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Thailand Red Shirt Protesters Crackdown



"The government has been under pressure to be more decisive in its action," a senior Thai government official said. "We have been showing patience and restraint." That, he said, has upset those who want the government to take action against the protesters. The government said it was forced to take action after demonstrators disregarded an ultimatum by Abhisit to vacate a key intersection by Wednesday.[CNN]

I can't help but compare this to the Philippines. I'm not Thai and I have no idea why this is happening to them. But I know for a fact that the Red Shirt Protesters are causing violence and chaos in the Thai Capital. Unlike in the Philippines, the government here don't have the guts to do what Abhisit Vejjajivah has done. Same as in the Philippines, most of the Red Shirt Protesters on the streets of Thailand are
paid, uneducated, poor etc. It's impossible to have a peaceful rally if you have these kind of people. One spark and all hell breaks lose. You can't blame the police or the army for shooting if the protesters can hurt or kill you.

The official said the Red Shirts are "armed to the teeth" with weapons including rocket launchers, handguns and gas bombs, and accused protesters of deliberately provoking clashes with soldiers in order to get "pictures of soldiers using violence to undermine the government." 

"If the protesters didn't have any arms, there would be no way the soldiers need to be armed," the official said. "... They have been rallying people to burn the town down. They have shown intent in using and causing violence (and a) willingness to follow up with that intent. In that situation government ... has to act."  

"If the Thai army was shooting indiscriminately on the streets, there would be hundreds dead," the senior government official said. "That is not the case." The official did acknowledge that there is some army shooting, however, because of high tensions. [CNN]


You can't always protest when a head of state does something you don't like. Not everyone is perfect. Problem with lower class citizens is that they only see the mistakes of the politicians. And they are easily convinced or influenced by certain powerful individuals, who cares more about themselves rather than the country. They don't understand that by doing these protests, they are only worsening the economy of the country.

What are the protests in Thailand about?

Abhisit said the government's actions were necessary to prevent Thailand from sinking into lawlessness. He said security forces and his administration are attempting to counter a small group of protesters among the opposition Red Shirts trying to foment civil war.[CNN]