Posted on 09/19/2006 9:27:33 AM PDT by NormsRevenge
BANGKOK, Thailand - The Thai military launched a coup against Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra on Tuesday night, circling his offices with tanks, seizing control of TV stations and declaring a provisional authority pledging loyalty to the king.
An announcement on Thai television declared that a "Council of Administrative Reform" with King Bhumibol Adulyadej as head of state had seized power in Bangkok and nearby provinces without any resistance.
At least 14 tanks surrounded Government House, Thaksin's office. Thaksin was in New York at the U.N. General Assembly and declared a state of emergency.
Talk about laid back! Heh heh heh...
It's amazing how many people jump straight to wondering if Muslims are involved.
Thailand's Muslim population is relatively small and isolated. They're certainly capable of carrying out terrorist attacks, but they're nowhere near the capability to take over a city hall, let alone the national government.
The split in Thailand is, in large part, urban/rural. Thaksin has never been very popular in Bangkok, but he's beloved in the countryside. He's a telecommunications billionaire, the richest man in Thailand, and there have been persistent claims that he's used the government to make his family even richer.
As to who's side the army's on, Thaksin's or the opposition's, that remains to be seen. There's evidence of a split within the army, and the tanks outside the government house are apparently tied to the opposition, but that's not clear.
The most hopeful sign is that the leaders of the coup hastened to pledge allegiance to the king. He's the most stabilizing force in the country, but the flip side is that he remains revered in part because he only rarely gets involved in politics. I don't see any way he'd choose a side, but he could try to keep everyone calm (which they appear to be) and call for elections soon.
Red Alert: Thailand - Military Movement in Bangkok
The Thai military moved tanks around government headquarters in Bangkok the evening of Sept. 19 as part of an apparent army coup. Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra is in New York, and he will not be able to return until some sort of compromise has been made. Thaksin tried to make a statement on television regarding a state of emergency, but the programming was interrrupted to show pictures of Thai royalty while songs associated with former military coups played in the background.
The tanks moved in shortly after Thaksin issued a state of emergency and ordered army Commander in Chief Sondhi Boonyaratkalin to report to Deputy Prime Minister Pol. Gen. Chidchai Wannasathit. It is unclear whether this is an attempted coup, preventative military action or a countercoup.
Meanwhile, things are relatively calm in Bankgkok. No soldiers have been patrolling the streets, no curfew has been declared and the airport is open
09/19/06 12:34:17 Subscription Only Stratfor.com
John Karr agrees,
Someone just came into my office and said their son is in Thailand on a movie shoot. She wanted to know what was going on...the production is trying to arrange a jet to fly the crew out.
"Idiots at AP don't know the difference between a tank and an armoured personnel carrier."
The same idiots that think every firearm is an "assault rifle".
I would tell her not to worry too much.
Please know and tell her that this is not Islam related.
Thailand will be fine as will bangkok. her son is safe.
Most likely her son and crew will fly to singapore to "wait things out"
But know this, The Thais revere their King...and the King will never allow bloodshed.
It will not happen.
Most likely this will pass.
Please be not afraid and tell your friend at work, her son is safe.
Furthermore, I was just on the phone (it is quite late here!) with Singapore Airlines...all flights, SQ, Thai, KLM, etc
are running as scheduled.
if your co-worker's son and his crew want to leave they will be able to.
Have you heard this? Is all well????????????
Absurd comment.
The TV has been cut off and normal programing is not being shown.
I have been in contact with a friend there. Our cell phone conversation was cut off. All circuits are busy at this time.
PLEASE!!
I'm on AIM with a friend in BKK. They're getting conflicting and confusing information. The picture we're getting in the US is a little slower and a little clearer.
The TV and radio stations were, even before the coup, largely controlled by the military. But conflicting messages are getting out -- the deputy PM saying the government is still in charge, and the military saying it is in charge -- leading to the reasonable inference that the military is itself divided.
Video from outside the government center showed a calm but nervous crowd milling around, most of them holding up their cell phones to take a picture. So while the media are being constricted, the flow of information is not. Much.
International circuits are probably jammed, because there are relatively few international links out of Thailand. The country didn't buy into trans-Pacific fiber cable projects, so all of its voice and data traffic either goes straight to satellite or by cable to somewhere else in Asia. There are a few choke points in the system.
The AIM messages are a little slow, but they're getting through. Based on that and other traffic on the 'Net, I don't see any evidence of a systematic effort to cut off access.
Most of Thailand's data traffic goes out via satellite, and the current (or former, or recently deposed, or in exile, we don't know yet) is a telecom billionaire. I don't know much detail beyond that, so I'll present those two facts and let the reader draw his own inferences.
Thanks. Helpful. I've given up trying to call there, for now.
If your friend is somewhere with an Internet connection, you might have better luck with Internet messaging SMS messages or e-mail. Those systems are better than voice at handling sketchy or intermittent connections. I had a similar experience reaching folks in NYC during 9/11 and during the 2002 blackout.
Yes, it is, and certainly raised *my* eyebrows, although I was aware that it could happen...
the infowarrior
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