Thairath also reported that the PM openly criticized the performance of the Commissioner-General of the Royal Thai Police that the police couldn’t protect the ASEAN meeting ground and, thus, ashamed the PM, and threaten to remove him from position if he cannot arrest the protesters leader within 24 hours.
Notably, the PM gave his criticism before the Commander-in-chief of all armed forces, Chief of Defense Forces, and the Minister of Defense (which is the older brother of the Commissioner-General)
– Read from the news, and heard from some of local informants, that Armored Personnel Carriers or APCs (not yet tanks) are now rolling. And, around Pratunam Area, 4 of them were successfully blocked (but not seized) by the protester.
– The situation in the Interior Ministry cooled down. Protesters still insists to gather around the area.
– Many of roads in inner Bangkok are blocked by both officials and protesters.
Saturday 11 April 2009 – I was there. The normal traffic from Jomtien to Pattaya was disrupted due to the big wigs going to the summit so that morning I decided to walk along Jomtien beach and over the hill to Pattaya. To do so I had to walk along the Southern approach road to Royal Cliff Resort. As I walked up the hill I could see a big truck parked at the top with a loud speaker harranguing the red shirts milling around.
At the top I turned left and walked through red shirts some of whom were breaking up eucalyptus sticks preparing weapons. The atmosphere was scary but I was ignored. Then I saw why weapons were being prepared. Walking on through a no mans land, not a police or army uniform in sight, before me was a phalanx of over 100 men standing in a straight line several bodies deep. Each was in a uniform of brand new dark blue shirts. Every man had either an iron bar or wooden stick and a number held up beautiful framed portraits of Queen Sirikit but I did not see any picture of the King. The reds showed no loyalty to royalty nor did I see pictures of any other notable.
Passing easily around the ranks in blue a little further on was a line of military clad men. No more than 40 I would estimate.
Behind them was the T intersection leading to Royal cliff on the left and straight ahead down the hill to Pattaya. Why were there no water tankers there to hose down any over excited demonstrators I wondered?
Also why were the authorities not taking the weapons from the blue shirted men in front of them?
It seemed that they were relying entirely on the blue shirts to protect foreign dignatories from the wrath of hundreds of angry protesters?
Continuing my walk through the park and down the very steep hill to Pattaya I came across a small military group who told me not to proceed for at the base of the hill was a formidable wall of soldiers behind 2 water tankers which blocked the road.(pic in Sunday Bangkok Post) I was directed to a side soi which led around and down the hill to the road beneath the flyover (also in Post pic.) milling around were a few red shirts.
I personally cannot bear Newin, Thaksin or the friends of Prem but the only report in the Sunday Post that was consistent with my observations were words quoting ex-premier Thaksin.
4.15pm Bangkok time;
Jackrapop has just appealed to the ‘world’; and I’m paraphrasing here, the red shirts are non-violent, they are demonstrating against the state, but they will defend themselves against violence inflicted upon them by state forces.
Democracy tv (satellite) has just been ‘pulled’, whether that’s by the govt or some other reason, I don’t know.
Evidently shots have been fired at the Ministry of the Interior and 2 people have been killed.
I did also see a tank as well as wheeled vehicles on the street in front of a govt building (I’m guessing the MoI).
If there is one man on this forum who makes sense, it is SidhS.
Sadly at this time, his voice (and I am sure there are many other Thais like him) is being drowned out, by the insanity of the moment.
Things are moving so fast that ones opinions are constantly changing. But, to SidhS’s credit, he is still able to make some sense of it all.
Let us all hope things can settle down – but like him, I fear for the worst.
Interesting observations Srithanonchai#8. Although I think the ‘culture of paternalistic governance’ is still very robust on both sides. How many “upcountry people” actually scaled the hallowed Red stages to lead the rallies? The Red leadership is clearly dominated by urban-based elites. Besides, few Thai politicians take paternalism to as great heights as PMThaksin. Maybe ‘New Politics’ should require proportional representation by socio-economic class to truly address this urban-rural divide?
Amberwaves, in this crazy time it is easy to get emotional.
I called you out, with an emotive comment about “new world DEMOCRATIC order” just as you replied to me about Bangkok people- truce?
I will say from discussions with my fellow workers – I am the only non-Thai in a company of more than 80 people – they just want this all to “go away.
I know they were pissed off by the airport siezure. I wouldn’t say they were any more PAD than UDD, but it did not affect them personally.
My (Thai) wifeand I, were affected, as we had 3 friends caught up in it. Our friends got quite a lot of sympathy and help from my fellow workers and the company (it’s Thai owned). But,no one offered any pro or anti PAD comments. It was just a very kind and slightly embarressed “mai pen rai”.
With last week’s chaos, the office was closed early, so people could make their way home. Again, opinions for, or against, were not proferred,but this time there was more a frustrated “here we go again”, than a “mai pen rai”
I would guess, if it had been the PAD and not the UDD, doing this, they would not have garnered any more sympathy for their cause from my fellow workers.
Until Bangkok people/middle class/not so poor rural families and their like are gievn a real reason to accept what is going on will make their lives better, neither side will win. But that doesn’t mean people won’t get angry !
Interesting optimistic points RN England#12. Dantampa#13, let’s try to look at the full evidences, if only to prevent further radicalization. There are also plenty of evidences of Reds unprovoked aggression over the past week. Attacking PMAbhisit’s motorcade, blocking Bangkok traffic or hindering foriegn leader’s movements was not provoked nor necessary…
One of the many paths forward to get out of this vicious cycle (apart from the elites sorting their conflicts out and end the manipulation of the masses) is the proper funding and training of security forces towards professional crowd/riot control.
@ Stephan: On the second question, yes I have asked WHY and get the usual responses. If I probe a little further and suggest perhaps reading the book to round out their knowledge, the usual response I get is: I don’t want to know!.
I’m sorry, but I don’t really understand your first question.
Why on earth did the government choose Pattaya? What a bungle! The reds would never have dared to cause such a disturbance in the King’s backyard at Hua Hin where the last big conference was held. The only answer I can think of is profits for the Pattaya hospitality mafia. Newin again?
Whatever position one might take in this context, it is the first time in Thai history that up-country people (long despised as being un-political, letargic, uninformed, and dumb) revolt in Bangkok against the Bangkok Establishment (with a good helping hand offered by Thaksin, that’s for sure) and its long-standing idea of the “culture of paternalist governance” (Borwornsak Uwanno), which has been ideologically supported by the trinity of “Nation, Religion, Monarchy.”
The previous saying was that, “Up-country voters elect governments, while Bangkok people overthrow them.” This time, it is the other way round: The Bangkok Establishment had put together a government, and up-country voters won’t accept it. The parallels with the Suchinda government in 1991 are baffling, only that the actors have changed.
It is most worrying that Abhisit had declared the protests a “threat to national security” a few days ago. In Pattaya, he went one dangerous step further by declaring the UDD “real enemies of the country/state/nation.” This is inexcusable overkill rhetoric–in the context of Thai political history, we (and the prime minister) should know what course of action this might indicate. Even Borwornsak came out (before the events of Pattaya) to warn against the possible consequences of such labelling. He specifically raised the label of “communism/communists” in 1976 as an example.
We can only hope that Abhisit will mentally and intellectually up to this challenge, though at the moment it does not look this way.
Granted: The PAD was smarter tactically.
Granted: Bangkok residents (not all!) are pissed off at the traffic disruption.
Granted: Bangkok residents have every right to be pissed off at the traffic disruption.
My point was simply the hypocrisy of winking and applauding at massive illegality in the case of the PAD, and getting all bent out of shape when someone from the other side of the tracks (both politically and in the traditional sense of the phrase) seeks to exercise those same (illegal, as it happens) rights.
Perhaps that is such an obvious point you are conceding it, and wondering why I need even bother mentioning it.
(P.S. ‘…Or in your “new DEMOCRATIC world order”’ Mine???? I didn’t talk about anything like that.)
It’s quite amazing to watch the wheels of the Thai elite’s propaganda machine shift into gear in the wake of the debacle at Pattaya, to create their version of what happened at Pattaya in April 11.
They would like the world to believe that a mob of red shirts attacked the Royal Cliff Hotel on that morning, totally without provocation.
In fact, as the evidence now emerging on the internet shows that the current government, armed with a police force and army over which it exercises little control, decided to take matters into its own hands on the morning of April 11, and use the masked blue shirts of Newin Chidbob’s Pinkertons to provoke violence against the protestors.
When the armed blue shirts first appeared at the scene , Deputy PM Suthep immediately told the press that they were “local residents” of Pattaya who had spontaneously appeared to “fight for the government.” How such local vigilantes managed to organize and appear overnight fully equipped in blue tunics, hats and masks was mystifying.
But the internet is now filled with videos of Newin Chidchob, organizer of the blue shirts, meeting at the very scene of the planned attack on the night before with Deputy PM Suthep. The two can be seen walking the area and plotting their tactics.
Singificantly, the Bangkok Post has reported today that: “PAD core members said the group was ready to organise a gathering …but the government told them on Friday that some high-ranking police and military officials may take such an opportunity to use force to disperse the protesters.”
In the past 12 hours, the internet has also produced unmistakeable photos of Newin Chidchob himself, clad in blue , barking orders from the back of a motorbike at the scene of the attack at Royal Cliff.
The truth is that the Abhisit government made a desperate attempt in the hours prior to April 11, to secretly employ an army of paid thugs in blue shirts led by Newin Chidchob to attack protestors nearing the site of the ASEAN summit. It was that attack that set into motion the events that spiralled out of control and led to the cancellation of the ASEAN summit. The real question is what this government will do in the wake of such perfidy exposed.
The main rule of the game is becoming clearer. The opposition tries to push the government into perpetrating a significant act of violence. If that happens, the government loses office: a deeply Buddhist rule that promotes internal peace, though it makes governance difficult if not impossible. The Abhisit/military government stuck to the rule at Pattaya, even at the expense of losing face at home and abroad. It was in a lose-lose situation, and it chose the best way out. This impotence is not as bad as it seems because the Thai government is traditionally a corrupt, incompetent, parasitic joke. People get on with their lives quite peacefully without much need for it.
Interestingly, the only significant violence at Pattaya was caused by the dark blue thugs led by Newin Chidchob, the chief protector of, and profiteer from the corrupt monopoly at Suvarnobhumi Airport. Perhaps he will lose out in the next elections, and millions of travellers will get better deals at the airport shops.
Aversion to violence and its perpetrators is an aspect of Thai Buddhist culture that seems to be gaining strength. It gives us hope that the present political conflict will be resolved peacefully.
Amberwavws that was a poor attempt at irony.I know your comment was “toungue in cheek”, but I saw it and particulary your later post, as masked support for the reds actions.
You missed my point-so I guess we’re even.
I was trying to point out, that these were just ordinary Bangkok people, who were not really affected by the airport siege – even though they might have had feelings about its legitimacy etc. – so they didn’t get quite so upset (and, yes perhaps they should have).
But when it came to directly upsetting their usual day, the effect was direct and immediate. In that way, perhaps the PAD were a little smarter – even if only by “accident”?
But all that was a couple of days ago and things are moving fast.
It will be interesting to see what effect yesterday’s insanity will have on the national pshyche. It would appear from this morning’s lack of Songkran celebrations in our normally riotous sois, that people are stunned – and this is a red shirt district of Bangkok.
This brings me to my last comment: what’s wrong with Bangkok people being upset? They are Thais, just as much as anyone else.
Or in your “new DEMOCRATIC world order”, will their needs and opinions stand for nought, once the “raised earth” policy of the “Thai Cultural Revolution” takes place ?
AjarnSomsak#6, you win. I congratulate you and your Reds in successfully shutting down the ASEAN +3 +6 meetings. I’m sure you wrote the above comments with much joy, sipping a nice red wine. As a Thai, I am deeply ashamed of the actions of my 100,000+ countrymen (although I still strongly doubt that what transpired was their collective objective). Unlike you, I can’t see any historic positive coming out of this – only historic embarrassment and most likely, more extremism and radicalization on both sides (something the likes of you or PMThaksin seem to desire for specific ends).
Mr. Aphisit’s miscalculations demonstrate a serious lack of political skill. Prideful brinksmanship has its risks. Thaksin took his ambitions to the brink and invited scorn and then a coup. Aphisit is no less foolish for his miscalculations. How could he fail to realize the PAD’s methods could work both ways, an obvious conclusion to many of us months ago? Now he’s embarrassed himself in front of Asia’s leaders, and the world. His pride clouded his judgement, just as it did Thaksin, Chamlong, Samak and the others. Does any leader in Thailand have political acumen?
Can he fully recover? It seems unlikely. Aphisit just invited his respected neighbors into his house to witness first hand his dysfunctional family rather than wisely calling off the dinner party before they arrived. His government’s recriminations against the UDD will follow but that will hardly demonstrate leadership or generate new respect from his Asia peers. Unless Aphisit pulls a political rabbit out of a hat and this will be remembered as blunder of large proportions.
Eton and Oxford look a little less grand today in the eyes of Asia’s leaders. “Aphisit is no brilliant LKY,” they must be saying.
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Crackdown on the reds?
Thairath also reported that the PM openly criticized the performance of the Commissioner-General of the Royal Thai Police that the police couldn’t protect the ASEAN meeting ground and, thus, ashamed the PM, and threaten to remove him from position if he cannot arrest the protesters leader within 24 hours.
Notably, the PM gave his criticism before the Commander-in-chief of all armed forces, Chief of Defense Forces, and the Minister of Defense (which is the older brother of the Commissioner-General)
Link to the article: http://www.thairath.co.th/online.php?section=newsthairathonline&content=132587
Crackdown on the reds?
Situation as of 20:33 (Canberra Time)
– Read from the news, and heard from some of local informants, that Armored Personnel Carriers or APCs (not yet tanks) are now rolling. And, around Pratunam Area, 4 of them were successfully blocked (but not seized) by the protester.
– The situation in the Interior Ministry cooled down. Protesters still insists to gather around the area.
– Many of roads in inner Bangkok are blocked by both officials and protesters.
Crackdown on the reds?
4:35pm DTV is off the air … apparently Thaicom has cut the satellite link and also the Internet link is just showing the “we’re sorry” message
one radio station has a link from the rally site
apparently 7 tanks have been taken/handed over to the redshirts
about 20 cars are parked across streets to protect the protesters
the reds are asking the soldiers to give them their guns…
more as it happens
4:50pm
DTV is on the air again (must have reds at Thaicom)
many monks are on the rally stage, brief chant, a talk, chanting
5:30pm
the monks have finished chanting
all seems peaceful (and cooler) at the rally site around government house
Khun Veera is reporting (in Thai)
East Asia Summit off; what next in Thai drama?
This was sent to me by email. AW
East Asia Summit off; what next in Thai drama?
Jakrapob : King of Spin………..who would believe anything he says.
Just look at the TV to see what’s going on !!
East Asia Summit off; what next in Thai drama?
4.15pm Bangkok time;
Jackrapop has just appealed to the ‘world’; and I’m paraphrasing here, the red shirts are non-violent, they are demonstrating against the state, but they will defend themselves against violence inflicted upon them by state forces.
Democracy tv (satellite) has just been ‘pulled’, whether that’s by the govt or some other reason, I don’t know.
Evidently shots have been fired at the Ministry of the Interior and 2 people have been killed.
I did also see a tank as well as wheeled vehicles on the street in front of a govt building (I’m guessing the MoI).
Reuters on the Thai political unrest
If there is one man on this forum who makes sense, it is SidhS.
Sadly at this time, his voice (and I am sure there are many other Thais like him) is being drowned out, by the insanity of the moment.
Things are moving so fast that ones opinions are constantly changing. But, to SidhS’s credit, he is still able to make some sense of it all.
Let us all hope things can settle down – but like him, I fear for the worst.
Reuters on the Thai political unrest
Interesting observations Srithanonchai#8. Although I think the ‘culture of paternalistic governance’ is still very robust on both sides. How many “upcountry people” actually scaled the hallowed Red stages to lead the rallies? The Red leadership is clearly dominated by urban-based elites. Besides, few Thai politicians take paternalism to as great heights as PMThaksin. Maybe ‘New Politics’ should require proportional representation by socio-economic class to truly address this urban-rural divide?
Closing the streets at Victory Monument
Amberwaves, in this crazy time it is easy to get emotional.
I called you out, with an emotive comment about “new world DEMOCRATIC order” just as you replied to me about Bangkok people- truce?
I will say from discussions with my fellow workers – I am the only non-Thai in a company of more than 80 people – they just want this all to “go away.
I know they were pissed off by the airport siezure. I wouldn’t say they were any more PAD than UDD, but it did not affect them personally.
My (Thai) wifeand I, were affected, as we had 3 friends caught up in it. Our friends got quite a lot of sympathy and help from my fellow workers and the company (it’s Thai owned). But,no one offered any pro or anti PAD comments. It was just a very kind and slightly embarressed “mai pen rai”.
With last week’s chaos, the office was closed early, so people could make their way home. Again, opinions for, or against, were not proferred,but this time there was more a frustrated “here we go again”, than a “mai pen rai”
I would guess, if it had been the PAD and not the UDD, doing this, they would not have garnered any more sympathy for their cause from my fellow workers.
Until Bangkok people/middle class/not so poor rural families and their like are gievn a real reason to accept what is going on will make their lives better, neither side will win. But that doesn’t mean people won’t get angry !
East Asia Summit off; what next in Thai drama?
Interesting optimistic points RN England#12. Dantampa#13, let’s try to look at the full evidences, if only to prevent further radicalization. There are also plenty of evidences of Reds unprovoked aggression over the past week. Attacking PMAbhisit’s motorcade, blocking Bangkok traffic or hindering foriegn leader’s movements was not provoked nor necessary…
One of the many paths forward to get out of this vicious cycle (apart from the elites sorting their conflicts out and end the manipulation of the masses) is the proper funding and training of security forces towards professional crowd/riot control.
East Asia Summit off; what next in Thai drama?
Two Red Shirt Leaders Arisman + Jatuporn P
whisked away by police to some undisclosed place.
Emergency declared in entire Bangkok+all nearby areas (apparently to stop Red Shirts coming from provinces).
Violent attacks expected by Govt gangs(yellow + blue shirts) on the Reds at Govt House
Not a good time for Thais / Thailand
t4e
On lèse majesté
@ Stephan: On the second question, yes I have asked WHY and get the usual responses. If I probe a little further and suggest perhaps reading the book to round out their knowledge, the usual response I get is: I don’t want to know!.
I’m sorry, but I don’t really understand your first question.
East Asia Summit off; what next in Thai drama?
Why on earth did the government choose Pattaya? What a bungle! The reds would never have dared to cause such a disturbance in the King’s backyard at Hua Hin where the last big conference was held. The only answer I can think of is profits for the Pattaya hospitality mafia. Newin again?
Reuters on the Thai political unrest
Whatever position one might take in this context, it is the first time in Thai history that up-country people (long despised as being un-political, letargic, uninformed, and dumb) revolt in Bangkok against the Bangkok Establishment (with a good helping hand offered by Thaksin, that’s for sure) and its long-standing idea of the “culture of paternalist governance” (Borwornsak Uwanno), which has been ideologically supported by the trinity of “Nation, Religion, Monarchy.”
The previous saying was that, “Up-country voters elect governments, while Bangkok people overthrow them.” This time, it is the other way round: The Bangkok Establishment had put together a government, and up-country voters won’t accept it. The parallels with the Suchinda government in 1991 are baffling, only that the actors have changed.
It is most worrying that Abhisit had declared the protests a “threat to national security” a few days ago. In Pattaya, he went one dangerous step further by declaring the UDD “real enemies of the country/state/nation.” This is inexcusable overkill rhetoric–in the context of Thai political history, we (and the prime minister) should know what course of action this might indicate. Even Borwornsak came out (before the events of Pattaya) to warn against the possible consequences of such labelling. He specifically raised the label of “communism/communists” in 1976 as an example.
We can only hope that Abhisit will mentally and intellectually up to this challenge, though at the moment it does not look this way.
Closing the streets at Victory Monument
Granted: The PAD was smarter tactically.
Granted: Bangkok residents (not all!) are pissed off at the traffic disruption.
Granted: Bangkok residents have every right to be pissed off at the traffic disruption.
My point was simply the hypocrisy of winking and applauding at massive illegality in the case of the PAD, and getting all bent out of shape when someone from the other side of the tracks (both politically and in the traditional sense of the phrase) seeks to exercise those same (illegal, as it happens) rights.
Perhaps that is such an obvious point you are conceding it, and wondering why I need even bother mentioning it.
(P.S. ‘…Or in your “new DEMOCRATIC world order”’ Mine???? I didn’t talk about anything like that.)
East Asia Summit off; what next in Thai drama?
It’s quite amazing to watch the wheels of the Thai elite’s propaganda machine shift into gear in the wake of the debacle at Pattaya, to create their version of what happened at Pattaya in April 11.
They would like the world to believe that a mob of red shirts attacked the Royal Cliff Hotel on that morning, totally without provocation.
In fact, as the evidence now emerging on the internet shows that the current government, armed with a police force and army over which it exercises little control, decided to take matters into its own hands on the morning of April 11, and use the masked blue shirts of Newin Chidbob’s Pinkertons to provoke violence against the protestors.
When the armed blue shirts first appeared at the scene , Deputy PM Suthep immediately told the press that they were “local residents” of Pattaya who had spontaneously appeared to “fight for the government.” How such local vigilantes managed to organize and appear overnight fully equipped in blue tunics, hats and masks was mystifying.
But the internet is now filled with videos of Newin Chidchob, organizer of the blue shirts, meeting at the very scene of the planned attack on the night before with Deputy PM Suthep. The two can be seen walking the area and plotting their tactics.
Singificantly, the Bangkok Post has reported today that: “PAD core members said the group was ready to organise a gathering …but the government told them on Friday that some high-ranking police and military officials may take such an opportunity to use force to disperse the protesters.”
http://www.bangkokpost.com/breakingnews/140251/pad-tells-government-to-muscle-up
In the past 12 hours, the internet has also produced unmistakeable photos of Newin Chidchob himself, clad in blue , barking orders from the back of a motorbike at the scene of the attack at Royal Cliff.
http://bangkokpundit.blogspot.com/
The truth is that the Abhisit government made a desperate attempt in the hours prior to April 11, to secretly employ an army of paid thugs in blue shirts led by Newin Chidchob to attack protestors nearing the site of the ASEAN summit. It was that attack that set into motion the events that spiralled out of control and led to the cancellation of the ASEAN summit. The real question is what this government will do in the wake of such perfidy exposed.
East Asia Summit off; what next in Thai drama?
The main rule of the game is becoming clearer. The opposition tries to push the government into perpetrating a significant act of violence. If that happens, the government loses office: a deeply Buddhist rule that promotes internal peace, though it makes governance difficult if not impossible. The Abhisit/military government stuck to the rule at Pattaya, even at the expense of losing face at home and abroad. It was in a lose-lose situation, and it chose the best way out. This impotence is not as bad as it seems because the Thai government is traditionally a corrupt, incompetent, parasitic joke. People get on with their lives quite peacefully without much need for it.
Interestingly, the only significant violence at Pattaya was caused by the dark blue thugs led by Newin Chidchob, the chief protector of, and profiteer from the corrupt monopoly at Suvarnobhumi Airport. Perhaps he will lose out in the next elections, and millions of travellers will get better deals at the airport shops.
Aversion to violence and its perpetrators is an aspect of Thai Buddhist culture that seems to be gaining strength. It gives us hope that the present political conflict will be resolved peacefully.
Closing the streets at Victory Monument
Amberwavws that was a poor attempt at irony.I know your comment was “toungue in cheek”, but I saw it and particulary your later post, as masked support for the reds actions.
You missed my point-so I guess we’re even.
I was trying to point out, that these were just ordinary Bangkok people, who were not really affected by the airport siege – even though they might have had feelings about its legitimacy etc. – so they didn’t get quite so upset (and, yes perhaps they should have).
But when it came to directly upsetting their usual day, the effect was direct and immediate. In that way, perhaps the PAD were a little smarter – even if only by “accident”?
But all that was a couple of days ago and things are moving fast.
It will be interesting to see what effect yesterday’s insanity will have on the national pshyche. It would appear from this morning’s lack of Songkran celebrations in our normally riotous sois, that people are stunned – and this is a red shirt district of Bangkok.
This brings me to my last comment: what’s wrong with Bangkok people being upset? They are Thais, just as much as anyone else.
Or in your “new DEMOCRATIC world order”, will their needs and opinions stand for nought, once the “raised earth” policy of the “Thai Cultural Revolution” takes place ?
Reuters on the Thai political unrest
AjarnSomsak#6, you win. I congratulate you and your Reds in successfully shutting down the ASEAN +3 +6 meetings. I’m sure you wrote the above comments with much joy, sipping a nice red wine. As a Thai, I am deeply ashamed of the actions of my 100,000+ countrymen (although I still strongly doubt that what transpired was their collective objective). Unlike you, I can’t see any historic positive coming out of this – only historic embarrassment and most likely, more extremism and radicalization on both sides (something the likes of you or PMThaksin seem to desire for specific ends).
East Asia Summit off; what next in Thai drama?
Mr. Aphisit’s miscalculations demonstrate a serious lack of political skill. Prideful brinksmanship has its risks. Thaksin took his ambitions to the brink and invited scorn and then a coup. Aphisit is no less foolish for his miscalculations. How could he fail to realize the PAD’s methods could work both ways, an obvious conclusion to many of us months ago? Now he’s embarrassed himself in front of Asia’s leaders, and the world. His pride clouded his judgement, just as it did Thaksin, Chamlong, Samak and the others. Does any leader in Thailand have political acumen?
Can he fully recover? It seems unlikely. Aphisit just invited his respected neighbors into his house to witness first hand his dysfunctional family rather than wisely calling off the dinner party before they arrived. His government’s recriminations against the UDD will follow but that will hardly demonstrate leadership or generate new respect from his Asia peers. Unless Aphisit pulls a political rabbit out of a hat and this will be remembered as blunder of large proportions.
Eton and Oxford look a little less grand today in the eyes of Asia’s leaders. “Aphisit is no brilliant LKY,” they must be saying.