Army commander Prayuth Chan-ocha's tougher stance towards the political stalemate resulted from the so-called "Lanna separatism" issue and now the political mercury is soaring.
A banner reading, ‘Chiang Mai residents will not let anyone split the Kingdom of Thailand’ is hung on a pedestrian bridge in Chiang Mai province. Cheewin Sattha
His mention of a "special method" to resolve the political chaos is noteworthy. The army chief is now saying that soldiers who are on guard at rally sites can carry weapons, instead of using only batons and bullet-proof vests. This is because there is a chance of escalating violence between the two political enemies.
Gen Prayuth insisted his subordinates will use weapons against armed elements and it is only to protect themselves and to maintain peace and order.
Yet, most people know that those "armed elements" are anyone but the so-called "popcorn warriors" who played a role in helping PDRC protesters during a clash in the Laksi area a day prior to the Feb 2 elections.
Instead, it is believed the soldiers targeted "men in black" who intimidated and harmed the PDRC protesters. According to army intelligence, the MIB are the same armed factions — believed to include red shirts — that fought anti-riot soldiers during the 2010 operation. Some are known as "tomato police" — a term for red-leaning officers.
Gen Prayuth’s stance seems to reinforce the red shirts' belief that he maintains close ties with PDRC leader Suthep Thaugsuban. The two men worked side by side in the 2010 crackdown on red-shirt demonstrators during the siege of Bangkok that resulted in 98 deaths.
The soldiers' "neutrality", as claimed by Gen Prayuth, more or less creates the impression that soldiers are de facto "uniformed guards" for anti-government protesters. A huge number of soldiers from 56 companies have been deployed at 157 checkpoints.
While Gen Prayuth encouraged caretaker Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and Mr Suthep to sit down at the negotiating table to find a solution, both have imposed high demands on the other that render the talks impossible. The general’s warning of a ''special method'' is therefore interpreted as a possible coup. "In the past, those staging a coup all had reasons to do so. It may not be lawful, but it could solve problems," he said.
An important development is the move of 3rd Army Commander Lt Gen Preecha Chan-ocha to file complaints against the Chiang Mai red shirts for their alleged "Sor Por Por Lanna" separatist bid even though some explained the acronym stands for Samatcha Pokpong Prachatippatai Lanna, set up by the Nitirat group that expanded to the provinces, not Satharanarat Prachatippatai Lanna or the People’s Democratic Republic of Lanna as some believe.
But the army takes the issue seriously. Lt Gen Preecha, younger brother of the army chief, denounced the acronym, saying its meaning is closer to "liberated state".
In addition, the army alleged the group has mobilised an army in the ''Sor Por Por Lanna'' areas.
"This is against the law. Separatism is a severe offence," deputy army spokesman Col Winthai Suwaree said.
The army refused to accept the clarification of the dubious acronym, saying it’s merely a feeble excuse by the red shirts.
For the government, the army’s stance on separatism makes it clear it sides with the PDRC which now faces charges of treason. It also marks the use of a double standard towards the red shirts.
But the army denied that. "It’s the duty of police and the CMPO to deal with the PDRC, not the army," said Col Winthai.
When Ms Yingluck met Gen Prayuth together with top brass on Tuesday, she jokingly mentioned the army seemed to take "hasty action on the Sor Por Por Lanna issue".
Yet the caretaker prime minister did not condemn any officers. She simply asked them to treat every faction that violates the law with fairness and added there is no double standard or discrimination at play.
At the same time, Ms Yingluck insisted she did not support separatism.
Instead, she said, the issue should rest with the army and the Internal Security Operation Command.
It’s undeniable that since Gen Prayuth gave his warning, all eyes are now trained on him.
But most veteran army officers believe Gen Prayuth’s tough warning is aimed at forcing the two enemies to the negotiating table and that a coup is no longer possible.
But no one dares guarantee there will be no coup in this country.
Wassana Nanuam is a senior news reporter covering military affairs for the Bangkok Post.