy.

The shooting and a security cordon marked the start of a violent crackdown in which the Thai government stands a good chance of clearing the streets, the Eurasia Group political risk consultancy said.

"But it will not end the polarization that has led to the current instability -- ensuring that the pressure from the red shirts will persist and that political volatility will remain a persistent problem for Thailand for the foreseeable future".

It is unclear who shot a renegade general who has been in charge of security for thousands of protesters occupying a 3 sq-km (1.2 sq-mile) stretch of central Bangkok since April 3.

Khattiya Sawasdipol, a suspended army specialist better known as "Seh Daeng" (Commander Red), was shot in the head, apparently by a sniper, while talking to reporters on Thursday evening.

He underwent brain surgery and remains in stable condition.

The shooting sparked half a dozen confrontations overnight between rock-throwing protesters and armed security forces on the outskirts of the protesters' barricaded encampment.

One protester was shot in the eye and died after a group of red shirts confronted soldiers armed with assault rifles next to a park in the Silom business district, witnesses said. Some protesters hurled rocks and troops fired in return.

By Friday morning, 11 people had been wounded, according to the Erawan Medical Center. The military brought in armored vehicles, shut down power in some areas at the protest site and cut some mobile phone services.

Khattiya had been branded a terrorist by the Thai government, which accused him of involvement in dozens of grenade attacks that have wounded more than 100 people.

But in recent days he was equally critical of other red shirt leaders, accusing them of embracing Abhisit's proposed "national reconciliation" which unraveled after protesters refused to leave the streets.

Most businesses and embassies in the area have evacuated staff and were closed for the day. Apartment complexes were mostly empty after the government warned it would shut down power and water supplies, and landlords urged tenants to leave.[I][U][I]

[PigDogg]

(deepthroat @ May 13 2010,23:52) Soldiers used tear gas and water cannon before dawn at the Nana intersection, packed with shops and racy go-go bars.

Anyone at the makeshift bars on Sukhumvit in the wee hours?

[robbo]

BTS now said to fully shut down at 4pm.

[Bumpa STIKKA]

A foreign journalist just got shot...

[laputanegra]

its not safe to go back to bangkok? i left some shoes in my room in bangkok im so worried for them now.

[strocube]

WTF, you guys. From what I'm hearing here central Bangkok is war zone. People are getting shot.
Any of you guys on the scene have any info about what's happening?
Thanks

[robbo]

where have you been in the last week? i know the post is slow on the moon but for pitys sake didnt you take your mobile with you?

[ezflip]

I curious to know too. All the news I get is from CBCNewsworld(Canada) or CNN or Al Jazzyawhatever. And those are only 3 minute blurbs of 'There's shooting going on somewhere...over there.' and repeats of why the why and who's who. No indication of how close it is to OUR action area (Nana).

BTW, these 'on the scene' reporters are really not doing Thailand a favor by showing themselves in flak jackets and helmets. Gives the viewers the impression that Bangkok is like Bagdad with full on army assaults and explosions everywhere. Perfect way to drive tourism away.