The Bangkok curfew has now been lifted!

Thank goodness for that, maybe we can get back to normal living again now!

This means that the long-running political protests and violent military crackdowns of this year are all now officially over, and therefore Thailand has returned to its peaceful normal self.

So, it is now officially safe for tourists to return here. Please come back and enjoy the real Thailand once again!!

Thailand political unrest, May 2010 - update #5

Last night the Thai army stormed the Red Shirt Protestors camp in central Bangkok to finally bring an end to the political protests. It was an extremely violent end though, with a further 5 people killed including an Italian journalist, plus dozens of people seriously injured.

Red Shirts fleeing the army onslaught set fire to many buildings in the capital throughout the night, as a final shocking statement of protest against the current government. The Thai Stock Exchange, the headquarters of Thai TV Channel 3 (which is currently off air), two shopping centers including the massive Central World center, two banks and many other buildings have all been burned, with Central World now being reported as having been completely destroyed.

Many of the Red Shirt leaders have been caught and arrested, and the protests are now finally over.

Bangkok is now under a night-time curfew every day until further notice.

What an awful, awful series of events.

Update on May 22, 2010 at 12.30 PM: The official total number of casualties from the political protests and military crackdowns has now been given as 85 people killed and 1,378 injured. Absolutely disgraceful! Many of the victims were innocent bystanders! Of course, there'll now be an official inquiry into what happened, but that will really just be a government "whitewash" of the whole affair - no-one in power will get any blame or be punished, only the Red Shirts. The rich and powerful always win here!

Thailand political unrest, May 2010 - update #4

Fighting between civilian protestors and the armed forces continued in Bangkok last night and on into today, and official reports say that the death toll has now risen to 30, with an additional 232 injured.

After reading international reports from respected sources such as Reuters, the BBC and the ABC (because most news sources here are biased in favour of the authorities and do not always tell the whole truth) it appears that many of the fatalities were unarmed civilians who were targeted by the army as part of a deliberate "shoot to kill" policy sanctioned by the government (who, not surprisingly, deny it - they say only armed "terrorists" are being targeted, but foreign reports clearly contradict that).

Everyone I know here is in total shock about this. This is not the Thai way of doing things. It is a gross violation of human rights, surely? I hope the United Nations quickly does something to stop this nightmare.

Thailand political unrest, May 2010 - update #3

Very sadly, last night 16 more people died in Bangkok in yet more clashes between the red shirt anti-government protestors and the army. Additionally, more than 140 people were injured, some critically. At least three foreigners were among those injured.

This entire situation is rapidly becoming a national tragedy for my country - the total death toll from the past two months of political protests, which have pitted civilian protestors against police and army forces in increasingly violent street battles in the capital, now apparently stands at 45 (although this is difficult to accurately confirm due to conflicting sets of information from different official sources), plus at least 1,100 injured. These are shocking statistics by any measure.

The protests started out very peacefully in March, but things quickly changed on April 10th when the first fighting between protestors and security forces took place, resulting in 26 deaths. A week ago there was a glimmer of hope that there would be a peaceful end to the trouble, but that does not look likely now or any time soon, not after last night's terrible events.

See this news article from the Wall Street Journal from earlier today for a full report on what happened:

Protesters battle Thai security forces

(If you wish, you can read all my posts about the recent troubles in Thailand by clicking on the Thai Political Trouble 2010 label below this post - reading from my first post through to this one you will clearly see how things have changed from safe, peaceful protests at the start to the totally different and deadly situation now.)

Thailand political unrest, May 2010 - a further update

Unfortunately the situation in Bangkok seems to be escalating towards further very serious violence after a number of shootings and clashes between protestors and security forces during the past 24 hours.

Foreigners have been warned to stay away from all the central areas of Bangkok for their own safety.

See this news article from the BBC earlier today for more information about what is happening:

Deadly clashes erupt in Bangkok

Thailand political unrest, May 2010 - an update

Oh dear, yesterday I was saying that there looked to be a possible peaceful solution to the political troubles here in Thailand, and then last night there was serious violence in Bangkok once again, with 2 people killed and many more injured.

Sadly this brings the casualty totals to 29 dead and almost 1000 injured since the recent political protests started in Bangkok almost 2 months ago.

I hope things do end peacefully very soon, it is all having a terrible effect on the whole of Thailand.

See this news article from earlier today for more details on what happened last night:

New Thai violence kills 2, mars compromise moves (The Associated Press)

Thailand political unrest, May 2010

There has been a little bit of progress over the past few days towards reaching a peaceful solution to all the political troubles here in Thailand, but there still remains much to be done.

See these recent news articles for more details:

Peace plan stalls in Thailand (ITN)

Wrangling as Thai protesters refuse to quit (Reuters)

Thailand political unrest, April 2010 - another update

(This follows on from my recent posts on this subject which you can read here and here.)

I am very sad to have to report that last night there was some extremely serious trouble in Bangkok. Unfortunately 19 people died and over 800 were injured when fighting broke out between the "Red Shirt" anti-government protestors and the Thai military who were trying to disperse them from one of the areas of central Bangkok where they had gathered in great numbers.

There still seems to be no end in sight to this increasingly violent political unrest as neither side appears to be willing to back down. The "Red Shirts" are demanding that the current government (which they believe is an undemocratic and corrupt military-backed puppet of the Thai rich elite) be disolved and that new fair democratic elections be held immediately.

But there is no sign of that happening - the current Prime Minister, Abhisit Vejjajiva, is refusing to give in to their demands. So, despite the tragic events of last night, there are still many thousands of protestors on the streets of Bangkok, which of course means there could be more serious fighting again at any time.

It is a very sad time now for my country, and clearly despite what all of us thought before, it is no longer safe for any foreign tourists to be in Bangkok. However, the rest of Thailand is still very safe, although I don't suppose many tourists will be coming here now. Oh dear me.

If you are a foreigner currently staying in Thailand, I recommend that you check the internet for the latest news before you decide what to do and where to go next. That way you can be sure you have the most up-to-date information. There are internet cafes in almost every town and city in Thailand, and if you have a Thai SIM card for your mobile phone, you should be able to use the GPRS/EDGE or WAP mobile phone internet easily enough, normally for around 1 Baht per minute. (And if you don't have a Thai SIM, again almost every town and city has mobile phone shops that sell them quite cheaply.)

Update on April 14, 2010 at 1:50 PM: Sadly, the official death toll from Saturday night's violence has now risen to 23, because 4 people seriously injured in the clashes have since died in hospital.

Thailand political unrest, April 2010 - an update

Further to my post a few days ago about the ongoing political protests here in thailand, specifically in Bangkok, here is a very interesting and well-written news article regarding the situation from yesterday's New York Times:

QUOTE--->
Thai Protesters Refuse to Leave Central Bangkok District

By THOMAS FULLER
Published: April 5, 2010

BANGKOK — Convoys of anti-government protesters coursed through Bangkok on Tuesday afternoon while thousands more demonstrators remained in the commercial heart of the city, where they continued to defy government orders to disperse.

Crowds of protesters steadily pushed back lines of unarmed soldiers in an attempt to make their way into the important commercial and tourist district of Sukhumvit in central Bangkok. It was nearly a festive atmosphere, with the protesters, known as red shirts, hugging and shaking hands with smiling soldiers.

“There’s no need to be afraid,” an army officer told the crowds through a bullhorn.

He then handed the bullhorn to a protest leader who shouted to the soldiers, “Join us!”

It was a scene of some camaraderie, and in recent days there has been talk in the capital of “watermelon soldiers” — green on the outside, red on the inside.

But there have been political and economic consequences to the ongoing protests as well. Many shopping malls were closed for a third day, and 43 bank branches in Thailand’s capital were shut as the economic toll of the protests rose.

On the outskirts of Bangkok, protesters broke into the Election Commission building, demanding the acceleration of an investigation into charges that a large Thai company made a multimillion-dollar payment to the governing Democrat Party. The group left after securing an agreement that results would be released on April 20, more than a week earlier than scheduled.

Protest leaders have kept the city on edge for the past three weeks with unpredictable processions of motorcycles and pickup trucks. They say they want to highlight double standards that benefit the elite at the expense of the poor.

Business groups said the protests had caused tens of millions of dollars in lost business over the past two days, not counting damage to the tourism industry and the country’s image.

So far, the government has not used force against the protesters. On Monday, it sought a court order to make protesters leave the commercial area and prevent them from entering other busy neighborhoods in Bangkok. The court turned down the order, however, saying the government already had such power under the Internal Security Act, which the government has invoked.

The protests stem from a 2006 military coup that removed Thaksin Shinawatra, a tycoon turned prime minister, after which the political party he led and a successor party were dissolved by the courts. Mr. Thaksin, who is overseas and has been sentenced in absentia on corruption charges, is still very popular in rural areas.

In theory, the Democrat Party of Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva could itself face dissolution if it is found guilty of accepting the illegal donation. Protesters describe it as a test case for the fairness of the system.

Publicly, the protest leaders, who claim to represent the prai, or lower-class Thais, are maintaining a hard line, demanding that Mr. Abhisit dissolve Parliament and call new elections.

“It is necessary for us to stage a fight this way,” Nattawut Saikua, a protest leader, was quoted as saying in the Thai news media. “The current situation is too severe to be treated with painkillers. It has reached a state where surgery is required.”

But with the Thai New Year, a major holiday, next week, the endgame for the protesters is unclear. The cheering bystanders who greeted the protesters when they first began their protests appear to have thinned, though they have not disappeared.

Suthichai Yoon, a well-known Thai columnist, wrote Monday that the red shirts were alienating Bangkok residents by paralyzing the shopping district.

“If the reason for the blockade is to invite people in Bangkok to join their cause of demanding that the prime minister dissolve Parliament, then there isn’t any need to do something this extreme as to cause the pulse of the city’s business center to come to a halt,” Mr. Suthichai said.
<---END QUOTE

For myself, I wish to apologise to anyone and everyone who is adversely affected by these protests. But please try to understand that there is so much corruption here in the Thai governmental system that in fact it is much more newsworthy when someone is found NOT TO BE CORRUPT than when someone is found to be corrupt! Really!! So these protests are a good thing, at least in so far as they are highlighting to all Thai people, and all the watching world, just how bad this corruption problem is.

Thailand political unrest, April 2010

If you are coming to Thailand any time soon you should check with your travel agent/tour arranger, and/or search Google for the latest news updates, before coming to Bangkok, because there are now some much more serious problems concerning the ongoing political protests.

The protestors known as the "Red Shirts" (who represent the majority of Thai people, specifically the rural poor) are planning to expand their protests out into the popular business and tourist areas of Bangkok soon, in order to further press their demands for immediate and fair democratic elections.

While this increased action will probably be applauded by a great many Thai people, it will of course have unfortunate consequences for foreigners wishing to enjoy famous places in Bangkok such as Silom/Patpong, the Siam shopping areas, the Pratunam/Chit Lom shopping areas and Sukhumvit/Nana.

Thailand political unrest, March 2010

The situation regarding the polictical unrest here in Thailand is changing all the time and no-one is quite sure what will happen next. So if you want to find out what is currently happening, click on this link to get completely up-to-date news via Google 24 hours a day:

Thailand Political Unrest - Google News

It's getting more "interesting" here in Thailand

I am sad to have to say that political tensions between the "red shirt" supporters of Thaksin Shinawatra (the former Prime Minister ousted in a 2006 military coup) and the "yellow shirt" supporters of the current government are growing more tense each day.

Security in Bangkok has been increased after two separate politically motivated attacks in the capital last weekend, one at a university near Government House and one at the Supreme Court. Security agencies are worried that more violent attacks will occur ahead of the Supreme Court's verdict on Thaksin's 76 billion baht (2.29 billion U.S. dollars) asset seizure case on February 26.

In response to all this, the Canadian and Australian governments have advised their citizens to consider safety matters very carefully when travelling to Thailand, according to the Tourism Council of Thailand.

There seems to be no end in sight to this political unrest, which is very unfortunate. It probably does give the impression that my country is unstable and perhaps even unsafe. It is all very sad.

But let me reassure you that Thai people are always very kind and friendly to foreign visitors, and I am certain that there is no way anyone from either side of the political divide would cause harm to any foreigners.

Certainly it is advisable to keep away from the parts of Bangkok where national government buildings are located, but everywhere else - the most famous tourist areas such as the central Siam shopping complexes, Sukhumvit Road (including Nana Plaza and Soi Cowboy), Phloen Chit and Chit Lom, Silom (including Patpong), Khaosan Road, and the famous temples and palaces along the Chao Phraya river - are all very safe for foreigners.

My husband is from England, and he says the same as me: Thailand is safer, nicer, friendlier, more kind and caring than most countries in the world, despite recent reports to the contrary.