What kind of human being in army uniform calmly sits in a building and picks off unarmed civilians with their rifle like shooting targets at a fair? This is what the Thai army is really like: cowardly, corrupt, brutal. Time to abolish the Thai army and bring the generals to justice.
See this slide show:
Foreign journalists who say that “there are reports of armed Red Shirts” should show real evidence, not just trot out government propaganda which gives legitimacy to cold-blooded murder.
Read Nick Nostitz‘s account of his experiences yesterday in Bangkok:
The protesters moved the tires further along the road, in front of the Shell gas station near Soi Rang Naam. I positioned myself at the gas station as cover, in case the army would open fire. And straight away the army opened fire. Maybe 5 meters from me, on the road a small group of protesters was stuck behind the tires while bullets passed by. It made a sickening sound when bullets hit the protester who had just joked around with us — in the arm and in the stomach. A few protesters on our side tried to throw a rope over to pull the injured protester to us, but it did not work. The shooting never stopped. Another protester, who tried to crawl away, was hit in the leg and the shoulder. One guy managed to run over to us. I began losing any sense of time. . . .
With terror I realized that the soldiers began moving to us. Shots were fired into the gas station. I hid first behind a car parked there, but had a bad feeling that I was in the very wrong spot, and that I had to get out as fast as I could. I ran back to the toilets, about 40 meters, realizing that I was shot at while I was running. My legs nearly gave in. Naked terrible unbelievable fear.
See snipers just calmly killing unarmed civilians:
Let us not get sidetracked:
1. Abhisit’s government was NEVER elected. It came from a process started by the 2006 military coup. That is why they are very afraid of an election.
2. The Red Shirts are a mass movement of the poor. They want democratic elections. It is totally legitimate to stage peaceful protests for this demand.
3. Abhisit and the army turned Bangkok into a war zone and started the violence. They have indiscriminately killed unarmed protesters by using snipers to shoot at civilians. Nearly forty are already dead from the actions of the army in the last few days.
4. Dissolving parliament and holding democratic elections would put an end to the protests. That is what any responsible leader would do. Return power to the people. So why is Abhisit refusing and answering with live bullets?
5. The UDD have offered talks if the government orders a ceasefire. This has been dismissed by the government.
Judge news reports and the commitment to the truth by journalists on the basis of these four points. Judge foreign governments by their public positions on Thailand in this crisis. Judge academics and NGOs on their positions.
What kind of human being is Abhisit?
Giles Ji Ungpakorn is a Thai socialist, currently in exile in the U.K. See, also, “Thailand: Seeing through the Mist of Tear Gas” (MRZine, 16 April 2010).
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