Prime ministers, murderers and Judy Garland

Published: 13 Dec 2012 at 09.21
Online news: Opinion

During the London G-20 summit protests in 2009, Ian Tomlinson, an English newspaper vendor, an innocent bystander, was caught up in a melee and later died from internal injuries. Constable Simon Harwood was charged with manslaughter, but found not guilty.

I am certain that Tarit Pengdit, chief of the Department of Special Investigation (DSI), would agree with me that the person who should have been charged instead of, or as well as, the police constable was former UK prime minister Gordon Brown. After all, the DSI chief found it fit to charge former prime minister Abhisit Vejjajiva with the death of an innocent bystander, not a protester, during the political violence in April and May 2010.

Of course, I realise that if you are a Thaksinista, then Thaksin Shinawatra, the Pheu Thai Party and the red-shirt UDD is the holy trinity - the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost - while the opposition is Satan incarnate. But let's try to view the issue objectively, even if it's difficult or downright impossible.

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oldairman
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Discussion 40 : 14 Dec 2012 at 07.2140
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Another excellent article by K Voranai with the usual predictable responses from both sides and some very interesting comments by other posters too.
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whatajoke
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Discussion 39 : 14 Dec 2012 at 06.3939
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The author points out the absurdity of the charges, let's look at it from a different angle; your police utterly fail you because they are sympathetic to the protestors and generally suspected of being allied to Thaksin, so the protest becomes protracted and disruptive, you negotiate for weeks & meet them halfway but they then spurn you at the 11th hour, your last resort is to send in the army, they are not trained in riot control, they are taking live fire, they are gun-ho, some collateral damage is likely to occur, but all other options had been exhausted. Blame it on the police? Resign instead? Let them keep protesting? Go in with batons?
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davidh
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Discussion 38 : 13 Dec 2012 at 21.5638
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At times like these it's entirely understandable that there are those who believe Thailand should have major cases tried by the International Criminal Court (ICC).

The legal System in Thailand is largely dysfunctional, corrupt and emotional; due to Nationalist tendencies there is little hope of this changing in the foreseeable future.
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howell
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Discussion 37 : 13 Dec 2012 at 21.1937
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@katsumoto. Typical warped red thinking, '..he was able to command and manage the red shirt defensive, yes defensive, actions'.

It was an illegal occupation of a city centre that included heavily armed men firing RPG's at will.

Of course the army would take him out; he was not exactly a regular officer but a renegade.
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facts_only
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Discussion 36 : 13 Dec 2012 at 21.1836
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"I will accept whatever the verdict is, even if it's a death penalty.'' AV, Dec 11, 2012
"The Democrat Party leader said ... that he and Mr Suthep also refused to sign to acknowledge conditions set for their release on bail...The condititons would prohibit them from travelling out of the country without approval from investigators, from meddling with evidence, obstructing the investigation into the case, or doing anything which could cause serious damage." - BangkokPost, Dec 13, 2012

"... let's see some consistency here as well." - above article
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jah
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Discussion 35 : 13 Dec 2012 at 21.1035
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I'm confused.

If the commander in chief of a nation instructs the military to move in to control any violence of some sort, then it would appear to me that they would be locked and loaded and ready to fire until fired upon.
Once a warning has been given, anything could happen if anyone is in the line of fire whether with pellets, debris, or actual bullets because it would be a live fire zone.

I'm not taking sides, but it looks to me that it would be difficult to convict the CIC of that time when warnings were given.

Who would be responsible for the ongoing killings in the South of Thailand because innocent people are being killed
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democrazy
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Discussion 34 : 13 Dec 2012 at 21.1034
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This is a first taste how the justice system will work when the man far away and his red-shirts have their new constitution in place.
Just yesterday Thaksin said: ".. the law is enforced in a fair and equal manner."
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bangmodken
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Discussion 33 : 13 Dec 2012 at 21.0533
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D19,Abbub : Are you suggesting that the authorities should not act when their check-points are attacked and the officers at these check-points are injured and killed by your heavily armed red friends in april-may 2010?
Since you were not in Bangkok at the time,allow me to tell you that the dispersing of red shirts came much later.
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jacksprat
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Discussion 32 : 13 Dec 2012 at 20.4332
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Seh Daeng deserves no sympathy. He was a man of violence who was engaged in violence. There were many innocent victims two years ago, but he was not one of them. He trained and led the men who fired on civilians at the Sala Daeng BTS station. Some defence.
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DONHUAN
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Discussion 31 : 13 Dec 2012 at 20.2931
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Sad to say, there is actually consistency in this drama here; the governing Authority gets to sue, at will, all their opponents who refuses to bend to their wills. The real purpose is to engage them with as many legal battles as possible that they cannot perform their tasks as an effective opposition. It also serves as an effective distraction/diversion tactics for the ruling party. In some countries where the Police / Judicial are under the government’s “control”, the opposition leaders are guaranteed to spend some time behind bars. “Strength does not come from physical capacity; it comes from an indomitable will.” – Mahatma Gand
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Prime ministers, murderers and Judy Garland | Bangkok Post: opinion