Abhisit toughened after two close shaves

The PM's security detail was inadequate in providing protection. The ugly scenes in Pattaya and at the Interior Ministry raised doubts as to whether Abhisit had been driven into a "killing zone" by elements that regard him as a potential threat to their desire for power.

He was visibly shaken. Surely, anybody who is put in harm's way like this has every reason to get scared. But the choice is either to put up a fight or chicken out. Abhisit picked the first option and survived after a quite sterling performance, following days of tension and even the risk of a civil war. It was another episode of violence and street clashes between soldiers and half-crazed political goons hired by politicians bent on the desire to oust Abhisit by whatever means, as vividly shown on the TV news.

Through sheer luck or true grit, Abhisit's sense of being abandoned by those whom he had expected to protect the country and prevent chaos, led him to take the bull by the horns. With an emergency decree, empowering him to dismiss any officer in the land, he managed to overcome what appeared to be the blatant insubordination of generals and their neglect of duty.

He passed the tests of raw nerve and guts. The generals, who styled themselves as ferocious lions eyeing the lamb, eventually yielded to the emergency power. Attempting a coup to topple Abhisit would surely have led the country into an unfathomable political abyss and, eventually, their own misfortune. A nationwide uprising by people wearing shirts of all colours would have been a certainty.

Through his recharged leadership, Abhisit managed to cajole the generals into action to suppress the riotous goons on the streets. This came after days of hardship felt by city people due to the street blockades by taxi drivers and red-shirted protesters.

The decision to put his foot down and resist bullying has gained Abhisit a higher stature and respect among those who had looked down upon him. The lamb suddenly showed his true nature as a politician who can turn a crisis into an unexpected opportunity. He has won the battle, with all odds against him, at least for the time being. However, the political war - and our national strife - is not yet over.

This time around, the international media gave Abhisit genuine respect, changing their views and opinions towards him. The outward façade of politeness and civility hides the steel inside him. Power should not be atrophied through disuse, and Abhisit can now aspire to a lot of things including the restructuring of the law enforcement agencies.

Now that he has regained a relatively solid footing, it is too early for Abhisit to be kind to those bloodthirsty thugs who come up with new demands for constitutional amendments and an amnesty for politicians disgraced by their active support for elements dangerous to the democratic form of government. His eagerness to strike compromise or reconciliation should not be interpreted as weakness. The desire to make peace with political adversaries does not mean that he should offer a handshake while his opponents do not show what they are holding in the hands behind their backs.

What's more, he should not forget that his adversaries and their mobs had marked him for death.

Maintaining a tough stand does not ruin his opportunity to attain statesmanship. If he wants to become a national leader acceptable to all people, Abhisit can negotiate with his adversaries from a position of strength, not weakness as perceived by friends and foes alike.

He can wait. Time is still on his side. It will not take long for those who demand changes to show their true nature again. It will be the same greed and self-serving interest so inherent in our gutter politics. Abhisit should know it better by now.

This is just the beginning of another political chapter in which we can expect more violence instigated by red-shirted ringleaders who have escaped arrest and gone underground, probably to plan urban terrorism or guerrilla warfare. If he succumbs to pressure and blackmail by House hecklers representing fugitive Thaksin Shinawatra, the nation stands to lose more.

Thaksin still has sinister plans up his sleeve for his strategists and combatants in the continued bid to oust Abhisit. The failure of the big red rally does not mean the total defeat of Thaksin, who will struggle further to fulfil his political vendetta. His grudge has become more vicious and deadly. Sabotage and assassinations could yet become the norm in this political game.