Yellow [PAD Thai] mob fails to ignite nationalist fervour

6/11/2010
By Kamol Hengkietisak
Bangkok Post

It is quite interesting that the People's Alliance for Democracy is trying to use the Preah Vihear temple issue to mobilise its supporters to demonstrate against the Abhisit Vejjajiva administration for daring to prosecute PAD leaders, noted a Post Today writer.

What has happened between the Democrat Party and the PAD? They were allies when the party was in opposition during the Samak Sundaravej and Somchai Wongsawat administrations. Some Democrat MPs even attended the PAD's marathon rally and spoke on stage.

Time has passed since the good old days for PAD. The Democrat Party now leads the five-party coalition government and after being accused by the red shirts of practising double standards by re fusing to prosecute the yellow shirts, the government has begun to speed up the cases by appointing assistant police chief Somyot Phumphanmuang to supervise charges over the yellow shirts' seizure of Don Mueang and Suvarnabhumi airports during the Somchai administration.

The assistant police chief has done his job well, so well in fact the Criminal Court has issued warrants for the arrest of several PAD leaders. For this reason, the PAD leaders called on Mr Abhisit to transfer Pol Lt Gen Somyot from the case, alleging they were not receiving justice, but Mr Abhisit refused to listen. This vexed the PAD leaders, especially Sondhi Limthongkul who threatened to petition the National Anti-Corruption Commission to investigate Pol Lt Gen Somyot's conduct.

Mr Sondhi also issued a threat that the 79 indicted PAD leaders who participated in the airport seizures would individually sue Pol Lt Gen Somyot even if he retires in a few years.

The threat was issued despite the fact that all indicted leaders were granted bail without having to spend a single night in jail, unlike most of the red shirt leaders. Yet the PAD leaders were still miffed because they believed that without their actions in seizing the two airports leading to the dissolution of the PPP, Mr Abhisit would not have been elected PM by the House of Representatives. They accused Mr Abhisit and the Democrat Party of being ungrateful.

The last straw was when the government, especially Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya, refused to see eye to eye with the PAD leaders about the issue of the Joint Border Commission memorandum talks with Cambodia. Mr Kasit, a former loyal supporter of the PAD, even declared he would sever his ties with the yellow shirts over the Preah Vihear temple and the JBC issues.

The PAD then called on its faithful to gather at the parliament on Tuesday, the day parliament was to consider whether to endorse the JBC meetings with Cambodia on the border issue. The Post Today writer noted that very few PAD supporters turned up on that day and most came from the provinces, not Bangkok which used to be the bastion of the yellow shirts.

Even though some PAD leaders made the excuse that few turned up because some supporters were prevented by the floods, the Post Today writer refused to believe this argument, noting that if the Preah Vihear issue was of such crucial importance to the Thai people, the PAD leaders could easily persuade Bangkokians to surround the parliament in great numbers, as was the case during the Somchai administration. There was no need to recruit PAD supporters from the provinces.

So it means the PAD had a problem convincing Bangkokians to join the rally. It failed miserably to ignite nationalist fervour using the Preah Vihear temple as a pretext to rally its supporters.

Not only did the PAD fail to ignite nationalist fervour, the Post Today writer did not think too kindly of the strategy of the PAD to mobilise their faithful to drive out the government when the country was facing a flood crisis in every region. Furthermore, some critics even pointed out that the PAD had a hidden motive in using the rally as a bargaining chip, especially over the airport seizure cases which are close to being prosecuted in the Criminal Court.

However, the PAD's move was not without a result. At least the government agreed to take a step back by appointing a joint committee to consider the JBC talks within 30 days instead of rushing the issue through for approval as earlier declared.

Yet, the government's concession to the PAD could not be interpreted as a PAD victory as long as the PAD continues to play the nationalist card because few Thais care about this issue very much, concluded Post Today.