Royal Thai Army Connection to Assassination
Forensics analysis conducted in the past week have traced the M-16 bullets fired in the 17 April 2009 assassination attempt of Sondhi Limthongkul, founder of the People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD) political party, according to reports from the Associated Press. The bullets were issued to the Thai First Army’s Ninth Infantry division.
How the army’s bullets came to be appropriated and used in the assassination attempt remains unknown. Likewise there have been no arrests. Yet it casts a cloud over the role of the military in Thai politics.
Meanwhile, Sondhi is reported to be doing better and is expected to be released from the hospital on Friday.
9th Division History
The Royal Thai Army’s 9th Division was originally known as the Royal Thai Army Volunteer Force, a Vietnam War-era unit that grew from a battalion (about 700-800 men) to a division size (11,266 men) between 1966 and 1968. The unit was incorporated into the Thai Royal Army as the 9th Division after its return from Vietnam in 1971. In 1981, it was assigned to the 1st Army’s area of operations, which is centered around Bangkok. It is responsible for internal security.
In 1997, the 9th Division was named in allegations of physical abuse of refugees fleeing the instability in Burma (now Myanmar). More recently, in 2002, the 9th Division was specifically mentioned in an Amnesty International report of the forcible deportation of 63 Myanmar refugees. Problems with diplaced persons and a flood of over half-a-million migrant workers have challenged Thailand for the better part of the last decade.
The Royal Thai Army has been a decisive factor in the coups and political turnovers of recent years. It was instrumental in the 2006 coup which deposed Thaksin Shinawatra. At that time, the military supported the PAD’s goal of deposing the Thaksin government.
Even considering the assassination attempt of a major political leader, threats of additional armed attacks, and the calls for the present government to step down, the two-week state of emergency Thailand has been under will be lifted, according to current Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva.
For now, Thailand seems to have weathered a major political crisis. Yet the political intrigues are likely far from over.
Showing posts with label Sondhi Limthongku. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sondhi Limthongku. Show all posts
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Saturday, April 18, 2009
View from South East Asia - Repercussions of the recent unrest in Thailand
Asia Times Online http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Southeast_Asia.html continues to produce quality reporting on Thailand. The editor, Shawn Crispin is based there and really has his finger on the pulse. His latest article is ‘Shooting the messenger in Thailand’ (http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Southeast_Asia/KD18Ae02.html).
It a good read about the recent shooting of People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) protest group leader Sondhi Limthongkul. He ends the article with the sombre warning, “The fear now is that Friday's assassination attempt could indicate that the UDD and Thaksin's supporters aim to bypass the courts and mete out justice as they see fit on Thailand's increasingly mean streets.”
Another good article from Asia Times is ‘ASEAN's Pattaya problem' (http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Southeast_Asia/KD18Ae01.html) by Donald K Emmerson. He reminds us that in the last seven months, Thailand has had four different prime ministers, including one interim premier.
He comments that “ASEAN has long insisted on occupying the driver's seat in vehicles for cooperation between Southeast Asia and countries outside the region. One of these formats is ASEAN Plus Three (APT), the Three being China, Japan, and South Korea. Another is the East Asia Summit, which adds Australia, India, and New Zealand to the APT.
When Thai strife stymied summitry in Pattaya, both of these vehicles were derailed. ASEAN may or may not be outmoded as a vehicle for beneficial comity among Southeast Asians alone. But a second effect of the Thai debacle is to throw into serious doubt the right of ASEAN to drive the larger regional car.“
He continues, “But it is unlikely that many of ASEAN's disappointed leaders, as they were evacuated from Pattaya or turned back en route, blamed the waste of their time on Thailand's failure to handle the demonstrators more democratically. More likely was the opposite conclusion: that the Thai government should have cracked down harder on the protests to stop them from getting out of hand.“
What does the future hold?
Donald K Emmerson ends his article with this comment, “Who will lead ASEAN? On present evidence, for the next four to five years, it will be one authoritarian government after another. What is the future of democracy in Southeast Asia? As of now, and for the same near term, not as bright as might be hoped. “
In rotation, Vietnam will be the next Chair of ASEAN in 2010. The protests that forced the cancellation of the Asean summit in Thailand last weekend will likely lead Vietnam to move slower on political liberalisation, experts said Monday.
"Thailand used to be one of the democratic models for Vietnam, but these incidents in Thailand certainly will make Vietnamese leaders more cautious about democracy," said Professor Trinh Duy Luan, director of Vietnam's Institute for Social Studies.
Officially, Vietnam's government expressed "regret" over the postponement of the Asean summit. " In our view, this is a regrettable event, affecting not only Thailand's image but Asean's process of cooperation," said Nguyen Hong Cuong, director of the Asean Department at Vietnam's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Cuong noted that several agreements on Asean cooperation scheduled to be adopted at the summit had been postponed.
The state-run newspaper Vietnam News reported Monday that Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung hoped that "political stability" would soon return to Thailand, for the sake of its national development its responsibilities as rotating chair of Asean.
But some analysts said the repercussions of Thailand's demonstrations were likely to slow moves in Communist Vietnam to allow greater freedom of organisation and more room for civil society groups.
For several years, the country's National Assembly has debated reforms to the national Law on Associations, which regulates the formation of any kind of civic group. Under current law, all such groups must be affiliated with a government agency or government-chartered "mass organisation," such as the Women's Union or the Union of Science and Technology Associations.
Carlyle Thayer, a Vietnam specialist at the Australian Defence Force Academy, said Vietnamese leaders opposed to liberalisation would use the Thai unrest to support strong single-party rule.
"Like any instability in the former Soviet Union and Yugoslavia, Vietnamese television will show that violence extensively," Thayer said. "The subtext is 'This is what you get when you have a multiparty democracy.'"
Vietnamese television news has been running footage of the protests in Thailand since they began over the weekend.
Nguyen Tran Bat, chair of the Vietnamese consulting firm InvestConsult, agreed that moves to broaden civil society in Vietnam would be limited.
"Vietnam will allow people to have more rights, but in order to facilitate leadership, it will not consider them as natural rights," Bat said. "The concept of what democracy is will certainly be considered more cautiously by Vietnamese leaders."
Being a member of the United Nation Security Council, Vietnam has already chaired the Council for one month and will do so again later this year. It is hope that this experience will bode well when Vietnam chairs ASEAN next year.
We need understanding
Asia is a region in turmoil, from the troubles in Thailand to massacres in Mumbai and threats in Korea. If ever there was a crying need for Global Understanding, now is the time and Asia is the place. In future blogs, we will explore the situation in the other hotspots around Asia.
For now, let us try to live together in harmony, which is the motto of the Global Understanding Institute (GUI). The Global Understanding movement was formed in 2006 and launched on Valentine's Day of that year (14 February 2006).
It was formed by a group of like-minded individuals who wish to see a peaceful world, where children can be brought up in a safe and clean environment. Where children learn the difference between right and wrong; between hate and love; war and peace; moral and immoral behaviour; honesty and dishonest intentions; legal and illegal actions; ethical and unethical activities.
We seek to share understanding of the world around us through provision of global and local forums to exchange and express views for all interested and concerned citizens of the world. We owe it to each other to communicate in a polite, logical and rational manner that takes into consideration racial, religious and political sensitivities.
We seek to foster multicultural, pluralistic communities and to create peace between neighbors. This is based on the fundamental principles of human and humanitarian rights. Our goal is to aid any interested and concerned citizen of the world to understand others, to be understood themselves especially during times of crisis or conflict, and to bring peace and reconciliation where there are differences.
GUI is now on Twitter (http://twitter.com/GUInstitute) where you can catch up on the real-time updates. If you would like to play a role in promoting global understanding, please contact Peter Corless at 650-906-3134 (mobile); or by email at petercorless@mac.com. You can also find Peter on Facebook and on LinkedIn:
It a good read about the recent shooting of People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) protest group leader Sondhi Limthongkul. He ends the article with the sombre warning, “The fear now is that Friday's assassination attempt could indicate that the UDD and Thaksin's supporters aim to bypass the courts and mete out justice as they see fit on Thailand's increasingly mean streets.”
Another good article from Asia Times is ‘ASEAN's Pattaya problem' (http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Southeast_Asia/KD18Ae01.html) by Donald K Emmerson. He reminds us that in the last seven months, Thailand has had four different prime ministers, including one interim premier.
He comments that “ASEAN has long insisted on occupying the driver's seat in vehicles for cooperation between Southeast Asia and countries outside the region. One of these formats is ASEAN Plus Three (APT), the Three being China, Japan, and South Korea. Another is the East Asia Summit, which adds Australia, India, and New Zealand to the APT.
When Thai strife stymied summitry in Pattaya, both of these vehicles were derailed. ASEAN may or may not be outmoded as a vehicle for beneficial comity among Southeast Asians alone. But a second effect of the Thai debacle is to throw into serious doubt the right of ASEAN to drive the larger regional car.“
He continues, “But it is unlikely that many of ASEAN's disappointed leaders, as they were evacuated from Pattaya or turned back en route, blamed the waste of their time on Thailand's failure to handle the demonstrators more democratically. More likely was the opposite conclusion: that the Thai government should have cracked down harder on the protests to stop them from getting out of hand.“
What does the future hold?
Donald K Emmerson ends his article with this comment, “Who will lead ASEAN? On present evidence, for the next four to five years, it will be one authoritarian government after another. What is the future of democracy in Southeast Asia? As of now, and for the same near term, not as bright as might be hoped. “
In rotation, Vietnam will be the next Chair of ASEAN in 2010. The protests that forced the cancellation of the Asean summit in Thailand last weekend will likely lead Vietnam to move slower on political liberalisation, experts said Monday.
"Thailand used to be one of the democratic models for Vietnam, but these incidents in Thailand certainly will make Vietnamese leaders more cautious about democracy," said Professor Trinh Duy Luan, director of Vietnam's Institute for Social Studies.
Officially, Vietnam's government expressed "regret" over the postponement of the Asean summit. " In our view, this is a regrettable event, affecting not only Thailand's image but Asean's process of cooperation," said Nguyen Hong Cuong, director of the Asean Department at Vietnam's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Cuong noted that several agreements on Asean cooperation scheduled to be adopted at the summit had been postponed.
The state-run newspaper Vietnam News reported Monday that Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung hoped that "political stability" would soon return to Thailand, for the sake of its national development its responsibilities as rotating chair of Asean.
But some analysts said the repercussions of Thailand's demonstrations were likely to slow moves in Communist Vietnam to allow greater freedom of organisation and more room for civil society groups.
For several years, the country's National Assembly has debated reforms to the national Law on Associations, which regulates the formation of any kind of civic group. Under current law, all such groups must be affiliated with a government agency or government-chartered "mass organisation," such as the Women's Union or the Union of Science and Technology Associations.
Carlyle Thayer, a Vietnam specialist at the Australian Defence Force Academy, said Vietnamese leaders opposed to liberalisation would use the Thai unrest to support strong single-party rule.
"Like any instability in the former Soviet Union and Yugoslavia, Vietnamese television will show that violence extensively," Thayer said. "The subtext is 'This is what you get when you have a multiparty democracy.'"
Vietnamese television news has been running footage of the protests in Thailand since they began over the weekend.
Nguyen Tran Bat, chair of the Vietnamese consulting firm InvestConsult, agreed that moves to broaden civil society in Vietnam would be limited.
"Vietnam will allow people to have more rights, but in order to facilitate leadership, it will not consider them as natural rights," Bat said. "The concept of what democracy is will certainly be considered more cautiously by Vietnamese leaders."
Being a member of the United Nation Security Council, Vietnam has already chaired the Council for one month and will do so again later this year. It is hope that this experience will bode well when Vietnam chairs ASEAN next year.
We need understanding
Asia is a region in turmoil, from the troubles in Thailand to massacres in Mumbai and threats in Korea. If ever there was a crying need for Global Understanding, now is the time and Asia is the place. In future blogs, we will explore the situation in the other hotspots around Asia.
For now, let us try to live together in harmony, which is the motto of the Global Understanding Institute (GUI). The Global Understanding movement was formed in 2006 and launched on Valentine's Day of that year (14 February 2006).
It was formed by a group of like-minded individuals who wish to see a peaceful world, where children can be brought up in a safe and clean environment. Where children learn the difference between right and wrong; between hate and love; war and peace; moral and immoral behaviour; honesty and dishonest intentions; legal and illegal actions; ethical and unethical activities.
We seek to share understanding of the world around us through provision of global and local forums to exchange and express views for all interested and concerned citizens of the world. We owe it to each other to communicate in a polite, logical and rational manner that takes into consideration racial, religious and political sensitivities.
We seek to foster multicultural, pluralistic communities and to create peace between neighbors. This is based on the fundamental principles of human and humanitarian rights. Our goal is to aid any interested and concerned citizen of the world to understand others, to be understood themselves especially during times of crisis or conflict, and to bring peace and reconciliation where there are differences.
GUI is now on Twitter (http://twitter.com/GUInstitute) where you can catch up on the real-time updates. If you would like to play a role in promoting global understanding, please contact Peter Corless at 650-906-3134 (mobile); or by email at petercorless@mac.com. You can also find Peter on Facebook and on LinkedIn:
Thursday, April 16, 2009
A view from Southeast Asia - Focus on Thailand
Thanks Peter for the timely update. As we can see, Thailand's troubles are far from over.
If the reports are true that Thaksin operatives, have during the past two years clandestinely funnelled small arms through Cambodia to his supporters, this does not bode well for the Land of Smiles.
If Twitter reports are true that Sondhi Limthongku, the founder of the PAD, was shot by a machine gun that sprayed over 100 bullets, this is a very dangerous turn of events. If the machine gun was in the hands of a Thaksin supporter, this is a serious escalation.
One person, whose view of Thailand I respect greatly, is my editor at Asia Times Online. Shawn Crispin has written a great article titles "Smoke, Mirrors and Lies' which can be viewed at http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Southeast_Asia/KD17Ae02.html.
I have made contact with a couple of people in Thailand but they are a little pre-occupied at present and hope to interact next week. Stay tuned.
If ever there was a time for a little understanding, in Thailand, now is the time. Let cool and sensible heads prevail.
If the reports are true that Thaksin operatives, have during the past two years clandestinely funnelled small arms through Cambodia to his supporters, this does not bode well for the Land of Smiles.
If Twitter reports are true that Sondhi Limthongku, the founder of the PAD, was shot by a machine gun that sprayed over 100 bullets, this is a very dangerous turn of events. If the machine gun was in the hands of a Thaksin supporter, this is a serious escalation.
One person, whose view of Thailand I respect greatly, is my editor at Asia Times Online. Shawn Crispin has written a great article titles "Smoke, Mirrors and Lies' which can be viewed at http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Southeast_Asia/KD17Ae02.html.
I have made contact with a couple of people in Thailand but they are a little pre-occupied at present and hope to interact next week. Stay tuned.
If ever there was a time for a little understanding, in Thailand, now is the time. Let cool and sensible heads prevail.
Breaking News: Thailand: Sondhi Limthongku, Leader of Thai "Yellow Shirts" Shot, Wounded
According to Bloomberg, Reuters, Associated Press, and other news reports, Sondhi Limthongku, the founder of the Thai political party People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD), was shot in an apparent assassination attempt early on the morning of Friday, 17 April 2009, at around 5:45 am local time. Two or more gunmen shot out the tires of Sondhi’s car while it was stopped at a gas station, then shot and wounded Sondhi, his bodyguard and driver.
(Video of Sondi’s bullet-ridden car.)
Sondi’s political party, commonly referred to as the “Yellow Shirts,” was the group responsible for the 2005-2006 political crisis which resulted in the exile of the former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. As the political crisis continued through 2008 to the present, PAD was also responsible for seizing the Bangkok Suvarnabhumi International Airport last year in a massive civil protest in November 2008, which resulted in the ouster of a government supportive of the exiled former Prime Minister.
Thaksin’s supporters, who are known as the National United Front for Democracy Against Dictatorship (UDD), are commonly referred to as the “Red Shirts.” They are the group responsible for the recent unrest in the streets which has resulted in several deaths and dozens of injuries. Their desire is to disband the Parliament and to call for a new election.
(Al Jazeera English Interview with Sean Boonpracong, spokesman for UDD, 12 April 2009)
The attack may increase tensions between the two political parties, and may spur additional levels of violence. Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, who is supported by Sondhi and the PAD, has imposed emergency rule in Bangkok this week as violence and protest continue to destablize life and commerce.
(Video of Sondi’s bullet-ridden car.)
Sondi’s political party, commonly referred to as the “Yellow Shirts,” was the group responsible for the 2005-2006 political crisis which resulted in the exile of the former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. As the political crisis continued through 2008 to the present, PAD was also responsible for seizing the Bangkok Suvarnabhumi International Airport last year in a massive civil protest in November 2008, which resulted in the ouster of a government supportive of the exiled former Prime Minister.
Thaksin’s supporters, who are known as the National United Front for Democracy Against Dictatorship (UDD), are commonly referred to as the “Red Shirts.” They are the group responsible for the recent unrest in the streets which has resulted in several deaths and dozens of injuries. Their desire is to disband the Parliament and to call for a new election.
(Al Jazeera English Interview with Sean Boonpracong, spokesman for UDD, 12 April 2009)
The attack may increase tensions between the two political parties, and may spur additional levels of violence. Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, who is supported by Sondhi and the PAD, has imposed emergency rule in Bangkok this week as violence and protest continue to destablize life and commerce.
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