State Of Emergency Decree Imposed In Bangkok

[Thai at Heart]

It's about time! Totally justified for all the world to see.

A message to the good people of Thailand.

I can tell you with confidence the vast majority of foreigners support your honorable PM Abhisit in his valiant effort to fight anarchic red shirt's illegal attempt at revolution and the rule of a violent mob. Good luck to and best hopes for a PEACEFUL resolution.

<deleted>! who appointed you spokesman?

The yellows occupied giv offices for months with no comeback. The reds go in for 10 minutes and a state of emergency is declared.

This obvious inequality is precisely why they are demonstrating and this is one farang that understands.

Indeed Jing, I would prefer if you served only to speak for yourself.

[LuckyFive8888]

Well the truth is the PM does not actually run the army - it's completely independent. One of the major problem's that Thailand has IMHO.

As much as i dislike agreeing with you Brit, you just hit the proverbial nail on the head

so why flame aphisit and the Dems? this country is ruled by the military, end of story.

[philw]

My thai wife said that a member of a certain family was on TV high up the food ladder, can't mention names on here as you would get banned.

She was quoted in saying that abhisit should desolve parliment immediately for the sake of the country and for the people to stop a major civil war from imploding.

She was also quoted saying that abhisit was only thinking about himself and not about the problems that this is going to cause. She also quoted that if all the poor people stopped working for a month, the elite in Bangkok would have big problems, as its the poor who feed the elite.

So "you wife" says all thi so it must be true, Your "wife " has an opinion , no more no less , NO FACTS

Try and be nice..............

it's not that difficult.

ph

[TAWP]

Is it now legal to take up arms against these insurgents? Even for us civilians that may or may not have access to weapons?

[ccarbaugh]

As usual, Jingthing is spot on!!! As an article in last Fridays BKK Post (correctly) stated, the Red Shirts haven't proposed any meaningful benefit for Thailand - they just want to inject their own corrupt members into Parliament. Thaksin should be ashamed on himself - genuinely disgraceful!

[vicco]

I saw this live on Television...and that is not what they said. They said: The Government has declared war on us...Decalared war on us Redshirts....declared war on us..the Thai people. This is typical of the kind of "journalism" we have been seen lately.... Then they asked all Thai people to come support them and all international people too...

"They will come to disperse us but we We will fight them with all peaceful means." That is what I heard and saw myself....not second hand and it was just about 15 -20 minutes ago. Where does this crap come from?

[rainman]

State of Emergency doesn't mean anything if the police and army don't play along.

[khunjamespittman]

We were very close to seeing the problem resolved.

If only Abhisit had chosen to provide a credible reason for a 9 month delay or a more reasonable time frame that an

internationally observed election could have been held and a very large percentage of the Thai population would have accepted it. Instead he made a terrible mistake by choosing as rationale 2 controversial reasons and unbelievable by many Thais.

1. They need to change the constitution before an election could be held without even suggesting what changes were so urgent. Naturally the opposition would be suspicious of such an offer since several elections have already been held using the provisions for elections in the constitution. Secondly the opposition would be suspicious because constitutions are intended to be long lived and for that reason extreme caution is usually taken and usually very early in a new government's tenure and almost never shortly before an election. Banharn suggested it is impossible to to hold an election and only takes 9 months. Why hasn't it already been changed if it is that urgent?

2. Abhisit, during the televised negotiations also indicated that a leaader of the military is retiring in September. This is not credible reason. What does a military leader retirng have to do with electing a civilian government that the military is supposed to report to. It is also natural that the opposition would not believe that is a reason to delay an election. Military leaders retire frequently and they never cause a civilian election to be delayed. It is only natural for the opposition to be skeptical of possible deals that may have been made.

I fear that today the government escalation of infringment on Thais rights is the exact wrong thing to do.

Abhisit should drop the foolish idea of rushing constitution changes that have not been explained to anyone yet. He should figure out exactly how much time it takes to disolve Parliment and schedule an election under the existing Constitution. It' probaly is not 15 days and surely not 9 months or into next year as I saw in an earlier post today.

The UK has just demonstrated they can do it in 1 month. Iraq did it in six months including writing an new constitution. I've heard all the excuses that Thailand is not like the UK. So what! The model for disolving the Parliment works and is included in the current constitution.

It is time to stop the escalating rhetoric and get down to negotiating a solution with the opposition the improve the life of all Thais.

Pray to your God that cooler heads will prevail.

Regards

[NADTATIDA1]

SONGKRAN COUP IS ON THE CARDS!

Or has he done this knowing that most red supporters will be heading home next weekend and he will have a better chance of controlling the situation?

[Harry2]

Shouldn't the announcement have read;

"Government announces a Failed State in Emergency " ?

Exactly, unless the stance of the army/police has changed from one of non-intervention then a change in the form of the instruction has little meaning.

The army/police may be looking to hedge their bets in the future, particularly if big changes in the leadership of the Privy Council, army, police etc take place as a result of a major event outside the immediate party political arena.

[PuddingDis]

Thank you very much! : )

Will it be dangerous to go extend visas tomorrow? >>;

Don't worry. Everything will be almost as normal here in BKK.

You may only face some delay due to trafic on some routes.

opalhort

[dude007]

If ISA failed, why will a state of emergency succeed?

Yeah.

I was thinking that.

The impasse continues and just gets bigger.

An election, no matter how farcical, might clear the air and allow the political re-alignments necessary to start moving on.

Like this, just seems we get deeper and deeper into the mud.

ph

Election will be no solution. It will only encourage the next loosers in the new elections to do the same and claim the dissolution of the government for calling new elections.

[britmaveric]

Well the truth is the PM does not actually run the army - it's completely independent. One of the major problem's that Thailand has IMHO.

As much as i dislike agreeing with you Brit, you just hit the proverbial nail on the head

Well I am not for mob mayhem, and like the yellows they should have squashed this from the get go. However little hard to do when you do not have the proper support. I quite imagine the generals are in a barracks having a good laff at Abhisit and the govt's repeated threats. Anyways I can't see much happening unless things get totally out of control which I doubt inconveniencing people and entering public buildings and marching around bangkok can be considered as such.

[Garry9999]

Wednesday , April 7 , 2010

And now, the end is near

Posted by Thanong , Reader : 200 , 16:40:30

Print

April 7, 2010

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva can only sing Frank Sinatra's My Way alone. But nobody would like to sing it with him. Here the famous song goes: "And now, the end is here. And so I face the final curtain."

He is now very pale. There is chaos all over the Security Command Centre. Abhisit can sense how solitude he is.

The coalition partners are speaking behind his back that within the next 24 hours, Abhisit will be gone

[fnprop]

In practical terms, this means that the military is pre-absolved for any massacres they commit, people may be detained indefinitely without warrant or charges, and all media broadcast and print in the affected areas can be shuttered at a moments notice with no appeal or judicial review.

Anupong got the "get out of jail free" card he wanted before unleashing his dogs. There's no need for a coup, since under the emergency decree the military is in charge of everything. Abhisit and Suthep have now been removed from any effective control of anything.

And for the pollster, you can count this farang out of the vast majority you purport to speak for. The English language press is a farce, parroting undercounts, and expressing the wish of the "vast majority" of Bangkok as well. You obviously haven't seen the enthusiastic support that the Reds have received from the ordinary folks on the street as they pass by. And somehow you missed the Chao Phraya riverbanks and bridges being lined with supporters from Ayuthaya to Krungthep for the flotilla, and the same on Highway 2 from Nong Khai to Korat, leading up to the initial rally. So, go ahead and believe what you read in the Nation and BP.

A big part of the problem is that Bangkok purports to speak for Thailand. The more I see, the more I know it's not true. Concentrating the nations power and wealth into one sinking stinking cesspool guarantees that the battles for control will be fought there. If decentralization had truly been brought to Siam, then most of the issues would not even exist, and your concrete jungle wouldn't be ground zero.

[rainman]

If ISA failed, why will a state of emergency succeed?

Yeah.

I was thinking that.

The impasse continues and just gets bigger.

An election, no matter how farcical, might clear the air and allow the political re-alignments necessary to start moving on.

Like this, just seems we get deeper and deeper into the mud.

ph

And election likely won't bring complete peace to Thailand, but at this point it would bring some much needed release of tension.

[Ralf61]

It's about time! Totally justified for all the world to see.

A message to the good people of Thailand.

I can tell you with confidence the vast majority of foreigners support your honorable PM Abhisit in his valiant effort to fight anarchic red shirt's illegal attempt at revolution and the rule of a violent mob. Good luck to and best hopes for a PEACEFUL resolution.

And how would you know"the vast majority" of foreigners support Abbisit? And with confidence? Have you personally polled all foreigners living in thailand? What a dumb post that is

It's because retired Yankee Marine Corps Lance Corporals think, the world consists solely of active/retired MC Lance Corporals , (and THE ENEMY , usually something in red)...

[webfact]

Thai PM declares state of emergency in Bangkok

by Anusak Konglang

BANGKOK (AFP) - Thailand's embattled premier declared a state of emergency in Bangkok Wednesday after protesters stormed parliament in a dramatic escalation of their bid to topple the government.

Lawmakers fled and several senior government figures were airlifted by military helicopter after red-shirted supporters of ousted premier Thaksin Shinawatra forced their way into the country's parliamentary compound.

In an effort to contain the crisis, Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva invoked emergency rule, which bans public gatherings of more than five people and gives broad powers to the police and military.

"The state of emergency aims to resolve the situation and bring a return to normal," Abhisit told a nationally televised press conference.

He said the mass rallies were unconstitutional and had tarnished the country's image, eroding investor confidence.

It is the fourth time since 2008 that emergency law has been declared in the capital because of political turmoil.

Abhisit left a cabinet meeting at parliament when he learnt that the Reds were approaching, moving to a military barracks in the city's northern outskirts, where he has mostly been based since the protests began mid-March.

Tens of thousands of anti-government protesters have refused to leave Bangkok's main commercial district, where they have been since Saturday, disrupting traffic and causing major shopping centres to shut.

The red-clad movement remained defiant, vowing to keep up their action.

"I gamble my life with this dictator government," said Reds leader Jatuporn Prompan.

The Reds, mostly from Thailand's rural poor and working class, say the government is illegitimate because it came to power with army backing through a parliamentary vote in December 2008 after a court ousted Thaksin's allies.

Abhisit cancelled a planned trip to the United States for a nuclear security summit next week due to the unrest.

The Reds have been emboldened after the police and army backed down on Tuesday following a tense standoff in the capital's tourist heartland.

The authorities have threatened the protesters with a year in jail but so far no arrests have been made.

Security forces have refrained from using force to disperse the tens of thousands of protesters, who have been roaming the capital.

The government said it would act if needed to end the protests, but reiterated that it wanted a peaceful resolution to the standoff.

The mainly poor and rural followers of Thaksin, a billionaire telecoms tycoon who lives abroad to avoid a jail term for corruption, fervently support the populist policies he introduced before his ouster in a 2006 coup.

Thaksin sought to rally his supporters on Wednesday in a brief message through the micro-blogging service Twitter, praising their "courage, patience and unity."

On Tuesday protesters threw plastic bottles, pushed against police barricades and later took over the streets of central Bangkok on motorcycles and in pick-up trucks, pouring into the capital's financial district.

The military has mounted a heavy security response, deploying 50,000 personnel at one point to try to contain the protests, which drew as many as 100,000 people on the first day on March 14.

But the government wants to avoid a repeat of last April's clashes with Red Shirts that left two people dead, six months after riot police took on the rival Yellow Shirts in bloody scenes outside parliament.

In the latest unexplained blast since the rallies began, police said a grenade exploded shortly after midnight next to a supermarket in Bangkok, injuring one man.

-- ©Copyright AFP 2010-04-07

Published with written approval from AFP.

[newsfooter][/newsfooter]

[bangkokrick]

I agree.. Arrest the bastards. Put them away for the rest of their lives.

And the yellow shirt leaders who SEIZED AN INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT too. Oh wait, they're all free and one of the main guys is now Foreign Minister. Its all okay as long as you wear the right color.

Why do people keep harping on about history. This is now and the situation involves the Red shirts, not the Yellow shirts. Abhisit was not in power when the Yellow's took the airport.

Cheers, Rick

[LuckyFive8888]

If brains had been available in the N and NE, the situation would have been totally different. If education in Thailand had been serious in the last decennia (and Taksin also didn't do anything about this, well planned), we would not have seen this kind of pointless protest from red shirts...

They are trying to keep them stupid so as to easily brainwash them.

[Jerrytheyoung]

Wait and see what is going to happen

If Bwalker info is confirmed, Abhisit has lost a major support. The Royal Thai Army will not move in the direction he want...

[rainman]

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva can only sing Frank Sinatra's My Way alone. But nobody would like to sing it with him. Here the famous song goes: "And now, the end is here. And so I face the final curtain."

Yes, there were times, I'm sure you knew,

when I bit off, more than I could chew

[Comehome]

What about health insurances?

Are they valid or not?

And car insurance?

Thanks for any help!

/comehome

[Pui]

so, when's the baht gonna start falling???

Don't be so selfish. Lives are on the line now. This is no joke. Thank Thaksin for this mess. He was willing to destroy his own country for his money and power greed.

yeah whatever, whens the baht gonna start falling? 48 to the pound is no joke.

[moresomekl]

So what will be the difference?? The state of emergency was declared under really elected governments too. Soldiers did nothing. Anupong does not have the stomach to act now either. He has learned his lesson. He will not become the pawn in Suthep's and his bellboy Abhisit's game.

I hope he doesnt have the stomach instead , else lots of innocents thais are going to suffer .

Politically it would be mad , both international and domestic support for Abhisit would evaporate

[peecee]

The example of this administration is to promote rebel leaders into government and so the example they set after the airport debacle has now come back to haunt them! Had they invoked the rule of law and brought the yellow shirted anarchists to book then the red's would not have had such an appalling example to copy. The government sew the seed's of these wind's of change, will they now reap the whirlwind?

[shadh]

Galen for PM!

It's about time! Totally justified for all the world to see.

A message to the good people of Thailand.

I can tell you with confidence the vast majority of foreigners support your honorable PM Abhisit in his valiant effort to fight anarchic red shirt's illegal attempt at revolution and the rule of a violent mob. Good luck to and best hopes for a PEACEFUL resolution.

And how would you know"the vast majority" of foreigners support Abbisit? And with confidence? Have you personally polled all foreigners living in thailand? What a dumb post that is

[mesa55]

In the interest of our survival as foreigners in Thailand, maybe we shoudn't be expressing such strong opinions on the matter, seeing as there is now a SOE...

I'm all for freedom of speech, but I don't really think that its prudent for us (as farangs) to take sides in this showdown. We are guests in Thailand, and as such should try to remain uninvolved.

Just my two cents worth...

[rainman]

Why do people keep harping on about history. This is now and the situation involves the Red shirts, not the Yellow shirts. Abhisit was not in power when the Yellow's took the airport.

Cheers, Rick

No, but he was brought into power with the help of the yellow shirts, and as a "thank you" made the yellow shirt Kasit his Foreign Minister. Makes sense?

[tb86]

Is it now legal to take up arms against these insurgents? Even for us civilians that may or may not have access to weapons?

ooh buddy dont we wish,,, unfortunatly i think there gonna have to run out of soilders, police, security guards, toll booth collectors and then girlscouts... in that order before they let us have some fun