Dead and injured in Bangkok
By Khan Peter
Another sad day in the history of Thailand. This orgy of violence was to be expected after criticism of Prime Minister Abhisit that he would not act forcefully enough. With Songkran approaching, something had to be done.
We have seen the result. Tear gas, rubber bullets, hand grenades and explosives. Livestock was also fired by both the Redshirts and the military. The balance: many dead and even more (seriously) injured, many with serious gunshot wounds. Every hour the death and wounded toll is adjusted upwards.
Abhistit stated on Thai television that the illegal activities must end. The storming of the Thai parliament and the Thaicom site, the occupation of the Ratchaprasong intersection and the attacks with M79 grenades. 'The Redshirts used violence, so according to Abhisit there was little choice but to intervene hard.
'The government was under tremendous pressure to deal with unlawful assemblies. Yesterday was seen by the people as the testimony of the government's weakness in handling unlawful activities. So today the securities personnel were sent to clear the areas to return to the people.
Last year, during Songkran, there were also deaths in riots, history seems to be repeating itself. Lives are sacrificed for ideals. The price for democracy is high and it is paid with blood. The images of violence are going around the world, with Thailand being stamped as an unstable country.
Despite everything, the Thai economy is growing and the recent problems seem to have almost no influence on it. It is difficult to say what effect April 10 will have on the tourism industry. Especially the Asian tourists cancel the booked ones en masse journey.
The big question is: what next? Who is to blame for this bizarre carnage? What will tomorrow bring when the tear gas and gunpowder fumes have cleared. What have they gained? Is this the start of even more trouble?
Tomorrow, relatives of the victims will also hear the terrible news that their husband or son will never return. In that case, the color of the shirt doesn't matter, red or army green, the sadness remains the same...
– Update April 11, 08.00 a.m. Dutch time: 19 dead and 825 injured
– Update April 11, 12.00 a.m. Dutch time: 20 dead and 825 injured
– Update April 11, 14.00 p.m. Dutch time: 21 killed (4 soldiers and 17 civilians) and 874 wounded
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The latest update from Thailand at 8.38AM local time, 18 killed and 825 injured.
A fair question you asked, who is to blame? That was to be expected. According to elite-controlled propaganda, the government has done nothing and red has done everything. The BBC video you posted earlier proves otherwise.
A sad day. In my opinion it is the fault of the yellow, red and green (army) leaders who are only after money and power. They send innocent people and military to the state to achieve their goals at all costs. Deeply sad, the innocent Thai is the victim.
Here are a few quotes I grabbed from Facebook
of extremely yellow figures, to make you sick. Coincidentally, this is a son of an old minister, the "educated elite" dare to write this kind of nonsense publicly:
red shirts are like cockroaches.. you can't hurt them.. u have to kill them.. otherwise they'll be back with more cockroaches….
dear god, please take the lives of your brave solders into heaven… and may others burn in hell!
Here is the link to the video of an eyewitness on BBC.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8613482.stm
And a good article in the Bangkok Post for those who want to delve a bit into the background and political situation in Thailand.
http://www.bangkokpost.com/opinion/opinion/35818/beyond-this-coloured-war-an-uglyocracy-still-squats
The only solution is for elections to be held very shortly. Although Taksin certainly made mistakes, he was elected by the people. The current government has no democratic legitimacy whatsoever.
Although elections do not always go without fraud and the like, this is the only solution. And then there should be a system in which fraud is excluded as much as possible. This could include, for example, prohibiting voting by proxy, etc.
Personally, I think the negative travel advice from the Dutch government is completely misplaced. The protest is only in a few streets in Bangkok where no tourists come anyway. So my opinion is that Thailand is and remains a safe destination and we should not worry.