A small group of red-shirts gathered at a restaurant in Chiang Mai on Monday forcing the cancellation of a performance by a pro-People's Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC) singer.
Singer and actor Pongsak “Aof” Rattanaphong was scheduled to perform at the Som Tam Pak Pong restaurant near the Hang Dong branch of Big C in Muang district on Monday night.
But 12 people led by red-shirt and popular local radio host Kanyapak Maneechak, also known as DJ Oam, went to voice their opposition to the singer at the venue before the show.
Aof appears at a PDRC march in central Bangkok.
Mrs Kanyapak asked the restaurant owner to cancel Aof’s performance, arguing that the singer supports the PDRC and is not welcome in Chiang Mai.
The restaurant owner agreed to the request to avoid any trouble and later put up a banner in front of the restaurant announcing the cancellation of the concert and apologising to customers.
Before leaving, the red-shirt group ordered food and lingered on at the restaurant to make sure that Aof would not show up.
The singer is said to have participated in PDRC protests, but has never appeared on the rally stage. He became known among the red-shirts as a PDRC supporter after a photo showing him taking part in a PDRC street march to collect money for rice farmers was publicised in the media and on social networks.
Mrs Kanyapak, who is a co-leader of the hardline red-shirt Rak Chiang Mai 51 group, said no singer, actor or actress that had appeared on the PDRC protest stage would be welcome in Chiang Mai, since the province was the hometown of caretaker Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and her brother Thaksin.