A brief summary of crackdown on Red Shirt demonstration

in Bangkok during 13-16May 2010 (As of 16 May)

Pipob Udomittipong (pipob@hotmail.com)

1. In brief, since 13 May, the government has launched the so called “Operation
Ratchaprasong”. Basically, all utilities feeding the area (electricity, tap water and even mobile
phone signal have already been cut or jammed). Checkpoints have been set up in the perimeter
around the area for about five square kilometers to exclusively block any group/individual from
entering the protesting site and even to prevent the transportation of food and water inside the
rally site. Rubber and live rounds have been fired around the protesting site in three or four
major neighborhoods up to the area of Victory monument, Din Daeng, Klongtoey and Silom.
Close to 200 casualties including 31 deaths, all of them civilians including one medic officer (shot
while wearing his medic uniform), one staff from private rescue team, and several Thai
journalists and one Canadian journalist (from France24), have been reported and confirmed by
the Erawan Center (part of the Ministry of Public Health and other concerned agencies).

2. Since 13 May, the firing by security officials has been made “indiscriminately” (at least as
explained by CNN’s Dan River, please check out the video on cnn.com) against anyone,
particularly the red shirts protesters. As a result, even staff from a medic team has been shot
dead the night of 14 May while he was tending to some injured persons around Victory
Monument’s area. This indiscriminate shootings are contradictory to the “rule of engagement” as
spelled out and time and again reiterated by the government, particularly, Mr. Panitan
Wattanayakorn and the spokesperson of CRES (Center for Resolution of Emergency Situation)
that “only in cases purported for defending life of official or when the protesters are found to be
using weapons, then live rounds will be fired”. Before, they have been claiming that live rounds
are fired only “into the sky” to scare people away. But many pictures and the high number of
casualties as a result of gun wounds testify differently to their claim. Yesterday’s afternoon, they
even declared 500 meters parameter on Ratchaparop (Pratunam) just adjacent to the protesting
site a “live firing zone” meaning anyone found to trespass the area will be immediately shot by
live bullets (see Bangkok Post report attached). Later in the evening, they have removed such a
banner, perhaps due to criticisms in media. Still not many people were brave enough to get
around the area and there have been reports of the protesters getting shot. According to the
latest Human Rights Watch’s statement: “By setting out these ‘live fire zones’, the Thai
authorities are on a slippery slope towards serious abuses. It’s a small step for soldiers to think
‘live fire zone’ means ‘free fire zone’, especially as violence escalates”.
(http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2010/05/15/thailand-revoke-live-fire-zones-bangkok)

3. All in all, special laws, particularly, the Emergency Decree on Government Administration in
States of Emergency B.E. 2548 (2005) has been invoked coupled with the normal Criminal
Procedure Code. Almost 60 people have been arrested invoking the Emergency Decree. About
40 of them have been convicted with the maximum penalties (not exceeding two years).
Yesterday, a magistrate court in Bangkok convicted 26 protesters rounded up during the 13-14
May clashes in Bangkok to one year in jail with no suspension (reduced to six months due to
guilty plea) (please see Bangkok Post report). Previously, at least four people known to be related
to the Red Shirts have been arrested and still held in custody for breaches of the Emergency
Decree. No visits, no bail, no access to lawyers have been allowed.
A week ago, the Red Shirts’ legal team and their MPs have submitted a motion to the
Constitutional Court asking the Court to review if the Decree is still applicable, since it was
issued by the virtue of 1997 Constitution which has been revoked since the coup in 2006.
Unfortunately, the Court has made no ruling yet, not even to issue any injunction. Before, the
Red Shirts lawyers have also asked the Civil Court to issue an injunction to stop the government
from using lethal weapons to suppress the demonstration. The Court ruled that it is in no
position to “interfere with the exercise of administrative power” and the situation warrants such
operation by the government.

4. Brutal suppression methods have been employed by the security officials. Apart from firing
live rounds against the protesters and anyone found to stumble in and around the area they
declared off-limit, snipers have reportedly been installed in high-rises and the Sky Train around
the different areas of the protesting sites 1 . It has been reported that several of the Red Shirts
have been shot in their upper parts of the body by “bullets with high velocity shot from above”.
Seh Daeng or Major General Khattiya Sawatdiphon, a renegade military general appearing to
support the militant elements within the Red Shirts, has been shot the evening of 13 May and
still suffers severe headshot wounds and stays unconscious as result of the sniping. Extensive
account of the shooting can be found in international media, since he was shot while giving
interviews to international press (NY Times, VOA, Wall Street Journal, etc.). In fact, his bail
should have been revoked by the Court or the police before this shooting, since he had come out
to instigate the protesters to reject the PM’s “roadmap” and to take to militant approaches.
(please see Peace hopes lost in a sea of confusion, Bangkok Post,
http://www.bangkokpost.com/opinion/opinion/37392/peace-hopes-lost-in-a-sea-of-
confusion).

5. The government has claimed live rounds have to be used as there are “around 500 terrorists
hiding themselves among the protesters”. But so far, no solid evidence has been established to
prove that the Red Shirts have used any war weapons or have them in possession, apart from the
use of firework, bamboo spikes, rocks, Molotov Cocktails, and other improvised tools. The ratio
of casualties is quite telling on this issue. So far, only four officials have died (all of them on 10
April), whereas the number of dead persons among the Red Shirts has increased to 21 (10 April)
+ 31 (13-16 May) = 52 now. Since Operation Ratchaprasong has been launched, none of the
security officials have been shot or found to suffer any injury. But the government claimed that
during the evening of 13 May, at the standoff in Pratunam (Ratchaparop), about four M79
grenades were shot into the military squads stationed there. But there has been no report of
casualties among the officials so far. And during the night of 14 May, a dozen of protesters and

1
An Australian tourist handed over a copy of video clip of two men appearing like snipers on
Charn Isara Tower opposite from Chulalongkorn Hospital.

The tourist gave the copy to reporters at 4:10 am.

The feed showed two men staying together with one man using a telescope to check movements
down below.

The tourist said he saw red-shirt guards pointing at the building so he looked up and saw the two
men and shot the clip. (The Nation, 16 May 2010)
passersby have been shot dead by snipers. All of the dead bodies have been found unarmed. A
few were women, too.

The violence seems to have escalated since the protesters have been trying to break through the
barricades set up by security officials to join the remaining and fatigue protesters at the main rally
site at the Ratchaprasong intersection. There are probably a few thousands protesters left, mostly
those from the province. And the other protesters, mostly from within Bangkok, have tried to
join with them though they have constantly been held back by fierce and indiscriminate shooting
from the military. Now, the protesters decided to lay siege to three or three areas around the rally
site (Din Daeng, Klong Toey, Victory Monument) and the standoff with the officials continue as
of now.

Later the morning of 16 May, there were rumours that the government was going to impose a
curfew ban. But in late afternoon, CRES came out to state that such a curfew ban will not be
imposed now since it is not necessary and the situation is under their control.

PS: For anyone who still assumes the Red Shirts have been using war weapons, please consider
emerging facts by reading and watching yourself from the links to video clips below. All major
news wires, internationally and nationally, have concurred in their reportage that the Red Shirts
have not been found to resort to the use of any war weapon despite the imminent threats they
were facing, whereas the security officials fire live rounds against them indiscriminately and
worse they even employ snipers to shoot down cold-bloodedly the demonstrators. And having
the snipers fail to justify the “rule of engagement” touted by the government that the live firing
is meant for self-defence and retaliation against armed persons, since the snipers are in hiding
and their safety could not be compromised to the extent that they have to fire.

Here is a video clip showing military sniper in operation. At the very end of the video, the
lookout told the sniper that the target was hit and fell down, yet the sniper continued shooting
another shot and so the lookout hit softly on his head:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X23FrUrJZdU

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/8684319.stm from BBC, the report confirmed

the protesters were only using firework and slingshots.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/8684581.stm An Australian resident in Bangkok

who lives near Silom told in this video that the protesters were unarmed.

Meanwhile, Aljazeera’s report confirms the military has been shooting “indiscriminately” against
people.

Al Jazeera's Aela Callan, also reporting from Bangkok, said television footage appeared to show
troops were firing indiscriminately, with reporters covering the protests being shot at in some
incidents.
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/asia-pacific/2010/05/201051513638905775.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jCdenZfR0HA This clip was posted by “horriblethailand”

on 15 May 15 and the description goes “There was a woman who was going to her home but she
will never arrived because that bullet has taken her life away from her family forever. Sorry for
my abusive language in the clip it happened that way because I was pissed that they shot the first
aid unit who went to secure her life but it’s too late because finally she died...”

In the clip, you will hear a lady who was so angry and swearing the army for not letting anyone to
come and help the wounded lady who fell down in the middle of the road. There have been
reports that people have been shot, but the medic teams have been too scared to get in and
collect their bodies for treatment immediately since one of their staff has been shot dead. Similar
to Nelson Rand from France24, he was not immediately taken to hospital since the military did
not stop firing, and it was the Red Shirt guards who risked their lives to drag him out.

CNN’s Dan River reporting that there were snipers among the army and the Red Shirts only
using slingshots and rocks. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=btp-wUvNXuM

Thai troops opened fire on protesters after a military lockdown of their rally site in the heart of
the capital sparked fierce clashes that left three people dead and at least 46 wounded

Picture: Ap
Troops were seen shooting into Lumpini Park which, in normal times, is a quiet refuge and
popular exercise spot in the city centre (two Red Shirts protesters were later found dead in the
park. Their bodies were not recovered until three hours past since no one dared to get inside the
park while the security officials were still firing.)

Picture: AFP/GETTY