As "Judgement Day" on former PM Thaksin Shinawatra's Bt76-billion assets-seizure case nears, bomb-related incidents took place in Bangkok over the weekend and people are starting to get jittery. The Nation's Pravit Rojanaphruk asks red-shirt co-leader Weng Tojirakarn what the country should expect. Here are excerpts of the interview:
What should be expected on February 26, the day of the verdict?
I don't think there will be any incidents. In the past, nothing happened on the day that the Thai Rak Thai Party was dissolved. This shows that people have respect for the judicial system. But there will be people who love Thaksin and will rally at the courts [on their own], though I don't think any major incidents will take place.
What if these people end up causing violence? Who would be responsible?People causing the violence will have to be responsible themselves, because the red-shirt movement will not be there [at the Supreme Court on the day of the verdict]. We shall be concentrating on exposing the patronage system [rabob upatham]. For instance, the two cheques that Prem [Tinsulanonda] accepted claiming that they were to be meant as donations to Wat Suan Kaew is dubious, because the cheques had been cashed by a company. If you are the president of the Privy Council and behave this way, you affect the reputation of the institution. We will be heading for Prem's house by next week at the latest. As for Thaksin's verdict, people will have to make the decision themselves.
Are you concerned about clashes during the red-shirt demonstration?
There will be no major rallies on February 26. [Red-shirt co-leader Jatuporn Promphan] received details about a plan to frame red-shirts and make it appear as if they are doing something at Siriraj Hospital [where His Majesty the King is recovering], Government House or outside Prem's residence. We are looking to see how this rumour started, and are studying details of an apparent military plan to sabotage us. It's 37 pages long. The government is trying to set the stage for violence. As for Seh Daeng [Maj-General Khattiya Sawasdipol], if he did something violent he would have to be responsible himself.
How is the red-shirt leadership preparing the crowd for a non-violent struggle?
We may take some measures [to control the crowd], such as what to do if gunshots are heard or how to protect themselves [in case of a tear-gas attack].
Will the fight drag on any further?I don't think so. The government's stability has been shaken and it's now under the control of dictatorial generals. They can't shoot us if we're non-violent. They will likely have to dissolve the House. We respect democracy and want to see the House dissolved and fresh elections held. The issue of [bringing back] the 1997 constitution can be dealt with later.
What are the possibilities of yet another military coup?
There is still a possibility. General Prayuth Chan-ocha is still thirsty for the post of Army chief. Everyone says they won't stage a coup, even Field Marshal Sarit [Thanarat] said this before he staged a coup to oust Field Marshal [Plaek] Pibulsongkram [in 1957]. [General] Sonthi [Boonyaratglin] said the same thing [before staging a coup in 2006]. These generals are power thirsty and will do anything to attain power.
What would you like to tell the public who are not red-shirt supporters and are concerned about the situation?
We would like to say that come February 26, the red shirts will respect the [judicial] process even though we believe some parts of the process are dubious.
We also wonder why the drivers of the two cars [involved in the deliberate attempt to hit the PM's motorcade and blamed on the red shirts] haven't been arrested yet. The person who threw faeces [into PM Abhisit Vejjajiva's residence compound] was arrested [and not found to be a red shirt]. A security guard also tried to cut the wrapping of the bomb in front of the Supreme Court and only then did the police arrive … The red shirts are not the ones causing problems.
