My Chiang Mai

Tens of thousands of supporters of deposed Thai premier, Thaksin Shinawatra, are gathering in Bangkok ahead of a mass demonstration this weekend aimed at bringing down the government.

Some 6,500 protestors, in trademark red shirts, staged early demonstrations in the capital on Friday, while thousands more are gathered in the rural north before starting the journey to Bangkok on Sunday.

Police says 14,000 protestors had left Thaksin’s home city of Chiang Mai for Bangkok although his supporters put the figure higher at 20,000.

A 50,000 strong security force will be deployed in the capital despite assurances from the protest organisers that the rally will be non-violent. The government has also enacted a tough security law that allows authorities to impose curfews and limit movements.

Rumours are circulating that the military may take advantage of possible chaos surrounding the rally to stage a military coup, says.Chiramuch Premchaiporn, editor of the website, Prachatai.com.

This weekend’s protest come two weeks after Thailand’s top court confiscated 1.4 billion dollars of Thaksin’s assets. They are the latest in a series of demonstrations that have taken place in Thailand since the Thaksin was toppled in a 2006 coup.

About 20 red-shirts led by Weng Tochirakarn gathered in front of the Royal Thai Police head office on Tuesday demanding a progress report on the prosecution of the People’s Alliance for Democracy for its takeover of Don Meaung and Suvarnabhumi airports from Nov 26 to Dec 2, 2008.

About 50 police from Division 6 of the metropolitan police were deployed to control the situation.

In Samut Prakarn, about 50 members of the red-shirt people group led by Chanu Chaiya went to the provincial offices and submitted a letter to the governor, Surachai Khan-arsa, asking for a similar progress report. Suvarnabhumi is in Samut Prakarn province.

The red-shirts say it is now more than a year since the incident but there has been no  legal action taken against PAD leaders who led their supporters to occupy the capital’s two international airports.

It was reported that Petcharawat Wattanapongsirikul, a core leader of the red-shirted Rak Chiang Mai 51 group, had gone to a meeting with core leaders of the anti-government United People for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) in Bangkok to discuss rally plans in Chiang Mai.

According to an informed source, the red-shirt people group is planning a three-day rally in the northern tourist destination, beginning tomorrow.

They will rally on Wednesday and Thursday to demand the resignation of Pol Lt-Gen Somkid Boonthanom, commander of Provincial Province Police Region 5 and a defendant in the murder of a Saudi businessman who disappeared in 1990.

On Jan 29, the UDD plans a mass demonstration against the government and the president of the Privy Council Prem Tinsulanonda at Chiang Mai Royal Golf Course in Chiang Mai’s San Sai district.

The UDD has accused Varin Pulsiriwong, the owner of the golf course and of Naew Na newspaper and a close associate of Gen Prem, of illegally obtaining ownership of the land.

Chiang Mai – Some kids were apparently puzzled when they joined a Children Day celebration held under sponsorship of former prime minister  Thaksin Shinawatra at the Waroros Grand Palace Hotel.

They were told to recite a motto given by Thasksin in exchange for prizes.

They were told to recite “To have bright future, children must learn technology” but some kids recited the motto of Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajva, which says: “Be creative, be diligent in studying and uphold morality”.

A lot of red-shirt people took their children to join the celebration. Prizes given by Thakin included a BlackBerry phone, 60 bicycles and many sports equipment.

Read the full story in The Nation

Police raids which uncovered 6,000 home-made ‘ping pong’ bombs, 30 guns and ammunition resulted in Abhisit cancelling his Chiang Mai visit this weekend.

Chiang Mai police found the bombs, 6 pistols, a rifle and a shotgun at the home of 45 year old Narong Bunchongcharoen, who had worked as a security guard at the last ‘red shirt’ rally. He denied possessing illegal weapons, saying the bombs were ‘fireworks’ which remained unsold after the Loi Kratong festival. The guns had been given to him in settlement of a debt, he claimed.

Late on Wednesday night, police made another arrest at a city centre karaoke bar, where they found 22 home made guns and gun-making equipment.

On Thursday, about 100 red shirted protesters briefly surrounded the central Phrasingh police station, demanding that an arrest warrant be cancelled for a local radio presenter who had allegedly made death threats to the PM. The warrant has yet to be served.

In a statement, the PM said that if the event he was to attend had been a government one, he would have come as planned. But as it came from “the private sector” he had “followed their suggestion” to remain in Bangkok.

Article contributed by David Hardcastle, Copyright David Hardcastle 2010

The Governor of Chiang Mai province has promised the Prime Minister that he will be safe when he visits the city on November 29th.

PM Abhisit Vejajiva is due to attend a national meeting of Thai Chambers of Commerce, here in the epi-centre of the ‘red shirt’ pro-Taksin Shinawat faction.

Today, Governor Amornphan Nimanand said: “The red-shirt anti-government group in Chiang Mai has now turned to non-violent demonstrations to avoid giving the city a bad image.”

The meeting of the many regional Chambers is intended to attempt to solve economic problems and help rehabilitate the economy.

Editor’s Note: Many of the PM’s recent visits outside the capital, Bangkok, have featured helicopters and big military and police operations after demonstrators attacked his mini-bus last month and managed to pull open a door.

Article contributed by David Hardcastle, Copyright David Hardcastle 2010

The next few days could see a formal truce statement issued by the rival red and yellow shirted political rivals in the north.
A statement is being prepared for the Governor of Chiang Mai province, agreeing to respect people’s rights and guarantee tourists that all residents are “good hosts”, an anonymous source has told ‘The Nation’ newspaper.

The (apparently neutral) source said that the Chiang Mai Chamber of Commerce had brokered the deal during meetings with the pro-Taksin Shinawat ‘reds’ and their yellow clad rivals.

In the interests of tourism business, a meeting was held 2 weeks ago with both groups attending, though a second meeting more recently was boycotted by “splinter groups” of both colours, said the report.

Promsak Saenpho, leader of the red-shirted Confederation of Grassroots People of the North, was quoted as saying: “The country will be victorious if unity is restored and the political colours are destroyed.”

Less than 50kms away in the rural town of Payao, 8 members of the 2 groups were photographed shaking hands for the camera back on October 6th. Wearing every possible colour except red and yellow, they issued a brief statement saying: “We have good intentions for society, but may have offended ‘the other colour’” and apologised.

Only 61% of eligible Chiang Mai city centre voters turned out to the polls on the 4th, but a decisive 24,384 of them voted for Tassanai Buranupakorn, candidate No 2 and nephew of a previous two-time landslide winner.

Surprise runner-up with 13,197 votes was a lady some thought a rank outsider, Wipawan Woraputthipong (No 7), while immediate former Mayor Dr Duantemduang trailed badly in 3rd place with only 6,958.

The poll was called after Ms Duantemduang was disqualified on a technicality over her residential status in the city, but new incumbent Khun Tassanai may face a far more serious hurdle.

A man wearing a red shirt (indicating support for ousted former Prime Minister Taxin Shinawat) was arrested while carrying a list of eligible voters and 24,000b in cash. If an investigation now under way by the Chiang Mai Election Office connects him to a candidate, that candidate will be disqualified, forced to pay for a new election and subject to a jail term of up to 10 years and a fine of up to 200,000b. The investigation should be complete within 2 weeks.

Notably, 4,444 of the 64,871 ballots handed in had the ‘abstain’ box ticked, showing what many observers interpet as dissatisfaction with all the candidates.