Update: A reader has sent this link to some photos of the red shirts facing the “no colors” led by PAD at the Saladaeng intersection. Video here. Civil war in the making perhaps or a mob ready to clean up the red shirts after the military?
There are reports of verbal abuse and bottle throwing between the two sides and the beating up of some red shirts by the no color mob, which remains relatively small according to The Nation. Red shirt leaders calmed their people and police separated the two groups.
***
In The Nation (21 April 2010) People’s Alliance for Democracy leader Chamlong Srimuang is reported as saying that the government “has no choice but to rein in the red shirts in a speedy and effective manner via law enforcement, otherwise the situation will degenerate into a civil war…”. He chastised the government of Abhisit Vejjajiva for being too slow and not decisive enough.
Chamlong warned that if the government didn’t act, then [his] people would rise up and do it, taking “the law into their hands.” Sounds like 1976, where Chamlong played a shady role in the massacre at Thammasat University.
Chamlong expresses a widely-held yellow shirt view, even amongst normally sensible people, that the red shirts are simply about Thaksin Shinawatra avoiding the law. They are unable to distinguish a social movement when it is in front of them. He said: “This is not a political conflict but an attempt to elude the law…”. Chamlong even called on the “First Army Region to intervene and declare the martial law.” In other words, a coup or a military mutiny.
Former mercenary Chamlong thinks that it would be all over in “no more than two hours” if the military moved against them. Hang the cost in human lives, for “the risk is worth taking to safeguard the country.” He added that if the government or military didn’t act, the “PAD would step out to restore peace…”, joining “hands with all patriots to safeguard the monarchy…”.
For other scenarios on civil war, see here and here. In fact, civil war may already be emerging, ahead of a crackdown (see here and here), and with PAD-led demonstrators planning a Friday rally.
Meanwhile, the government says it is still open to “negotiation” as a way to avoid a clash. However, as AP points out, acting government spokesman “Panitan [Wattanayagorn] did not spell out exactly what steps the protesters would have to take for the government to restart a dialogue but said violent elements linked to the protesters are a particular sticking point. When the army tried to sweep protesters from one of their encampments on April 10, masked men with military weapons fought back, helping to trigger fierce street fighting that left 25 people dead and more than 800 wounded.” Recall that Amnesty International has the view that there will be an inquiry into these events. PPT won’t hold its breath.
1 Comment