Article 112

I haven't written much for some time but I feel compelled.

First I want to be very clear, I truly believe we have to protect the Monarchy with some form of law.  I also believe that Article 112 of the LM law has been abused for way too long as a political tool.

We need to protect the Monarchy while at the same time protect the People's right to comment.    After all this is a supposed Democracy.  The way the law is setup and used often does not protect the Royal family or the People.  I also believe that recent abuse of article 112 has actually hurt the image of the Monarchy, which is the exact opposite of what it was intended to do.

There is a couple of simple solutions that could solve the problem of abuse of the law while still protecting the royal Family.

First we could change the law slightly so that accusers were not anonymous.  This would help eliminate all the frivolous accusations that the police have to act upon.  We could go even further and write into the law that there was a substantial penalty for anyone bringing forward a frivolous accusation of LM and the onus is on them to prove they did not.

The very easiest way to stop all this politicizing LM is to allow only a single entity, like  the Royal Household Bureau, to bring forward accusations.  This would stop radical fringe groups from bringing frivolous charges and at the same time protect the royal family by allowing the Monarchy a say in what it deems offensive to itself.

Bangkok Post and the Military

Just after Army Chief Phayruth came out on the military owned TV channels with his very political statement that the military would crack down on any Media outlets who were not putting out the correct information the Bangkok Post responded quickly.  Although not in a way you would think a newspaper would, especially on their web page.

What did the Bangkok Post do that I personally find so vile.  As a media outlet they bowed and groveled to the army chief.  Soon after his "words of wisdom", more of a threat in reality, the Bangkok Post removed all their website reader comments that had been online for a day on anything concerned with the military and General Prayuth and now they don't even allow comments at all on these issues.  In a heartbeat they capitulated their freedom of expression and media freedom passing it to the Military.
 

For Thailand to have a free media be it radio, TV or print they have to be allowed, without threat or intimidation, to put forward a variety of thoughts from all sides of the spectrum.   I'm not talking subversion or fringe press, I'm talking the mainstream media here.

There is a reason that Reporters Without Borders rated Thailand (153) with less press freedom last year behind countries that we would all agree have little to no press freedom some of them we think of as third world.    Cambodia, Ethiopia, Russia, Honduras, Columbia, Nigeria, Congo even Afghanistan and Pakistan are ahead of Thailand.  Although we were 3 places ahead of the Philippines who had mass shootings of reporters last year as if that's a consolation.

Until The Thai Media has the courage to report neutrally even while under pressure rather than capitulate to the government of the time, the rich, the powerful or even worse the Military it's little more than a propaganda machine for whatever party is pressuring it.

The Thai people need to do their part in a couple of ways.
 

We need to get out and vote.   Vote for the party or politician of your choice think about what will help Thailand, what will help you and your family, what will help your immediate area,  and what is needed to move forward.   Think about what you had, what you have and what you pope to have in the future.  Then be sure to Vote.

We need to fight for Media Freedom.  When you see something like the situation at the Bangkok Post, or the indiscriminate closing of radio or TV stations, without a court warrant, don't just throw up your arms in frustration.  Say something.  Say it to your friends, say it to your neighbor, say it on Face book or twitter, buy say something.   Say it even if you don't agree with the views of the outlet.  If you remain silent, the situation we find our self in, will just worsen.  Be part of the solution to this very severe problem.


UPDATE:- In fairness to the Post one long term employee has contacted me and said they are looking into what was described as a 'Big Issue".

This doesn't have much to do with politics, or does it?

As parents we all wonder what our grade may be bringing up our children.  Will we make the right decisions, give the correct answers and make our kids better people. This is a little story to ponder a bit.

My son entered the last year of kindergarten this year.  He's always been a very emotional kid, not in a bad way, but his feelings get hurt easily and ponders stuff.  He's also always said he's going to be an artist when he grows up. I'm not sure if they are related or not, but I digress. 

In his kindergarten class is one young boy who uses crutches.  I'm not sure what his affliction is but he's sure not putting out the vibe that he's affected by it.   One night in our ritual of the bedtime talk I asked him if he played with him.  He said no because he's not very fast running and he can't use much of the playground equipment.  How do you answer to that?  Not easily.

I asked him to think about what it would be like to be in that kid's position.  To think about things that he can do better than you can.   I told him that people in his position normally have much stronger upper bodies and arms to compensate for their lower body strength, and there will come a time when he can do things you can't, as you both get older.

Yesterday, we went to the school to help out.  They were making Gingerbread houses out of crackers, Yes, I thought it was strange too.  But if you put on enough icing you really can't tell once it's decorated with a bunch of candy and stuff.

To my surprise my son had picked the crippled kid as his partner for this project.  They helped each other make their houses and shared their decorations and candy.  In talking to the other adult helping him they had apparently become good friends and played together all the time when it was something like this.

I believe so far I'm getting a passing mark, I just have to keep it up.

In politics if one side would look at the others strong points rather than their weakness and visa versa they would find that they had a lot more in common than they believed.   Unfortunately in Thailand everyone wants the whole cookie instead of breaking it and sharing it around.  This leads to constant confrontation and bickering over trivial matters.  If both the opposition and the coalition would just take a step back they would see where the problems arise, not just with themselves, and they could correct it.  After all the Army has been elected by no one but themselves, so why are they constantly trying to run the show.

CRES, Abhisit, You, Me and Democracy

Andrew Spooner just wrote a piece on Asian Corespondent on this situation.


Abhisit's conundrum - how to appear democratic AND stay in power


http://asiancorrespondent.com/siamvoices/abhisit-s-conundrum-how-to-be-democratic-and-stay-in-power.#comments

Way back in July, I wrote a guest post while Bangkok Pundit was on sabbatical entitled Thailand: CRES has decided, again


http://asiancorrespondent.com/bangkok-pundit-blog/thailand-cres-has-decided-again

At that time I wanted to draw attention to the fact that CRES had, for the most part, replaced the civilian government that according to the Constitution, pick any version, is in fact their employer.

The situation appears to have worsened since them and it's important that we seriously all look at the repercussions of the situation, not just on Thailand, but on everyone in the country.

I feel very uneasy having an appointed military dominated council, CRES, decreeing the rules we all have to live by, not only to me but the Prime Minister. I don't like it that much when a government in Parliament passes a law I'm not crazy about but at least it's gone through the democratic process and I can live with that.

As I see it, the problem is self replicating. In that I mean, the military gained control through the old army chief who was wishy washy at best. Then they appointed someone in the reshuffle that appears to be somewhat of a megalomaniac, or at least fanatical. My feeling is that this was a ringer pushed upon the PM as the military knew he wouldn't have the backbone to stand up to the reshuffle list. In fact Abhisit is not PM material, he's proving that by not tasking a firm stand on anything in a year.

What happens next? That's one tough question. If there is an election it's almost ensured that the PTP will win the most seats and have the highest percentage of the popular vote. The military won't like that outcome because the only platform the PTP has announced is they WILL bring back the '97 constitution. Personally I favor that, just for the record. What that also means is that the immunity the Generals of the last coup gave themselves will fly out the window. Three things can happen in my view. The military could overthrow yet another elected government making Thailand a Burmaesque country and draw the wrath of the rest of the world. The PTP could clean house fire the generals and charge the former coup makers with the overthrow of the government, very popular worldwide lately. Or the PTP and the Military could form an agreement where both sides back off a bit, this would be the best alternative.

My feeling is a lot of what will happen will hinge on the By-elections that are coming up shortly. If the PTP cleans up it will send a very strong message to everyone that the present government is looked at as illegitimate and we will see MPs from smaller parties moving in the direction of the PTP. If it's split PTP and BJT then there will be talks between then shortly (in secret) about forming the next government. And if by some chance the Democrats manage a win in Khon Kaen well everything is up for grabs; but, if they lose there and if their big gun in Bangkok just happens to get knocked off or even if the race is very close it won't auger well for the Democrats in early 2011.

I've even hears some scuttlebutt, some time ago from a source, that a high profile Democrat has been approached by PTP to lead the PTP party but the timing was not right. Anything can happen over the next few months, anything.

Abhisit and his Damn Gucci Loafers

It's probably not that fair mentioning Abhisit's footwear with the flip-flop scandal and all but I just can't help it.  He such a, well can I say it, an Elitist.

He's so out of touch with people I just have to have a good old belly laugh every time I see one of these photo-op pictures of him in a totally alien environment.  For him that's everything North or South of Bangkok.

If you look at the picture on the right you can almost hear him saying as he points,  "Is that a Kwai over there neck deep in the water?" or " We should have brought our water-skis.". He just looks so out of place like he's more worried about getting his Gucci Loafers damp, than helping those in need.

As for those Military types in the boat behind well they can't get out because all those medals and bling would either tarnish or weigh them down. Having a few of them drown wouldn't be a big loss to the country there are thousands more to take their place, in a vacant post at full pay.  These guys lead from behind and that's the last thing you want from a military in an emergency situation.

Take a quick look at General Russell Honere during the New Orleans Disaster and then look at these guys they look like they are going to the Officers Ball not a huge disaster.  Do they even own fatigues or is it below their cast to wear them.

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/us/2010/08/24/vosot.katrina.honore.2005.cnn

That's what we want from the Military Generals not a bunch of people going on a boat cruise.

Now look at the left of the picture.  That's how the local people are helping themselves loaded on a tractor without any military or police help in sight.  That's the Northeast that city folk don't know or understand.   The closeness of the people.  Unless we can link it somehow to HiSo shopping and lunch with a girly friend at Zen, they just don't understand.

Now look at the far right of the picture.  There sits an empty boat couldn't it have been put to better use helping flood victims than sitting there empty?  Or is it a backup so that if Abhisit's boat springs a leak they can use it so his Gucci Loafers don't get wet.

I feel that I have to make a bit of a clarification as a friend Tweeted me and said that he doubted Abhisit wears loafers because of his English public school upbringing.  I do have to agree but the Gucci loafer comment is meant as a commentary on his upbringing, attitude and the fact that he has little or no idea what life is like on the other side of the coin. After all a pair of those plug ugly suckers will set you back a minimum of $450USD which is about 2 times the monthly wage of a Thai worker making over the minimum wage he has just put forward.   

Media in Thailand faces increasing crackdown

Interview with Chiranuch Premchaiporn (Jiew) on Ricefield Radio on our Hour and Half Hour newscasts.

What the heck is wrong with the Justice System?

The jury, passing on the prisoner's life,  May in the sworn twelve have a thief or two,  Guiltier than him they try. William Shakespeare, Measure for Measure


Other than it's broken! 

There is a higher court than courts of justice and that is the court of conscience. It supersedes all other courts. Mohandas Gandhi

If you burn some tires in protest in front of the Air Force Base Wing 21 or some old politician's house in Ubon Ratchathani. you may find yourself doing some hard time.  If you are wearing a red shirt that is. According to the Nation, "Twelve red-shirt suspects confessed to taking part in the tire burning at the Air Force headquarters and their penalties were halved to 15 months jail and Bt8,000 fine. They were released on probation, but have to report every three months. Meanwhile, five red shirts who burned tires in front of Suthas's house also confessed and their penalties were halved to 14 months' jail and Bt3,500 fine. They were also released on probation and must report every three months".  That's in addition to the seizure of two cars used in the offenses.  This seem,s a bit harsh to me.  Last February March and April there was so much illegal brush burning that often in the North you could hardly breath.  No one, to my knowledge, was arrested, charged, fined or thrown in jail for any of that.  BUT, burn a few old tires in a red shirt and your on the Terrorist Watch list.
 
Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. Martin Luther King, Jr.


Just to add insult to injury the same day the Criminal Court, such an apt name never there was, decided in their wisdom to  "drop the Crime Suppression Division's request for arrest warrants against 45 members of the People's Alliance for Democracy in the airport seizure case".  The PAD group had "objected to the form of their arrest warrants", so there was no reason for their arrest. Astonishingly, the court came up with, "the suspects' failure to show up did not hinder investigation".  WTF!!!!!!!!

The Reds have come up with a 4 point demand.  In brief here they are:-

1:- Release "political prisoners"
2:- Reform the economic system by setting up the welfare state system
3:- Reform the judicial system by adopting the trial by jury system
4:- Guarantee commodities' prices for farmers

Of these Point 1 and 3 need urgently to be addressed.  While the Reds were not entirely in the right, they are not entirely in the wrong either.  The Red leaders are being treated wrongly in my opinion and should be allowed bail OR the court should rescind bail for the PAD Leaders charged with "Terrorism".  Oh Wait!! They have not been charged yet. see Demand 3.

Justice cannot be for one side alone, but must be for both. Eleanor Roosevelt

The courts appear to be totally controlled from outside the judicial system with verdict after verdict appearing to be not only biased but biased against a single group.  This is not justice it's something else entirely.  If it is being controlled from outside the justice system it's much more sinister, much more oppressive, much more subversive and much more of a threat to national security than anything the Reds could throw at Thailand.  For without a free, fair and impartial judiciary you have no justice at all.

In the Halls of Justice the only justice is in the halls.  Lenny Bruce

Some quotes from the Nation and BKK Post

Swift “justice”

"Swift justice demands more than just swiftness." ~Potter Stewart

This is a copy of a post from Political Prisoners In Thailand. It is important to look at all sides but it is paramount that all sides are looked at equally and fairly.   I've added memorable quotes that are not part of the original.

Swift “justice”


Just look how fast the judiciary can work when it puts away red shirts!

The Bangkok Post (3 June 2010) reports that two “radio show hosts of a community radio in the northeastern province of Udon Thani were on Thursday sentenced to one year and six months jail term without suspension in connection with the arson attacks on the city hall and the municipality office building on May 19.”

"Justice cannot be for one side alone, but must be for both". ~Eleanor Roosevelt

Prasit Wichairat and Jakrapong Saenkham from 97.5 FM community radio “surrendered to police on June 2.” 

 What? That’s yesterday!

In less than 24 hours, the Udon Thani District Court has “found the two guilty of violating the emergency decree by urging the people through their radio programmes to stage an uprisin[g], leading to the torching of the city hall and municipality office building on May 19 in violation of the emergency decree.”

"I have always found that mercy bears richer fruits than strict justice".~Abraham Lincoln

It would be hard to imagine how justice is served by such swift decision-making; another example of double standards.

"There is a higher court than courts of justice and that is the court of conscience. It supersedes all other courts." ~Mohandas Gandhi

I'll leave you with this final quote which shows we as humans have learned little over time.
 
"Extreme law is often extreme injustice". ~Terence 170–160 BC

From Political Prisoners in Thailand

Enemy of the State #13 - The Military

“He who joyfully marches to music in rank and file has already earned my contempt. He has been given a large brain by mistake, since for him the spinal cord would surely suffice.” ~Albert Einstein


Does Thailand need a huge standing Military in this day and age and if so why?


That’s a good question and in my view it does not. Although the military comprises units like the Navy and the Air Force it’s the Army that has headed the charge in dispersing the recent protests. So for argument sake let’s just call the entire Military the Army for now. There is a self centered reason for this, later on I’ll give some figures and I’m too lazy to break them all down, if that’s even possible to do.


"They talk about conscription as a democratic institution. Yes; so is a cemetary". ~Meyer London


For those that don’t know the system. Thailand has military conscription on a sliding scale depending on your education level. High school or under you have to serve 2 years, Bachelors degree – 1 year and if you have a masters or a doctorate you get to do 6 months or less of pretty easy service. As an example Abhisit with a Masters got to lecture at the Military collage on economics. It also involves drawing a ball and if you get the right color you are off to the Army, Navy or Air Force. Compulsory service is also in the area you are registered in your house book. If you are in the North or Northeast, that means the Army in almost every case. As the North and Northeast also have the worst education in the country chances are the majority are serving 2 years. This also puts a huge burden on the farming community of the North and Northeast through the loss of part of their traditional workforce for 2 years on a continuous basis.


“The military caste did not originate as a party of patriots, but as a party of bandits” ~Henry Louis Mencken


Thailand’s military spending is 1.53% of GDP. That is lower than Malaysia (1.78%) and Myanmar (25.75%) but higher than Laos (0.28%) and Cambodia (1.23%). Where you really see the difference is in the Total Forces of each nation. Laos (129,000), Cambodia (191,000), Malaysia (160,000) and then there is Thailand (506,600) and Myanmar (513,250). It appears that Thailand is closer to the Burma model than any other nation in the area.

The difference is that Thailand and Myanmar have large armies where the others do not. In fact Thailand with a Military force of 506,600 outnumbers the combined military of Laos and Cambodia by 186,600. We know from our history the last time Thailand and Laos came to blows,Thailand lost decisively. But, do we have to outnumber the Cambodians by 2.65 times or Laotians by almost 4 times?

"Never base your budget requests on realistic assumptions, as this could lead to a decrease in your funding." ~ Scott Adams


Other things come to light as well from the numbers alone. Malaysia with a similar overall military budget ( 3,940 MillionUSD) has far outstripped Thailand ( 4,180 Million USD) by investing in high tech weaponry which needs less but higher trained forces to operate.  Thailand is stuck in the trench with foot soldiers which are very vulnerable to high tech things. On April 10th this year we witnessed first hand that a group of flip flop toting farmers from Issan were more than enough match for the arms and APC’s of the Thai army. Leaving a fleeing military and the hulks of 6 APS’c in the wake.
 Another question we have to ask, has the huge forces of the army outlived it’s usefulness on the modern battlefield in this day and age. The only answer is yes to this question unless the main aim of the Army is and has always been to suppress its own people and then the answer is still, yes.

Thailand needs to drastically readjust the military and upgrade it to more modern and streamlined units.


We need to drastically cut the huge amount of general and officer staff and to cut the numbers of foot soldiers down to acceptable limits for the risk in the area. Make the forces 100% volunteer and end conscription. Make them directly accountable to the Government and have an independent committee audit their spending, every baht of it.


“If there is one basic element in our Constitution, it is civilian control of the military” ~Harry S Truman


Cutting military numbers by half would be a good start while maintaining the budget at a rate just slightly under what we are spending now. That way we can invest in the long term training of long term highly trained military personnel and the purchase of more modern higher tech hardware rather than golf courses, swimming pools and flashy housing for Generals who have nothing better to do. Thailand would then be in a position to protect herself in the event that it was ever necessary.

“Military glory - that attractive rainbow that rises in showers of blood” ~Abraham Lincoln


At the moment the Army may be hard pressed to fend off the battle hardened Cambodians with their Vietnam vintage weaponry and ho chi min sandals.


“A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death.” ~Martin Luther King, Jr.



Figures derived from:- World Armed Forces and Defence Budgets.

https://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=tTyizSfPzkl8SDeFoAQt6EQ&hl=en

Enemy of the State #12 - Media Censorship

"Though I disagree with everything you say, I will defend to the death your right to say it." ~Voltaire

This was an interview from April 2006 with Thai scholar and activist, Ubonrat Siriyuvasak. Dr. Ubonrat is associate professor and deputy dean of research and International affairs in the faculty of communication arts at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok.

http://www.archive.org/download/041206_thai_com_radio/041206_thai_com_radio_wsiu_bigmuddy_24k_22.mp3

It’s quite long but very informative and interesting and will set the stage for what we are about to talk about here. Government censorship of the media in Thailand.

In March 2009, all existing Community radio stations had to register before the end of that month. The stations of the North had to do so at a big meeting in Chiang Mai. Already registered stations received a temporary licence for the next 300 days. The government announced it hoped to be able to prepare a new law regarding radio stations in Thailand and issue proper licences to the ones which meet the (to be defined) criteria. Since the meeting the government has announced that only stations that broadcast “government approved” content would be licensed. This law will restrict the power of the sender, advertisements, the height of the antenna, the range, etc... However, all existing stations can still operate until the new law appears. So far this new law is not in effect in the 300 day time frame of the temporary licences.
What was made very clear at the meeting is that radio stations operating without the temporary licence are considered as illegal. In other words, from April 2009, any new station is illegal as it is not possible to register a new radio station. Many operators not care about this and operate illegally.

"You have not converted a man because you have silenced him." ~John Morley

Directly after the Coup, 2000 community radio stations in the North and Northeast were closed by the Military. Most of those stations have again taken to the airwaves mostly illegally. A fair portion of those stations were anti coup and since anti Democrat. Some of those stations have defiantly pushed the envelope, if not outright broken the law. There is a rule in the broadcast industry, if you do not appeal to your audience you will not survive for long. These stations, although radical, command a huge audience. Unlike the Police, Government and Military which have huge budgets to broadcast, listeners or not, community stations are dependent almost entirely on donations from their listeners. At this point the Government of Abhisit is pressuring stations to self censor and if they do not conform to the government model they have been closed.
The Government or Military also controls almost all of the TV channels available in Thailand. Of the 2 big non government channels ASTV, which supports the government, has never been censured while PTV and the subsequent channels for the UDD have all been closed. The UDD was very successful during their protest at getting around the government’s attempts to get it off the air. They managed to keep broadcasting live until the final minutes of their protest when troops overran their encampment.

"Censorship reflects society's lack of confidence in itself. It is a hallmark of an authoritarian regime". ~Potter Stewart

It’s not just community radio it’s also the print media. Any organization that comes out against the government or its policies instantly finds the government on the offensive to close it down. The government has asked the print media to self censor. Some newspapers like the Post and the Nation have taken the request to heart and now never print anything opposing the Government. This attitude is no longer news reporting, they have now become just an outlet for government propaganda.

“The first condition of progress is the removal of censorship.” ~George Bernard Shaw

The internet in Thailand is so heavily censored that it resembles North Korea or China in it’s gusto to stifle any dissenting voice.

The government just yesterday extended censorship to stifle communications through four publications related to the UDD. Reuters reports, the outlawed publications include the twice-weekly Truth Today newspaper, the weekly Thai Red News and Vivatha, and bi-monthly Voice of Taksin, which mimics the U.S. news magazine, Time.

"These media outlets are not real newspapers. They are tools for groups to create chaos in the country," Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thuagsuban.

This is the line we continually hear from the government. It’s always the same line by the government it’s for “national unity” or “national security” or “causing chaos”. I’ll bring you back to an earlier point, “if you do not appeal to your audience you will not survive”. For the government to be so concerned to ban these publications these publications must have mass grassroots support.

"The test of democracy is freedom of criticism". ~David Ben-Gurion

These actions by the government go directly contrary to one of the five key elements of the Prime minister’s roadmap to reconciliation. It says that is to form an independent body to monitor all media, including state-controlled outlets, to ensure unbiased and balanced reporting. If you censor all dissenting media how can you have “Fair and balanced reporting”. It’s not only impossible but it’s hypocritical.

For Thailand to reconcile all sides from ASTV to the People’s channel have to be allowed to voice their opinions otherwise Thailand is just Myanmar in the mask of Democracy.

“The fact is that censorship always defeats its own purpose, for it creates, in the end, the kind of society that is incapable of exercising real discretion.” ~Henry Steele Commager


AND just maybe, that is exactly what the Abhisit government and the Military are trying to achieve as they guide Thailand from 65 in the world in 2002 for press freedom to 130 in 2009, according to the Paris-based Reporters Without Borders.

Enemy of the state #11 - The Terrorists

“There is only one thing which gathers people into seditious commotion, and that is oppression” ~ John Locke

The Thai government was quick to brand the UDD and their leaders Terrorists. Are they or are they not? Or is it someone else?

First lets look at who is a terrorist which is not always easy to define. Sometimes it is easy like with the PAD occupation of the airports and control tower. It’s covered in documents like the Montréal protocols and the UN’s Supplementary to the Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts against the Safety of Civil Aviation even if the Thai government does nothing.

The position taken by the Thai government against the UDD and it’s leaders is much more murky. Until the night of April 10th when the Government sent the Police and Army, with war weapons, to disperse the protesters there had been no instance of the UDD with weapons. Unless you class water bottles and flagpoles as weapons. From many videos I have viewed the Military opened fire with live ammunition on unarmed protesters. From videos it is also apparent that there were snipers stationed on tall buildings overlooking the protesters and that at least one sniper was firing. No one can say with any certainty who the sniper was firing at. That night there also appeared the black clad men who appeared to be well trained and they inflicted casualties on the Army.  To date, no one has been able to say who these black clad fighters were.

The Government was quick to brand them as terrorists and to brand then as part of the UDD which they also branded as terrorists. There are many theories about who they are/were. The government and CRES says UDD terrorists, some say they were disgruntled regular military, some say they are mercenaries and some say they were trained by General Khattiya Sawatdiphol (Seh Daeng).

So what is a terrorist? Definitions are few and far between but here goes.

~ a radical who employs terror as a political weapon; usually organizes with other terrorists in small cells

~ An individual who uses violence, terror, and intimidation to achieve a result.

None of these seem to fit the UDD prior to the final dispersal by the military when factions rioted in Bangkok.  Between April 10 and the final crackdown the protesters at best could be called disruptive, unruly and unorganized at least outside the stockade.

In order to respond to terrorism, a clear definition is necessary. Terrorism is defined by Title 22 of the U.S. Code as politically motivated violence perpetrated in a clandestine manner against non-combatants. Experts on terrorism also include another aspect in the definition: the act is committed in order to create a fearful state of mind in an audience different from the victims.

“Oppressed people cannot remain oppressed forever.” ~ Martin Luther King, Jr.

Wait, just wait a gall darn minute.

That more describes the actions of the Government, CRES and the Military than the actions of the UDD. The UDD prior to the final crackdown by the Army did not work in a clandestine manner with violence against non-combatants. Although there were small incidents it was not widespread. The government on the other hand, either through their orders or the actions of those they control DID USE politically motivated violence in a clandestine manner against non-combatants. Things like the use of live fire, live fire zones, Snipers and the Assassination of Seh Daeng can only be seen as acts to cause terror and panic inside the Reds encampment. The arbitrary shooting and killing of unarmed citizens, who may or may not have been aligned with the Reds is also a terrorist act.  Furthermore the turning off of water and the stoppage of food supplies, although unsuccessful, is also a crime against humanity.

“A suffocating siege and ongoing oppression.”  ~ Yasser Arafat

The terms "terrorism" and "terrorist" (someone who engages in terrorism) carry strong negative connotations. These terms are often used as political labels, to condemn violence or the threat of violence by certain actors as immoral, indiscriminate, unjustified or to condemn an entire segment of a population.

This is exactly what the Government and CRES have done, labeled the UDD and it’s leaders Terrorists without any provocation other than political motive.  The numbers tell another story,  88 dead, 1,885 injured, 17 still in ICU almost exclusively from the so called "Terrorist UDD Side" a body count that would even make Dick Cheney shake his head. It was a planned massacre, not a dispersal.

Those labeled "terrorists" by their opponents rarely identify themselves as such, and typically use other terms or terms specific to their situation, such as separatist, freedom fighter, liberator, revolutionary, vigilante, militant, paramilitary, guerrilla, rebel, patriot, or any similar-meaning word.

The UDD labels itself a peaceful Pro-democracy group but there are defiantly units that are aligned with the UDD who would not hesitate to break away and form armed militias or subversive cells as seen on the evening of the overrunning of the UDD site by an armed military.

It very well might be worth noting at the end of this blog that some groups involved in a struggle, have been labeled "terrorists" by governments or media. Two examples of this are the Nobel Peace Prize laureates Menachem Begin and Nelson Mandela.

"The risk of a terrorist victory is greater when in fighting terror, democracy betrays its own essence". ~ Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero


Thaksin and Terrorist charges , a blog add on.


“He who lives by fighting with an enemy has an interest in the preservation of the enemy's life.” ~ Friedrich Nietzsche

Thaksin may be many things but a terrorist he is not. If he ever had the intention of causing havoc in that way he has the capital to raise a small army. After seeing some of the actions of the Thai Military over the last month, only a small army would be needed. Thailand does not have, at this point, an armed insurgency in the North and Northeast so he’s not supporting that sort of action.

The Thai Government’s latest action just raises a huge Red Flag to all foreign governments. Thailand’s current government has to ask themselves why they can’t get anyone to extradite Thaksin now.   Just in case they don’t already know it’s because they found him guilty of a crime the Junta had to write a law for and then use retroactively. Almost every legal rights group on earth came out against the use of this retroactive law.  Foreign governments also see the way the Abhisit Government threw away the extradition agreement with Canada in the Sexana case.
"To vilify a great man is the readiest way in which a little man can himself attain greatness". ~Edgar Allan Poe

So what will this latest arrest warrant do? Absolutely nothing. It’s an attempt by a failing government to criminalize and vilify an opponent they know they cannot defeat at the ballot box and the governments of the western world know that . They should know this from recent statements from agencies outside Thailand
What we are witnessing is the final panic of the death roll of the Democrat led coalition. Their way is not the way to reconciliation but to further and likely much bloodier confrontation. If the only way to stay in power is to kill or imprison your opponents is there actually any victory at all?  And they have a name for that too.

“He who seeks vengeance must dig two graves: one for his enemy and one for himself”

Enemy of the State #10 - The Witch Hunt and Denial

Few tragedies can be more extensive than the stunting of life, few injustices deeper than the denial of an opportunity to strive or even to hope, by a limit imposed from without, but falsely identified as lying within. ~ Stephen Jay Gould


I was reading Tony Hedges's Blog http://tonyhedges.wordpress.com/ and this idea came to me from something he had said about reconciliation.

The Abhisit government keeps trying to reassure the people that they are all for reconciliation but in reality they are conducting a Which Hunt on the UDD, the Reds, banned politicians, the PTP and still on Thaksin.

Someone on Twitter, I think @tri26, mentioned the Wiki page “Denial”. I opened it and read “Types of Denial”. Lo and behold there it was in black and white, jumping off the page - Denial of fact & Denial of responsibility - and I quote:-

In Denial of fact, someone avoids a fact by lying. This lying can take the form of an outright falsehood (commission), leaving out certain details to tailor a story (omission), or by falsely agreeing to something (assent, also referred to as "yessing" behaviour). Someone who is in denial of fact is typically using lies to avoid facts they think may be painful to themselves or others.

The reasemblance to what the Government, CRES, the Government PR people have been doing and saying is remarkable.  They have all been using Denial of Fact and the UDD is not off the hook with this one either but to a much lesser degree IMHO.

Denial of responsibility involves avoiding personal responsibility by:


blaming - a direct statement shifting culpability and may overlap with denial of fact


minimizing - an attempt to make the effects or results of an action appear to be less harmful than they may actually be, or


justifying - when someone takes a choice and attempts to make that choice look okay due to their perception of what is "right" in a situation.


Someone using denial of responsibility is usually attempting to avoid potential harm or pain by shifting attention away from themselves.

There it was wrapped up with a big Red bow. That is what the government and CRES has been doing all along. We all knew it but this made it too simple, too easy to see and explain the Witch Hunt that’s going on.

"This is a vicious witch-hunt aimed at crushing the voice of dissent". ~ Aidan White

Carl Forti had an interesting quote some years ago, “I'm going to call Roswell (N.M.) and warn them that Ronnie Earle is on the witch hunt for the Martians they have there“. The quote can be rearranged to reflect the current situation. “I'm going to call (Add any North or Northeatern town) and warn them that (CRES, Abhisit, Suthep, etc) is on the witch hunt for the Reds they have there".

What Thailand needs is some outside independent inquiry into what happened in April and May in Bangkok.

Abhisit has resisted any attempt by outside governments, Amnesty International or the UN to intervene. It's time he swallowed his pride and allowed an independent outside review. If the blame is all on the Reds, as he and Suthep keep stating, what has he to fear. Thailand deserves this let someone independent, who will not sway with the pressure exerted on them, from all the influences inside Thailand come up with a finding. Lay blame at the feet of the UDD if that is their finding; lay it at the feet of the army or CRES or government or media or all of them. We need to know the facts, not the facts as seen through a prism reflecting highly divided and transfixed views of the occurrences in Bangkok.

"You don't want a witch hunt and you don't want a whitewash". ~ William Doherty

BUT: - You do want the truth to come out, whatever it is. and you want those truly responsible for the bloodshed punished. Something that is not happening in Thailand at the moment.

"Better a thousand fold abuse of free speech than denial of free speech". ~ Charles Bradlaugh

Enemy of the state 9 - Guerrillas, Abhisit and CRES

“The conventional army loses if it does not win. The guerrilla wins if he does not lose.” Henry Kissinger


Some time ago an international correspondent friend and I were warning of a major problem in the North and Northeast. It was shortly after the coup we both thought may be a prelude to a civil war or popular uprising. Both of us received a lot of flack for our stand and comments. In retrospect it probably sounded absurd but may well be close to inevitable at this point. After all these years I’ve adjusted my thinking a bit. Now I do not feel there will be a full blown civil war, in the strict sense of the word, but rather a protracted Guerrilla war fought more like the southern insurgency which has proved almost impossible for the Thai Military to control.

After April 10th, 2010 Abhisit Vejjajiva should have done the right thing, manned up and taken his own advice.

On 8 October 2008 he was pressing for an inquiry into the violence in the actions taken by the police to clear PAD protesters leaving many injuries and a couple of deaths, none from bullet wounds. He loudly called on the government to admit responsibility for its handling of the People's Alliance Democracy (PAD) demonstration. In a statement, party leader Abhisit Vejjajiva said he would no longer help the four-party discussion to find political solutions for the country unless the government investigated the order for police to suppress the rally earlier in the day.

Fast Forward to April. All calls by the PTP for Abhisit to hold an inquiry into the brutal April 10th crackdown or for him and Deputy PM Suthep to take responsibility for the actions taken against the UDD protesters have so far fallen on deaf ears.

“Whoever stands by a just cause cannot possibly be called a terrorist” Yasser Arafat

With the Prime Minister’s reluctance to take responsibility, he again ordered yet another evens more brutal and oppressive crackdown on the protesters. This time resorting to using snipers who, from many reports, fired on unarmed civilians. This was rationalized by the Abhisit administration and CRES by labelling the Reds as Terrorists. Along with this campaign to vilify the protesters the government embarked on a campaign to spread the word that the Reds were not loyal to the Palace and to censor all media that was opposed to the government. This amounted to closing more radio stations, the Reds TV station and blocking countless websites. The government and the CRES almost stole the script from previous times when bloody crackdowns were preceded by attacks against the protesters as not loyal to the Palace and they were all communists. This is despicable and shows a total disregard for the rights and freedoms of the people of Thailand.

Once the latest crackdown was in operation you didn’t have to be a rocket scientist to figure out what would happen next. We had a preview a year ago, but this time the radicals in the UDD were more organized. These elements in the UDD not having any leadership, as they were all arrested, ran amuck, burning and pillaging. If this is a shock to anyone then you must have your head in the sand. Losses were exacerbated by the CRES having turned off the water in the area, to make the protesters suffer, rendering the building’s fire protection systems inoperable.

OOPS!

I’ve always said and had this reinforced in March when I personally surveyed five provinces in the North asking people what they thought about the Reds. The government has underestimated badly the support and conviction of the Reds in the North and Northeast. So badly in fact, that some of the radical elements in the Reds, who were reigned in by the leadership of the UDD, have now begun to move underground. I’ve also warned about this happening but no one listened, sometimes it‘s not all that rewarding to be right.

So where does that bring us. If things stay as they are now you can expect a Southern insurgency type operation from the radical elements. You will likely see roving bombings and shootings possibly aimed at Bangkok, PAD elements or non aligned politicians.

Abhisit can no longer reconcile with the North and Northeast. It’s no longer safe for him and some of his government to travel in over half the country, without a huge security operation. If the Reds do happen to get their hands on him, as almost happened last year, he would likely not escape unscathed.

It looks very much like a protracted armed Guerrilla war will be in Thailand’s future. Arms are cheap and easy to acquire. With most of the diehard Guerrilla’s already having received 2 years Military training from the Army, as conscripts, you can also expect things to be a lot bloodier than in the South with targeting of individuals deemed to be enemies of the Guerrillas. They will probably act as individual cells, like is used by Al-Qaeda.

“I know you are here to kill me. Shoot, coward, you are only going to kill a man.” 'Che' Guevara

The Abhisit government, or their proxy, set this ball rolling down the steep slippery slope when they assassinated Seh Daeng, the Reds Military strategist, setting the ground rules for future confrontations. If the underground Reds feel that double standards are being used to single out or persecute Reds you could see swift movement by them.

I don’t think that it’s too late to defuse the situation but for any real reconciliation to happen Abhisit would have to step down and Suthep would probably have to retire from politics. It will be interesting to see what happens with the non confidence debate put forward by the PTP. The smaller coalition members may well side with the PTP otherwise they may have little chance of winning re-election as they will be lumped with the Democrats who cracked down so brutally on the UDD and have won no friends for it in the North and Northeast.

“One Man's Terrorist Is Another Man's Freedom Fighter”

Enemy of the State - The State #8

"Hypocrisy, arrogance, pride, anger, harshness, and ignorance; these are the marks of those who are born with demonic qualities."


When I was just a couple of years out of high school the book the Peter Principle came out. It was insanely popular. I have thought numerous times that Laurence and Raymond must have had a crystal ball dialed into Thailand 2010. For the government, police and military have indeed reached that pinnacle of success. Their "top level of incompetence". It wouldn’t be so bad if one or two reached this great zenith in their career but the entire Government, Military and Police managed to do it in unison. It they were a World Cup Team they would be unbeatable . BUT…. They are politicians, career Generals and an appointed acting Police Chief all brought together under the Center for the Resolution of Emergency Situations, AKA CRES.


The CRES appears to have the combined computing power of an old 8088, that’s less than an old digital watch for you young folk, and in this day and age it’s the Multi Core that gets things done. One has to ask, what is going on with the government. Daily they reinforce the belief that they are inept and incompetent. Every day they threaten, set demands and issue ultimatums. Every day they back down, rescind the orders and appear in total disarray while pointing the finger at anyone that happens by.  Like they could never make a bad decision, never.

The latest boner was the PM, now there’s a grown man with an arrogant schoolboy mentality, who said the Reds had to disperse yesterday.  No ifs, ands or buts they had to go.  He summoned the help of the more than incompetent CRES to help with the Task. With great fanfare the CRES PR mouthpiece told all and sundry they would cut power and water and transportation links in the protest area at midnight. No one had bothered to tell this PR Colonel he was a waste of a chair at the table or the well known fact that the UDD had generators, fuel and water tanks. That intelligence also forgot to mention that they would be turning off power to two of the biggest hospitals in Bangkok, not to mention a bunch of foreign Embassies that were pissed. Then a bolt out of the blue, turning off the water could also be construed as a crime against humanity under the UN Charter.  Hmmmm...  Guess what?  Another misconceived brain fart and another loss of credibility. Yesterday came and went in a whimper, the Reds are still there, talking it up, singing and dancing, bathing in the water of life and breathing the sweet air of another minor victory or more factually another government blunder and loss of face because of another hasty misconceived plan that went awry.
Now our egotistical and overconfident PM has decided to call off the November 14 elections. Does anyone but hard core Democrats and a few old PAD supporters really think he was sincere in that claim in the first place. His road map had more hole and escape routes than a drug trail from Burma. If this doesn’t happen no election, if that doesn’t happen no election, if this happens no election. Come on, no wonder the Reds don’t trust him. The PM has the credibility of a used car salesman who tells you it has a 100% warranty and in the fine print it stated 100% warranted, until it leaves the car lot.
It’s time for Abhisit to swallow the poison pill. He’s caused no end of problems in the country. He’s fixed none. His government is oppressive and censorship is the worst in Thai history. 

We have this to say to him.  Step down, let someone else steer the car, because you have it careening down a steep mountain road, have burned out the brakes and you are totally out of your league. You have long past your "level of incompetence" according to the Peter Principle. Finally do something right, something ethical and let all of us in the country step back from the brink of the abyss. None of us, whatever color, are lemmings, we don’t want to follow you over the cliff into the unthinkable because of your pompous prejudice against those not born with a silver spoon up their butt.

What's on when we are away?

 Technical problems, along with censorship issues, with automatically uploading and downloading some programs we have decided to set static programs in their place.  So, what's on when we are away?

In place of DemocracyNow! at 11:00pm.

From Jungle And Street To Cyberspace
Internet Politics And Censorship In Thailand

A Talk by Pitch Pongsawat on Internet Censorship in Thailand at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Feb 2009.


At noon and 6pm instead of Free Speech Radio News

Community Radio In Thailand

An interview with Thai scholar and activist, Ubonrat Siriyuvasak. Dr. Ubonrat is associate professor and deputy dean of research and International affairs in the faculty of communication arts at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok. She is currently the UNESCO chair in Freedom of Expression, a joint project between UNESCO and at Chulalongkorn University. She has numerous articles and books to her credit and has been very active in media reform in south east asia for many years.

We will not have Thai news at the 1/2 hour until around April 12.

Opposition to ask PM to clarify blacklisting of 212 persons

The opposition Puea Thai Party will on Tuesday submit a letter requesting Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva to set up a committee to investigate whether his government has blacklisted 212 persons who are staunch supporters of fugitive, ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, the party spokesman said Monday.


Spokesman Prompong Nopparit said he would submit the letter at Government House asking the prime minister to establish a committee to probe the issue after a number of persons on the alleged blacklist complained of being followed by unknown people.

If true, it could be considered a violation of individual rights, Mr Prompong said, adding that the ruling Democrat Party had obviously denied knowledge of the preparation of the list.

He said some Buddhist monks whose names also appeared on the list would travel with him to Government House.

Leading members of the Democrat Party, led by Prime Minister Abhisit, have come out in full force and denied the allegations.

Thepthai Senpong, spokesman for Mr Abhisit, said the government has “never done anything illegally”. The list, if it exists, could be published by anybody.

Democrat Party spokesman Buranaj Samutharak said the government had never violated anybody’s rights. He said the names of political activists and troublemakers are already held by courts. (TNA)

Mr. Buranaj must have selective memory how about the forced expatriation of the Hmong and Burmese and we won't even get into the sending out to sea to die of the boat people.  "never violated anybody’s rights", my ass!

Thaksin - the Verdict

Thaksin - the Verdict.

We will post some audio from BBC and some random thoughts.





Might have some time later to write a bit about everything right now it's an hour to the Hockey game and I'm a bit punchy from getting up at night to check the verdict from Thailand.  I'd rather be fresher when I'm commenting.

I can't comment on the entire verdict at the moment as I've only seen pieces of it. I have said that for it to be accepted by society it must be fair, Neutral, reasonable and not seen as being contrived. Initially the verdict appears to be reasonable, but again i have not read it completely. It does however appear that there was a leak to the government from comments and actions by the government and others prior to the verdict, if that relates into society feeling the verdict was preconceived time will tell.

A force to reckon with

In this excellent article from the Bangkok Post,  Dr. Thitinan Pongsudhirak - Director of the Institute of Security and International Studies, Faculty of Political Science, Chulalongkorn University has boiled it all down into a concise form that anyone can digest.   We reprint the article here in it's entirety.

====================

Reds Are A Force to

Reckon With

By the admission of the acting government spokesman, the anti-government red shirts under the banner of United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) are now prevalent in no fewer than 38 of Thailand's 76 provinces, predominantly in the populous Northeast and North.


But the government of Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, its backers in the army and elsewhere, and the yellow-shirted People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) still do not acknowledge the claims and grievances of the red shirts.
On the one hand, they are portrayed by the current officialdom as mere financial lackeys of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra. On the other, they are sometimes depicted as ignorant and gullible peasants, who cannot see beyond Thaksin's manipulative populism.

The catalyst for the latest round of Thailand 's brinkmanship between the reds and their opponents centers on the upcoming verdict on Thaksin's assets trial involving 76 billion baht.

Thaksin is mobilizing all resources within his power to whip up red-shirted sentiment. The ringleaders of the reds have visited him time and again near and far, in Dubai and Cambodia, to receive instructions. His media offensive through Twitter and phone-ins are on full throttle.

His opponents, who hold the levers of power in Bangkok, are equally in full swing. Hardly a day goes by without official demonisation and intimidation of Thaksin and the red shirts. That the rhetoric and ominous posturing have been ratcheted up by both sides is not surprising. The reds see the verdict as the culmination of a long offensive of injustice since the Sept 19, 2006 coup. Thaksin merely symbolizes their quest for social justice and their struggle for democratic rights. The opposing yellows and their allied army, government and swathes of intelligentsia see it as the final act of political decapitation short of physical demise for a usurper and a crook. But the many who believe the reds will simply sputter out and disappear when Thaksin's money supply runs dry, are gravely mistaken at the expense of all. The reds have become much more organic and spontaneous than Thaksin himself could ever have imagined when he was ousted from power.

Even a short visit to the reds' Northeast heartland, such as Ubon Ratchathani province, can provide glimpses of a full-blooded social movement with attendant small-scale fund-raising, symbols, assorted paraphernalia like caps and T-shirts, and pent-up anger and frustration. The reds of Ubon are split into seven groups, all with different approaches and methods but with the same arguments and objectives. Their verbiage entwines Thaksin, democracy and justice.

For some reds in that province, it is all about Thaksin, his populist policies, attention to the poor and downtrodden, and leadership that took Thailand competitively into the 21st century. For others, the top priority is not Thaksin but "democracy," which was subverted when post-election winning parties that should have governed were dissolved repeatedly while losing parties and turncoat factions were given the green light to rule by the men in green. For all the reds in Ubon, injustice and "double standards" are ubiquitous in officialdom. When all parties have bought votes, dissolving fewer than all for vote fraud reeks of unfairness. To them, Thaksin was corrupt just like those who came before him and who will come hereafter. They see his pro-poor policy legacy and Thailand 's modernization for the 21st century as the difference.

Alarmingly, the reds in Ubon have set up UDD schools for education about justice. Some are militant and intransigent. But most still want a just and fair Thailand to be able to move forward in the world. As long as the reds are dismissed and denied, the fear-mongering of a "people's army" will find resonance and germination that are dangerous for Thailand's medium-term horizon. Similar stories can be recounted from Udon Thani, Si Sa Ket and a host of other rural provinces in the Northeast and North. They do not include the silent fence-sitters in the other 38 provinces who know that something does not add up about justice in Thailand but are not prepared to act.

The pro-Abhisit coalition has been effective at dissembling and marginalising opposing views. The PAD, in particular, are expert assassins of character, cowing and intimidating those who want to activate and broaden the middle ground for a way forward, into silence. If they cannot see the reds beyond Thaksin and his assets, Thailand will see much more pain and grief in store. What the government spokesman should be telling his bosses and backers is not how to suppress the reds in a three-pronged strategy from local authorities to the draconian Internal Security Act and military-run Emergency Decree, but how to listen to these reds and wean them off Thaksin.

The challenge for the government now, as it has been for Thailand's powers-that-be since coup days, is to eliminate Thaksin for his corruption and abuses of power while accommodating his red columns for their grievances, demands and expectations.

==========

Pictures reprinted courtesy of Nick Nostitz, Photojournalist and Author, Bangkok, Thailand

Asian leaders to launch 'historic' rights body

They say a picture is worth a thousand words. The picture that came with this article speaks volumes of human rights in the area. One can only think surmise that this is just lip service to human rights given the dismal record of many of the countries supporting it.

We just had a frustrating week.

It all started when we went to install a computer. It seems that the guy doing the job built the unit to the size on the drawing. Unfortunately the drawing was incorrect. This entailed pulling out all those miles of wire. We decided that it would actually be easier to just move the computer rather than rebuild the consol. We did that but it took us the better part of a day. The computer is no longer in a sound proof enclosure and that may cause a problem but has not in testing. We are worried about our microphones picking up transient hum or fan noise.
We have the studio almost completed except for some small items that can be done anytime. Our new microphone booms, stands and spiders have not arrived but we can get through until that happens using our old system.
Our biggest concern was that we could broadcast news reports on the weekend, by Sept 19. If there is trouble we also need the capacity to send our news reports to Free Speech Radio News in the US as we are an affiliate station.
So we have a go if not 100% completed.