Military launches a coup in Thailand (Muslim General ousts Prime Minister)

Thanks.. Muslim General assumes power..

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ap article UPDATE

BANGKOK, Thailand - Thailand's army commander staged a coup Tuesday night and ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra while he was in New York, circling his offices with tanks, declaring martial law and revoking the constitution.

Gen. Sondhi Boonyaratkalin, who is known to be close to Thailand's revered monarch and is a Muslim in this Buddhist-dominated nation, took power without a shot being fired. He will serve as acting prime minister, said army spokesman Col. Akara Chitroj.

Thaksin, who was first elected in 2001, has faced calls to resign amid allegations of corruption and abuse of power, and the coup came on the eve of a major rally — the first in months — that was scheduled for Bangkok by a coalition of his foes.

"The armed forces commander and the national police commander have successfully taken over Bangkok and the surrounding area in order to maintain peace and order. There has been no struggle," the new leaders said in a statement on national television. "We ask for the cooperation of the public and ask your pardon for the inconvenience."

As soldiers and armored vehicles moved through drizzly Bangkok, the military declared a provisional authority loyal to King Bhumibol Adulyadej, calling itself the "Council of Administrative Reform."

The council, it said, soon return power to a democratic government but did not specify what reforms they would carry out.

The military ordered all troops to report to their duty stations. There was no sign of resistance to the coup in the hours after it was announced late Tuesday.

The coup leaders also said schools, banks and the stock market will be closed Wednesday. Civil servants, including permanent secretaries of ministries, heads of state agencies, and heads of universities in the Bangkok metropolitan area were ordered to report to the council on Wednesday morning.

Akara said Deputy Prime Minister Chitchai Wannasathit had been removed from his post.

An army general, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the situation, said Chitchai and Defense Minister Thammarak Isaragura na Ayuthaya — two Thaksin loyalists — had been arrested.

"The government is no longer administering the country," Akara said.

Thaksin was in New York at the U.N. General Assembly, and he declared a state of emergency in an audio statement via a government-owned TV station in Bangkok in a vain attempt to stave off the coup.

Thaksin, who had been scheduled to address the General Assembly, canceled his speech.

Government spokesman Surapong Suebwonglee, who was with Thaksin in New York, said the coup leaders "cannot succeed" and was confident they would fail "because democracy in Thailand has developed to some ... measure of maturity."

At least 14 tanks surrounded Government House, Thaksin's office. A convoy of four tanks rigged with loudspeakers and sirens rolled through a busy commercial district of Bangkok, warning people to get off the street for their own safety.

The coup went largely unnoticed in Bangkok's popular tourist districts, where foreigners packed bars and cabarets, oblivious to the activity about two miles away. But word raced among street vendors hawking T-shirts, who packed up their carts quickly and started heading home.

Hundreds of people gathered at Government House, taking pictures of themselves with the tanks.

"I don't agree with the coup, but now that they've done it, I support it because Thaksin has refused to resign from his position," said university student Sasiprapha Chantawong. "Allowing Thaksin to carry on will ruin the country more than this. The reputation of the country may be somewhat damaged, but it's better than letting Thaksin stay in power."

The White House was monitoring the events closely, "but the situation at the moment is unclear," said Frederick Jones, a spokesman for President Bush's National Security Council. "We look to the Thai people to resolve their political differences in a peaceful manner and in accordance with principles of democracy and rule of law."

Former Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai, and a member of the opposition Democrat Party, said Thaksin had forced the military to act.

"As politicians, we do not support any kind of coup but during the past five years, the government of Thaksin created several conditions that forced the military to stage the coup. Thaksin has caused the crisis in the country," he told The Associated Press.

It was the first coup in Thailand since 1991, when an attempt by Prime Minister Suchinda Kraprayoon, a military general, to retain power was later countered by mass street demonstrations and Suchinda's ouster. After that, the military vowed to remain in its barracks, in contrast to earlier decades when military coups were a staple of Thai politics.

Massive rallies earlier this year forced Thaksin to dissolve Parliament and call an election in April, three years early. The poll was boycotted by the opposition and later annulled by Thailand's top courts, leaving it without a working legislature.

Thaksin's Thai Rak Thai Party twice won landslide election victories, in 2001 and 2005 and had been expected to win the next vote on Oct. 15, bolstered by its widespread support in the country's rural areas.

In March, Sondhi sought to ease speculation the military might join the political fray, as it last did in 1992 and more than a dozen other times during earlier crises.

"The army will not get involved in the political conflict. Political troubles should be resolved by politicians," Sondhi said at the time, echoing comments of other top military officials. "Military coups are a thing of the past."

On Monday, Thaksin had said he might step down as leader of Thailand after the upcoming elections but would remain as partly leader, despite calls for him to give up the post.

The first sign of the coup came when army-owned TV channel 5 interrupted regular broadcasts with patriotic music and showed pictures of the king. Later, several hundred soldiers were deployed at government installations and major intersections in Bangkok.

Thaksin's critics wanted to jettison his policies promoting privatization, free trade agreements and CEO-style administration.

Opposition to Thaksin gained momentum in January when his family announced it had sold its controlling stake in telecommunications company Shin Corp. to Singapore's state-owned Temasek Holdings for a tax-free $1.9 billion. Critics allege the sale involved insider trading and complained a key national asset moved to foreign hands.

Thaksin also has been accused of stifling the media and mishandling a Muslim insurgency in southern Thailand that flared under his rule.

In the mostly Muslim south, separatist insurgents have waged a bloody campaign that has left at least 1,700 dead, mostly civilians, since 2004. Citizens there have complained of rights abuses by soldiers and discrimination by the Buddhist majority.

Bhumibol, a 78-year-old constitutional monarch with limited powers, has used his prestige to pressure opposing parties to compromise during political crises. He is credited with helping keep Thailand more stable than many of its Southeast Asian neighbors.

He is the world's longest-serving monarch, celebrated his 60th year on the throne with lavish festivities in June that were attended by royalty from around the world.

Many Thais had been counting on him to pull the country through its political crisis, which has left it with no functioning legislature and only a caretaker government after the inconclusive election.

Bhumibol was born in Cambridge, Mass. He became the ninth king of Thailand's Chakri dynasty on June 9, 1946, succeeding his older brother, Ananda, killed by an unexplained shooting.

Since then, he has reigned through a score of governments, democratic and dictatorial. He has taken an especially active role in rural development.

In 1992, demonstrators against a military strongman were gunned down before the king stepped in to end the fighting and usher in a period of stability.

Yep, Yul was hot, or so I'm told. (I wouldn't know!)

The Thais feel the play portrayed the King as a barbarian who the Englishwoman civilized, when in fact he was very intelligent and well-educated.

You need to understand the Thais are very touchy about their Kings and quick to take offense. They revere the King as much as they loathe their politicians. Almost anywhere you go you will find the King's picture displayed.

Personally, I liked the movie and the music. And I found Deborah Kerr pretty hot in her day.

Rama (King of Thailand)

The kings in the current Chakri dynasty of Thailand are often referred to as Rama followed by Roman ordinal in English translation. The name Rama was adopted from the name of Hindu god Rama.

The use of the name Rama nth is in line with Thai practice of giving number to the king in the current dynasty. However, the translation was not exact and can give rise to some confusion whether this was actually the name adopted by the king on coronation.

In fact, the only king in the dynasty who called himself Rama was Phra Mongkutklao, who was the sixth to reign. His reigning title was Phra Mongkutklao Chaoyuhua; later in his reign, he preferred to style himself as Phra Ram ti Hok (lit. Rama VI). It was presumed that he was influenced by the European practice of numbering the rulers with similar names while he studied in England.

This quite conveniently coincided with another practice of the Thais. Traditionally, the name of the king is sacred and would not normally be said. Instead people would referred to the king by other words — these days Nai Luang or Phra Chao Yu Hua. When King Buddha Yodfa Chulaloke founded the dynasty, he was commonly referred to as Phan Din Ton (lit. 'The First Kingdom'); and when his son inherited the throne, he was referred to as Phan Din Klang (lit. 'the Middle Kingdom'). This then became awkward when King Nangklao, the third king, came to the throne, as the obvious referral would then be Phan Din Plai (lit. 'the Last Kingdom') — which did not sound very auspicious. Instead he was referred to as Ratchakal ti Saam (3 lit. 'the third reign'). Since then, all the kings in the dynasty are also known unofficially as Ratchakal ti nth ('the nth Reign'). The present King is hence also known as Ratchakal ti kao ('the ninth reign'). This has also been extrapolated back to the first two kings of the dynasty as well.

Since King Mongkutklao called himself Rama VI in English, the name was seemingly equivalent to the Thais' Ratchakal ti hok. This rough translation is still in use these days, although no other king in the dynasty used the name Rama.

There are also several kings in the Ayutthaya period who officially used the reigning name of Ramathibodi (Rama + Athi + Bodi, lit. 'the great ruler Rama').

Kings of Thailand:

Rama I, the Great (1782-1809), Buddha Yodfa Chulaloke
Rama II (1809-1824), Buddha Loetla Nabhalai
Rama III (1824-1851), Nangklao
Rama IV (1851-1868), Mongkut
Rama V, the Great (1868-1910), Chulalongkorn
Rama VI (1910-1925), Vajiravudh
Rama VII (1925-1935), Prajadhipok
Rama VIII (1935-1946), Ananda Mahidol
Rama IX, the Great (installed 1946), Bhumibol Adulyadej

LOL I wasn't that excited with Ms. Kerr, but then again, I'm female! :)
Well, I found the King in the movie to be interesting and educated, but I don't know how accurate the portrayal of Siam (Thailand) was. I liked both movies, altho preferred the Yul Brenner one. Shall we Dance? bumbumbum! One of the best musicals ever in my opinion! ;)
susie

Wow, thanks for the info!
susie

The other cool thing is that the King of Thailand is an American citizen. The worlds richest "anchor baby"! When he became king he bought a new wing for the hospital he was born in, which is part of the Harvard Medical School, which his dad was attending. There is a nice bust of the young king in that hospital.

You are a font of information! I don't know much about Thailand, altho we spent time in the orient when I was a kid.
:)
susie

Islam...the New Communism. Thailand will not be the last. Either Bush and Blair finally get it, that it is the West vs. Islam and not "terrorism" (which means nothing), or we will not win this war.

<< Its Hollywood...what can I tell ya? >>

My LA place is in Selma Ave., 90028 -- that aughta give you a clue as to what to say?? <]:^)~<

Gen. Sondhi Boonyaratkalin, who is known to be close to Thailand's revered monarch and is a Muslim in this Buddhist-dominated nation, took power without a shot being fired.

Game point, Mohammed.

England is the same. The crown owns the military and they swear loyalty to the crown.

I keep wondering when some British monarch will figure this out, and reclaim dominance over a significant fraction of the planet.

I've been wondering about that too. It could happen!

My great uncle (or is it grand uncle) lived on Selma Ave, in this rather charming craftsman home. He was big as a director of silent Westerns, after having been a stunt man. He lived to be near 100 years of age, and played active handball until he was pushing 90.