Red Shirt protesters gather at Sanam Luang in Bangkok on Saturday. -- PHOTO: AFPMore than 20,000 protesters in peaceful protest to show govt they are still a potent force
June 28, 2009
By Nirmal Ghosh, Thailand Correspondent
The Straits Times (Singapore)
BANGKOK - RED-SHIRTED United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) supporters returned to Bangkok's Sanam Luang grounds in force on Saturday, for the first time since demonstrations turned violent in April.
More than 20,000 of them packed about a third of the sprawling site, which is around the size of two football fields, braving heavy rain and slush. Over 2,000 police and soldiers were on standby, but maintained a discreet presence at the rally itself.
The government had warned the UDD that attempts to block Government House or instigate violence would not be tolerated, but the group's leaders said they would not protest beyond the rally site and that reports of plans for violence were propaganda.
The rally, essentially designed to lift the morale of supporters and send a signal that the movement is still a force to be reckoned with, had a new theme. It is exhorting people to keep the spirit of 1932 alive and overthrow the current 'aristocrat' government, a reference to the Democrat Party, which is largely backed by the capital's old elites.
In their speeches, UDD leaders told the crowd the event was a celebration of 77 years of true democracy - invoking the change from absolute to constitutional monarchy wrought through a revolution and coup in 1932.
While the 'red shirts' had been staging smaller events across the country regularly in recent weeks, they still lacked a national- level organisation, Mr Jaran Ditta-apichai, a former national human rights commissioner who is one of the UDD's ideologues, admitted. But the UDD's propaganda machine is cranking into gear after being shut down by the government in April.
Saturday's rally was beamed 'live' on the movement's new 'People's Channel' TV station. A red shirt newspaper has also been launched, featuring articles and columns by key red shirt leaders and ideologues.
One objective of the rally was to give moral support to supporters of the opposition Puea Thai party ahead of a by-election on Sunday in Si Saket province. There is considerable overlap between the red shirt movement and the opposition Puea Thai.
'We (the party) will win but we want to win by a wide margin,' a UDD insider said. 'We have to show that people still think that the Abhisit government is not legitimate.'
The rally was peaceful and festive - but drenched in heavy thunderstorm an hour before former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra called in to speak to the crowd via telephone.
In an impassioned speech, the ousted premier blasted the government, saying it was good for only three things - 'borrowing, hiking taxes and hounding Thaksin'. The fugitive leader told his supporters that he was travelling around, but said he was lonely and appealed to them not to leave him 'dying in the desert'.
June 28, 2009
By Nirmal Ghosh, Thailand Correspondent
The Straits Times (Singapore)
BANGKOK - RED-SHIRTED United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) supporters returned to Bangkok's Sanam Luang grounds in force on Saturday, for the first time since demonstrations turned violent in April.
More than 20,000 of them packed about a third of the sprawling site, which is around the size of two football fields, braving heavy rain and slush. Over 2,000 police and soldiers were on standby, but maintained a discreet presence at the rally itself.
The government had warned the UDD that attempts to block Government House or instigate violence would not be tolerated, but the group's leaders said they would not protest beyond the rally site and that reports of plans for violence were propaganda.
The rally, essentially designed to lift the morale of supporters and send a signal that the movement is still a force to be reckoned with, had a new theme. It is exhorting people to keep the spirit of 1932 alive and overthrow the current 'aristocrat' government, a reference to the Democrat Party, which is largely backed by the capital's old elites.
In their speeches, UDD leaders told the crowd the event was a celebration of 77 years of true democracy - invoking the change from absolute to constitutional monarchy wrought through a revolution and coup in 1932.
While the 'red shirts' had been staging smaller events across the country regularly in recent weeks, they still lacked a national- level organisation, Mr Jaran Ditta-apichai, a former national human rights commissioner who is one of the UDD's ideologues, admitted. But the UDD's propaganda machine is cranking into gear after being shut down by the government in April.
Saturday's rally was beamed 'live' on the movement's new 'People's Channel' TV station. A red shirt newspaper has also been launched, featuring articles and columns by key red shirt leaders and ideologues.
One objective of the rally was to give moral support to supporters of the opposition Puea Thai party ahead of a by-election on Sunday in Si Saket province. There is considerable overlap between the red shirt movement and the opposition Puea Thai.
'We (the party) will win but we want to win by a wide margin,' a UDD insider said. 'We have to show that people still think that the Abhisit government is not legitimate.'
The rally was peaceful and festive - but drenched in heavy thunderstorm an hour before former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra called in to speak to the crowd via telephone.
In an impassioned speech, the ousted premier blasted the government, saying it was good for only three things - 'borrowing, hiking taxes and hounding Thaksin'. The fugitive leader told his supporters that he was travelling around, but said he was lonely and appealed to them not to leave him 'dying in the desert'.
10 comments:
ហេ អាកូនក្រកយួនសាច់ងាប់ (dead meat) ភីភីយូ (PPU) អាឯងមកបៀម ក្ដ ឪ អាឯង
លេងវិញទៅអាចុយម៉្រាយកុំរវល់តែទៅរករឿង
ចាក់រុកឆារឆៅ ខ្មែរ រកប្រយោជន៏ឱយ អាយួនស្រកី
នោះ។ កុំធ្វើដូច ម៉ែអាឯងរវល់តែដើរធ្វើសំផឹងនៅស្រុកខ្មែរ ណា៎អាភីភីយូ (PPU)!មកផ្ទះយើង
នៅហាណូយ (Hanoi) បៀមក្ដឪ អាឯងលេងវិញ
ទៅទើបប្រសើរជាង។
ពីអញឪអាភីភីយូ(PPU) ឯង!
Viens PPU, viens ici et succer le "CocK" de ton Papa...d'accord?
Ton Papa, PPU.
Unofficial translation of the above comments in Khmer and French:
[Hey you little susage dead meat PPU, come and suck your Daddy's dick you Son of a bitch, quit going around harassing, trashing and sabotageing Khmer's readers on KI-Media in favor of the The Viet Kantorp, okay? DOn't you know that your mother has been busy prostituting in Cambodia, PPU? PPU, you'd be better off coming to our Hanoi home and suck your Daddy's dick...
From me your Daddy, PPU
Come PPU, come and suck your Papa's dick, agreed?
Your Papa]
7:52pm whoever you are, you need to stop messing up the dashbord or seek a Psychiatrist for your eccentric behavior. This article is not about PPU, it is about the Red Shirts in Thailand who support Democracy.
come on buddy let do it, topple the theft prime minister....and bring beck Thakshin the legal one...
8:53 AM, what are you going to do about it besides shitting in your pants huh?
Hey you little susage dead meat Sam Rainsy and Seim infiltrator, come and suck your Daddy's dick you Son of a bitch, quit going around harassing, trashing and sabotageing Khmer's readers on KI-Media in favor of the The Seim infiltrator Kapis, okay? DOn't you know that your mother has been busy prostituting in Cambodia, SRP? Seim infiltrator, you'd be better off coming to our Bangkok home and suck your Seim King's dick...
Ah.mi otpouch 11;43pm. FU YEUK FUCK YOU.
Ah.mi otpouch 2:53AM. FU YEUK FUCK YOU.
Good then you should make video and let us watching your fucking each other 359am. Post it in KI ok?
Good then you should make video and let us watching your fucking each other 4:14am. Post it in KI ok?
Thailand in "Red shirt" must do everything to bring back your PM Thaksin Sinawatra back! all red shirt people never live in peace as long as current government controlling thailand, all red shirt people must stand up and fight and kick Abhisit Vejjajiva and his parties out!! All people in Red Shirst will be peace with your PM THAKSIN SHINAWATRA ONLY!!
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