<p>A Thai red shirt held in prison shares with Prachatai the story of Conor David Purcell, Australian, and Jeff Savage, a Briton, who were arrested for their involvement in the red-shirt rallies in April and May 2010 and deported to their home countries last year.</p>
By Jim Taylor |
<p>As heard among many red shirts: “We are ready and waiting for the word”, ready for bringing about regime change through a democracy “revolution” (การปฏิวัติ), inspired by the recent events in Tunisia. The problem to most red shirts is that there are few real options remaining in the current repressive situation created by the governing regime. A “democratic revolution” is a mass movement which wishes to replace undemocratic and unelected regime with a democratic system of governance.</p>
<p>Sombat Bun-ngam-anong has received a second indictment for violating the Emergency Decree.</p>
<p>The public prosecutor has decided to drop the case of a red-shirt vendor who was arrested and charged with selling flip-plops bearing the picture of the Prime Minister’s face in October last year on grounds of insufficient evidence. </p>
By Pravit Rojanaphruk, The Nation |
<p><em>Fear of lese majeste law may keep discussions very one-sided</em></p>
<p>With the setting up of the Students Centre of Thailand (SCT), university students will most probably become more politically active, and perhaps even put issues about the monarchy institution up for debate.</p>
By Pravit Rojanaphruk, The Nation |
<p>Small leftist groups such as Social Move often get ignored alongside the bigger political actors, such as the yellow and red-shirt movements, and rarely get media exposure. Their ideological commitment is clear, however. Key Social Move member Saowalux Pongam talks to The Nation's Pravit Rojanaphruk about the left and politics. Excerpts:</p>
<p><strong>What is the political standing of Social Move?</strong></p>
By Pravit Rojanaphruk, The Nation |
<p>Now that tens of thousands of you have re-grouped to continue the struggle against the old order, take a few moments to consider my advice, which I hope will be useful to you and society at large.</p>
<p>Santipong Inchan, 25, lost his right eye to a rubber bullet during the military crackdown at Khok Wua intersection on 10 April 2010. He got a job as a news translator in December, but had to quit after three weeks because his remaining eye could not take it.</p>
<p><em>Interview by Sakda Samoephob and Phongphiphat Banchanon </em></p>
<p>Intelligence personnel have confirmed that the red shirts remain strong and are easily capable of mobilizing 10,000 supporters for a rally, or even up to 20,000-30,000 at full capacity. However, Thaksin’s magic has recently dwindled, according to the <a href="http://www.nsc.go.th/">National Security Council</a>’s Secretary-General Tawin Pleansri in a Matichon interview published on 27 Dec.</p>
By Pravit Rojanaphruk, The Nation |
<p>Two of the 10 leaked reports purported to have come from the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) and recently obtained by The Nation reveal how live bullets were "likely used" on both a bystander and a red shirt, with investigators concluding both cases were likely the work of soldiers acting on orders. </p>
By Pravit Rojanaphruk, The Nation |
<p>Of the 10 cases in the leaked Department of Special Investigation (DSI) report on the military crackdown on red shirts was the little-known death of the 14-year-old orphan, Kunakorn Srisawan - probably a bystander who was mowed down by a soldier's bullets on May 15.</p>
By Pravit Rojanaphruk, The Nation |
<p>Documents supposedly leaked from the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) appear to place the blame for most of the deaths in the April-May military crackdown firmly on the military. </p>