16:55 Bangkok April 10th Saturday, Reuters photographer/reporter on-the-scene filed the following for worldwide release:
———————————————————————–
Thai troops fired directly at “red shirt” protesters at a bridge next to the regional U.N. headquarters, wounding at least one in the arm, a Reuters photographer said.
The army has been told to “reclaim” a protest site at the nearby Phan Fah bridge in old Bangkok. There were about 4,000 protesters left in the area and the troops had about 200 metres to clear before they get to the main stage, an army spokesman said.
Hundreds of troops also massed at a downtown protest site, apparently ready to move in, and the crowd was growing by the hour.
TV Channel 3 reports there are stories of 6 military tanks seen on the streets in Bangkok.
——————————————————————–
Now that some troops have retreated from the red demonstrators, is the government of the Thailand “Democrat Party” and the Oxford-educated Prime Minister Abhisit about to deploy tanks against their own citizens?
Who and what are they defending, the right to not have elections?
After all, the main demand of the red demonstrators is to call an election whose outcome they have declared they will respect.
Thai troops fire on “red shirt” protesters near U.N.
BANGKOK, April 10 (Reuters) – Thai troops fired directly at “red shirt” protesters at a bridge next to the regional U.N. headquarters, wounding at least one in the arm, a Reuters photographer said.
MediaWar, the yellows will probably say that Thaksin masterminded all of this to boost SMS and call volume, yet another abuse of power of The Evil One.
[…] keep up with latest, Bangkok Pundit has a live blog, New Mandala has an open thread, Nick Koleszar of media140 has posted links to livestreams of Thai TV […]
The deployment of army tanks at the Royal Plaza was not an attempt to stage a military coup, said Centre for Public Administration in Emergency Situations spokesman Col Sandern Kaewkamnerd.
The tanks were stationed in the area to prevent any attempt by the red shirts to storm Privy Council president Prem Tinsulanonda’s Si Sao Theves residence.
Reports said 10 tanks parked at the Royal Plaza at about 12.30pm.
The sms I got from subscribing to Lok Wan Nee daily newspaper says Chiengmai red shirts already seized the provincial hall (Sala Klang Changwat). Another sms says a govt helicopter has thrown tear gas at the red shirt crowd near Phanfa after distributing leaflets.
They are connected together and coordinate their actions by multiple levels of text messaging, mobile phone networks and wifi/internet. It seems that every single demonstrator and red supporter in Bangkok has a mobile phone which is in almost constant use.
well, at least Thai Telecom companies (Dtac, True, etc) must be getting HUGE revenues this month ! someone should reflect it in media – coz it’s always said that red-shirts “harm business” ! 🙂
Minister of Information Panitan asks the public to seek information from media for the updated situation. However, (he warned) one must be careful not to send wrong info, he added.
(What does exactly Panitan mean by the ominous term “wrong information”? Information that is factually incorrect, or information that is factually correct but might be embarrassing in some yet-to-be-defined way by the present government? Sounds very “1984”, very totalitarian state, very “North Korean” or “Burma Junta”, not like “Thailand” at all, a country which is totally interconnected with the world economy, a country visited by 15 million tourists a year from all over the world, a country where every citizen seems to have a mobile phone, a country where there are internet shops on almost every block, a country whose very name, “Thai Land” in English means “Free Land”. Who is Panitan speaking for when he makes such threats and how will Thailand’s 65 plus million citizens rreact to such a draconian decision to curb their access to the world’s information flow? Surprisingly enough, there are some journalists working at some of Thailand’s largest media outlets who are applauding Panitan’s and the present government’s stance.)
Chart. Your desire to know the social breakdown of the army is meaningless. When their corrupt leaders have finished with them, they are only fit to be led by the nose or to capitulate. The phrai analogy is largely a useless one. This is all about CORRUPT faction Vs CORRUPT faction, over the succession. And whose wallet commands the biggest goon squad. The only real socialists are completely dead in the water. In the past, we could have probably expected an intercession. Not exactly very practical anymore, is it? I’m not at all sure it really helped anyway. And the fact that the next person is totally incapable of saying or doing anything (other than being a playboy) is pretty alarming. Damn it! The man is far older than me, and he still has no grace or leadership qualities.
Military Spokesman Col. Sansern claims “Rumours have it troops used real bullets. That is untrue.”
With photos of red demonstrators showing bullet wounds coming out of many news/media outlets around the world, it would appear that Col. Sansern is either mis-informed or in a state of denial.
In any case, having decided that the optimum timing for the crackdown was broad daylight on a Saturday afternoon in a city of 16 million residents plus innumerable tourists with thousands of digital cameras, mobile phones with cameras, tiny HD video cameras present and and infinite number of WiFi hotspots and internet shops on every block, it is no longer possible to control the information flow through military and government spokespersons.
Now PTV showing reds at Pan Fa having seized a massive amount of weapons (rifles, bullets, and what was described as bombs/”rabert” but didn’t catch which kind)
Pro-government newspaper The Nation reports that the Saturday afternoon April 10th crackdown in Bangkok was ordered by Vice Prime Minister Sutthep. Government spokesman Col. Sansern claims crackdown will be completed before sunset Saturday evening or by about 7PM. (It is now 5PM in Bangkok and the battle appears to be no where near decided………..)
———————————————————————–
Sansern confirms Suthep ordered crackdown
Col Sansern Kaewkamnerd, the spokesman of the Emergency Operations Command, confirmed that Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban Saturday ordered the crackdowns on protesters.
The crackdown began the 1st Army Area head office and continued to the Phan Fa rally site.
Sansern said 234 companies of troops were deployed to carry out the operation to break up the demonstration.
Sansern said the crackdown was necessary as protesters would not obey the emergency decree, which prohibited demonstrations.
He said the dispersing of the demonstrators would be completed before evening falls.
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Crackdown
George, thanks very much for your efforts in keeping us all informed. AW
Crackdown
16:55 Bangkok April 10th Saturday, Reuters photographer/reporter on-the-scene filed the following for worldwide release:
———————————————————————–
Thai troops fired directly at “red shirt” protesters at a bridge next to the regional U.N. headquarters, wounding at least one in the arm, a Reuters photographer said.
The army has been told to “reclaim” a protest site at the nearby Phan Fah bridge in old Bangkok. There were about 4,000 protesters left in the area and the troops had about 200 metres to clear before they get to the main stage, an army spokesman said.
Hundreds of troops also massed at a downtown protest site, apparently ready to move in, and the crowd was growing by the hour.
Crackdown
5:15PM Bangkok April 10th:
Photo of military helicopter being used to drop tear gas on demonstrators……..
http://tweetphoto.com/17874193
Crackdown
5:20PM Bangkok Saturday afternoon April 10th:
TV Channel 3 reports there are stories of 6 military tanks seen on the streets in Bangkok.
——————————————————————–
Now that some troops have retreated from the red demonstrators, is the government of the Thailand “Democrat Party” and the Oxford-educated Prime Minister Abhisit about to deploy tanks against their own citizens?
Who and what are they defending, the right to not have elections?
After all, the main demand of the red demonstrators is to call an election whose outcome they have declared they will respect.
Crackdown
Reuters reported :
Thai troops fire on “red shirt” protesters near U.N.
BANGKOK, April 10 (Reuters) – Thai troops fired directly at “red shirt” protesters at a bridge next to the regional U.N. headquarters, wounding at least one in the arm, a Reuters photographer said.
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSSGE63902420100410?type=marketsNews
Crackdown
5PM Bangkok April 10th:
Minister of Information Panitan on live tv states:
“All actions have been and will be in accordance with human right, legal and international standards.”
Crackdown
MediaWar, the yellows will probably say that Thaksin masterminded all of this to boost SMS and call volume, yet another abuse of power of The Evil One.
Crackdown
Minister of Information Panitan in Bangkok 5:20PM Saturday afternon April 10th:
“The Government would like to assure the public that the utilization of force will be reasonable. “
Crackdown
[…] keep up with latest, Bangkok Pundit has a live blog, New Mandala has an open thread, Nick Koleszar of media140 has posted links to livestreams of Thai TV […]
Crackdown
CPAES denies coup attempt
* Published: 10/04/2010 at 02:59 PM
* Online news: Breakingnews [Bangkok Post]
The deployment of army tanks at the Royal Plaza was not an attempt to stage a military coup, said Centre for Public Administration in Emergency Situations spokesman Col Sandern Kaewkamnerd.
The tanks were stationed in the area to prevent any attempt by the red shirts to storm Privy Council president Prem Tinsulanonda’s Si Sao Theves residence.
Reports said 10 tanks parked at the Royal Plaza at about 12.30pm.
Crackdown
The sms I got from subscribing to Lok Wan Nee daily newspaper says Chiengmai red shirts already seized the provincial hall (Sala Klang Changwat). Another sms says a govt helicopter has thrown tear gas at the red shirt crowd near Phanfa after distributing leaflets.
Crackdown
well, at least Thai Telecom companies (Dtac, True, etc) must be getting HUGE revenues this month ! someone should reflect it in media – coz it’s always said that red-shirts “harm business” ! 🙂
Crackdown
5:10PM Saturday afternoon Bangkok April 10th:
Minister of Information Panitan asks the public to seek information from media for the updated situation. However, (he warned) one must be careful not to send wrong info, he added.
(What does exactly Panitan mean by the ominous term “wrong information”? Information that is factually incorrect, or information that is factually correct but might be embarrassing in some yet-to-be-defined way by the present government? Sounds very “1984”, very totalitarian state, very “North Korean” or “Burma Junta”, not like “Thailand” at all, a country which is totally interconnected with the world economy, a country visited by 15 million tourists a year from all over the world, a country where every citizen seems to have a mobile phone, a country where there are internet shops on almost every block, a country whose very name, “Thai Land” in English means “Free Land”. Who is Panitan speaking for when he makes such threats and how will Thailand’s 65 plus million citizens rreact to such a draconian decision to curb their access to the world’s information flow? Surprisingly enough, there are some journalists working at some of Thailand’s largest media outlets who are applauding Panitan’s and the present government’s stance.)
Crackdown
Thai TV (Channel 9) is now covering events, including live reports. Had footage of protesters in Chiang Mai breaking into City Hall? 17:24 local time.
A brief fight, and many watermelons
Chart. Your desire to know the social breakdown of the army is meaningless. When their corrupt leaders have finished with them, they are only fit to be led by the nose or to capitulate. The phrai analogy is largely a useless one. This is all about CORRUPT faction Vs CORRUPT faction, over the succession. And whose wallet commands the biggest goon squad. The only real socialists are completely dead in the water. In the past, we could have probably expected an intercession. Not exactly very practical anymore, is it? I’m not at all sure it really helped anyway. And the fact that the next person is totally incapable of saying or doing anything (other than being a playboy) is pretty alarming. Damn it! The man is far older than me, and he still has no grace or leadership qualities.
Crackdown
5PM Saturday afternoon in Bangkok:
Military Spokesman Col. Sansern claims “Rumours have it troops used real bullets. That is untrue.”
With photos of red demonstrators showing bullet wounds coming out of many news/media outlets around the world, it would appear that Col. Sansern is either mis-informed or in a state of denial.
In any case, having decided that the optimum timing for the crackdown was broad daylight on a Saturday afternoon in a city of 16 million residents plus innumerable tourists with thousands of digital cameras, mobile phones with cameras, tiny HD video cameras present and and infinite number of WiFi hotspots and internet shops on every block, it is no longer possible to control the information flow through military and government spokespersons.
Crackdown
Now PTV showing reds at Pan Fa having seized a massive amount of weapons (rifles, bullets, and what was described as bombs/”rabert” but didn’t catch which kind)
A brief fight, and many watermelons
The reds are getting much better treatment than Thaksin dished out to his fellow Thais in Tak Bai and the Krue Seh Mosque.
Crackdown
Pro-government newspaper The Nation reports that the Saturday afternoon April 10th crackdown in Bangkok was ordered by Vice Prime Minister Sutthep. Government spokesman Col. Sansern claims crackdown will be completed before sunset Saturday evening or by about 7PM. (It is now 5PM in Bangkok and the battle appears to be no where near decided………..)
———————————————————————–
Sansern confirms Suthep ordered crackdown
Col Sansern Kaewkamnerd, the spokesman of the Emergency Operations Command, confirmed that Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban Saturday ordered the crackdowns on protesters.
The crackdown began the 1st Army Area head office and continued to the Phan Fa rally site.
Sansern said 234 companies of troops were deployed to carry out the operation to break up the demonstration.
Sansern said the crackdown was necessary as protesters would not obey the emergency decree, which prohibited demonstrations.
He said the dispersing of the demonstrators would be completed before evening falls.
Crackdown
From red stage, leaders show just seized M-16 rifle with magazines and *real* bullets (looks like they have seized a pretty large amount).
http://i777.photobucket.com/albums/yy52/gdt_2010/Picture1.png
http://i777.photobucket.com/albums/yy52/gdt_2010/Picture2.png
http://i777.photobucket.com/albums/yy52/gdt_2010/Picture3.png
http://i777.photobucket.com/albums/yy52/gdt_2010/Picture4-1.png