PRESS RELEASE
Will the British Puppet Government
in Thailand Move for a Bloodbath?
April 11, 2010 (EIRNS)—Under orders from the Thai Privy Council, which represents the Thai monarchy and its British Royal backers, the Thai government yesterday ordered the army to open fire with tear gas and rubber bullets on the hundreds of thousands of "Red Shirt" demonstrators who are demanding new elections to replace the puppet government of Prime Minister Abhisit Vijjajiva. Abhisit also issued orders to use live ammunition "in self defense." Twenty deaths have been reported, mostly demonstrators, but including seven soldiers and a foreign journalist.
EIR has been informed by sources in Thailand that the government may be mobilizing troops from other parts of the country for another assault, despite the fact that Prime Minister Abhisit stands discredited and despised for his decision to order Thais to kill Thais, rather than step down and allow new elections.
The show of force has thus far been a total failure. The initial assault resulted in huge numbers of angry Bangkok residents joining the demonstrators, forcing the troops to withdraw. The government initially announced that the Red Shirts would be removed by sunset Saturday. When that failed, a second bloodier assault was launched after dark, but was also repulsed, leaving 20 dead and about 500 injured. Prime Minister Abhisit then went on national TV, announcing a ceasefire and asking for negotiations with the Red Shirts, but refusing to resign. The Red Shirts have refused to negotiate now that the killing has begun, demanding that the government resign and Abhisit leave the country.
There are open signs of cooperation between demonstrators and troops at some sites — agreements for the troops to pull back, shaking hands with demonstration leaders, etc. Many soldiers are described as "watermelons"—wearing green uniforms on the outside but red on the inside.
The anger over the use of force in Bangkok has already resulted in government buildings being occupied by Red Shirts in other major cities — in Chiang Mai in the North, the hometown of deposed Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, supported by the Red Shirts; and in Udorn in the Northeast, solid Thaksin country.
The institutions of Thailand are now under existential challenge, and it is not certain in which direction the nation will go. EIR will watch the situation closely and bring attention internationally to the importance of the struggle.
The British signature
The "made-in-London" decision to use force against the Red Shirt opposition to the Abhisit government and his Privy Council sponsors, must be seen in the context of rapidly expanding acts of violent destabilizations and regime changes internationally, including Turkey and Kyrgyzstan, and targetted terrorist operations with a clear British signiture, including the Moscow bombings and threats of assassination against President Barack Obama in the U.S.. The escalating collapse of the London/Wall Street financial system has driven British imperial interests to implement policies of maximum chaos internationally, to prevent cooperation among sovereign nations against British demands for international banking dictatorship. Prime Minister Abhisit and his Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij were both born and raised in London, and educated at Oxford, and London appears ready to blow up Thai society rather than see their boys lose power. The fact that Thailand is still a monarchy makes it particularly susceptible to London's imperial influence.
Abhisit's order to use force also led to the collapse of the Thai military chain of command. Army chief Gen. Anupong Paojinda, who was widely reported to be opposed to the use of force against the demonstrations, refused to give the order for the assault, according to several sources reported in the Thai press. Instead, Deputy chief Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha, known as a fierce loyalist to the monarchy, was put in charge of the assault in Anupong's place. A military source told the Bangkok Post that "highly-respected figures have sent a signal to the prime minister and Gen. Prayuth to end the demonstration before the Songkran (new years) festival, which starts on Tuesday April 13. Privy Council president Prem Tinsulanonda is reportedly "hopeful that he will be able to accept well-wishers during the Songkran holiday." Images of Nero fiddling while Rome burned are unavoidable.
