Towards the Destabilization and Breakup of Thailand?
by Tony Cartalucci
Global Research
Jan 25, 2014
The Economist has recently floated a narrative that the current Thai regime could flee to the north and “separate” the region from Thailand. Far from a legitimate government seeking to “preserve democracy,” it a Western-backed proxy regime carrying out the tried by true modern imperial agenda of divide and rule.
First, it should be remembered that the Economist publishes paid-for op-eds. It is not news, it is not analysis, it is simply the message told by the highest bidders – the corporate-financier interests of Wall Street and London. These interests are passed to the Economist via their impressive network of lobbying firms. The Economist itself sits among the corporate membership of large Wall Street-London policy think-tanks like the Chatham House, right along side these lobbying firms.
In their latest article, “Political crisis in Thailand: You go your way, I’ll go mine,” one of these lobbying firms comes to mind – fellow Chatham House corporate member Amsterdam & Partners. Robert Amsterdam is currently representing deposed dictator, accused mass murderer, and convicted criminal Thaksin Shinawatra, as well as his “red shirt” enforcers. It claims:
Indeed, many red shirts say Bangkok is already lost. Mr Suthep has nearly free rein there, closing down most government offices. The police have charged him with insurrection and seizing state property, but no attempt has been made to arrest him. The imposition of a state of emergency for 60 days may not make much difference.
Thus most red shirts in the north and north-east now contemplate—indeed they seem to be preparing for—a political separation from Bangkok and the south. Some can barely wait. In Chiang Mai a former classmate of Mr Thaksin’s says that in the event of a coup “the prime minister can come here and we will look after her. If…we have to fight, we will. We want our separate state and the majority of red shirts would welcome the division.” Be afraid for Thailand as the political system breaks down.
Thaksin Shianwatra is at the very center of Thailand’s current political crisis which includes the ongoing “Occupy Bangkok” campaign that has paralyzed the government for now nearly 2 weeks, and has drawn out the largest street protests in decades. Pro-government rallies have fizzled and many of the regime’s supporters, including rural farmers have in fact joined the opposition after being cheated in a vote-buying rice subsidy scam that has gone bankrupt and left them unpaid now for nearly half a year.
Why Secession is Impossible & Why the Lie is Being Repeated in Economist
It was in 2010 that the Asia Foundation conducted its ”national public perception surveys of the Thai electorate,” (2010′s full .pdf here). In a summary report titled, “Survey Findings Challenge Notion of a Divided Thailand.” It summarized the popular misconception of a “divided” Thailand by stating:
“Since Thailand’s color politics began pitting the People’s Alliance for Democracy’s (PAD) “Yellow-Shirt” movement against the National United Front of Democracy Against Dictatorship’s (UDD) “Red-Shirt” movement, political watchers have insisted that the Thai people are bitterly divided in their loyalties to rival political factions.”
The survey, conducted over the course of late 2010 and involving 1,500 individuals, revealed however, a meager 7% of Thailand’s population identified themselves as being “red” Thaksin supporters, with another 7% identifying themselves only as “leaning toward red.”
Graph: Up from 62% the year before, the public perception of the military as an important independent institution stood at 63%. Even in in the regime’s rural strongholds, support stood at 61%. The only individually polled group that did show majority support for the military, was the regime’s tiny “red” minority, but even among them, 30% still supported the army. .
VIDEO — Who is Behind the Ukrainian Riots? – New World Next Week
New World Next Week
Jan 23, 2014
Welcome to http://NewWorldNextWeek.com — the video series from Corbett Report and Media Monarchy that covers some of the most important developments in open source intelligence news.
This week:
Story #1: Ukraine Opposition Sets 24-hour Deadline As Protests Rage
http://ur1.ca/ghhxb
Putin Scores a New Victory: What Really Happened In Ukraine
http://ur1.ca/ghhxc
Ukraine Texts Citizens: Hey, We See You’re In a Mass Disturbance
http://ur1.ca/ghhxe
Reddit: Ukraine Revolt Livestream
http://ur1.ca/ghhxh
State Of Emergency Begins As Thailand Copes With Protests
http://ur1.ca/ghhxk
Geneva II: Day 1 of Syria Peace Talks Ends on Fragile Ground
http://ur1.ca/ghhxl
Story #2: US Judge Rules IP Address Does Not Prove Online Piracy
http://ur1.ca/ghhxn
NSA Devises Radio Pathway Into Computers
http://ur1.ca/ghhxq
Story #3: Homeland Security Special Agents Hold Up Google Glass Moviegoer
http://ur1.ca/ghhxs
Google Unveils ‘Smart Contact Lens’ to Measure Glucose Levels
http://ur1.ca/ghhxv
Bonus: Interview w/ Cale Sampson on ‘The Big Picture’
http://ur1.ca/ghhxy
Interview w/ Howard Sounes on ’27’
http://ur1.ca/ghhy2
Visit http://NewWorldNextWeek.com to get previous episodes in various formats to download, burn and share. And as always, stay up-to-date by subscribing to the feeds from Corbett Report http://ur1.ca/39obd and Media Monarchy http://ur1.ca/kuec Thank you.
Previous Episode: ICC to Prosecute UK Officials for Iraq War Crimes?
http://www.corbettreport.com/?p=8557
Occupy Bangkok’s quest to de-Thaksinize Thailand
RT
Jan 23, 2014
Eric Draitser is an independent geopolitical analyst based in New York City and the founder of StopImperialism.com.
Anti-government protesters take part in a rally in Bangkok’s financial district January 23, 2014. (Reuters / Nir Elias)
As hundreds of thousands of protesters fill the streets of Bangkok demanding the ouster of the Shinawatra government, the Western media continue their one-sided portrayal of events in Thailand, misrepresenting the protests as anti-democratic.
On January 13, 2014, the largest Thai protests in decades officially came together under the banner ‘Occupy Bangkok’. Demanding an end to the regime of Thaksin and Yingluck Shinawatra, the protesters, who come from all social classes and all walks of life, have essentially brought the Bangkok metropolis to a standstill.
Filling the major boulevards and public spaces, Occupy Bangkok has come to represent more than a mere political uprising, it is a social movement aiming to rid the country of its corrupt leadership and restore some semblance of true democracy to Thailand.
Of course, the Western corporate media puts forward a very different narrative. Rather than a legitimate struggle against the current government, Occupy Bangkok is being framed as an assault on democracy by “royalists” intent upon restoring the traditional elite to power.
The disingenuousness of such an absurd narrative aside, the international media portrayal of events in Thailand is instructive, as it demonstrates unequivocally the way in which finance capital is attempting to use every weapon at its disposal to crush a burgeoning social movement.
Corporate media and the Thaksin mythology
In covering the Occupy Bangkok movement, some of the most prominent media outlets have engaged in a deliberate misinformation campaign designed to portray Thaksin Shinawatra, his sister and proxy Yingluck (the present prime minister), and their supporters as “defenders of democracy.”
In a TIME magazine article from Thursday January 16, 2014 deceptively titled ‘Bangkok Shutdown: Yingluck Supporters Prepare to Fight for Democracy’ the author writes, “Thaksin-backed parties have won the last five elections based upon huge support in Thailand’s rural northeast, where populist policies are credited for bringing millions out of poverty. However, Thaksin remains anathema to royalists and the traditional elite of Bangkok and the southern provinces, who accuse him of flagrant vote-buying…The opposition wants an unelected people’s council to replace the democratically chosen legislature for a period of up to two years, in order to usher through a series of reforms designed to permanently nullify Thaksin’s power.”
The article attempts to demonize the anti-Thaksin opposition by association with ‘royalists’ and ‘traditional elite’ in order to create the illusion that, rather than a genuine social movement, the protests are counter-revolutionary and reactionary in nature. Nothing could be further from the truth.
In reality, the opposition seeks to rid itself and the country of a political machine financed and controlled from abroad. Naturally the opposition, like political opposition in any country, seeks to gain political power. However, this in no way negates the legitimacy of their grievances or of those of the masses on the streets.
One of the principal talking points in the dominant Western media narrative has been that the Thaksin/Yingluck Shinawatra government is pro-democracy because it insists upon elections in the near term as a means of “resolving the crisis.” This is an utterly laughable notion considering that, by the party’s own reckoning, it is merely the proxy of Thaksin, who runs the day-to-day operations from abroad after having fled the country rather than face corruption and abuse of power charges.
Thailand: “Occupy Bangkok” Begins
Hundreds of thousands of protesters, hundreds of vehicles permanently occupy intersections across Bangkok in opposition of Wall Street-backed regime.
January 13, 2014 (ATN) – The fourth, and largest mass mobilization yet by protesters seeking to rid Thailand of unelected dictator Thaksin Shinawatra and his proxy regime, has filled the streets of Bangkok with hundreds of thousands of protesters, turning sections of the city’s roads into walking streets, campsites, stages, and protest areas.
Images: Scenes from just a few of 8 major protest sites where permanent encampments have been made and have drawn hundreds of thousands of protesters the first day. Each encampment is surrounded by hundreds of vehicles, tons of supplies and equipment, for the permanent occupation of Bangkok’s streets until the end of Thaksin Shinawatra’s proxy regime.
Thailand: Regime’s “Men in Black” Strike Again
January 11, 2014 (ATN) – There have been several troubling warnings by the regime and its backers that they plan to deploy covert violence against protesters and their own police in order to disrupt growing dissent against the embattled regime of dictator Thaksin Shinawatra. These warnings are coming ahead of a fourth mass mobilization this Monday, January 13, 2014, and after nearly nightly attacks on protesters by “men in black” gunmen. Previous mobilizations have seen over a million people take to the streets, dwarfing even the biggest pro-regime rallies held years ago at the height of its now dwindling popularity.
The threats by the regime are serious, and several of them have already come to pass during clashes beginning at the end of November.
Thailand: Regime Police Fire Rubber Bullets at Protesters’ Heads
Thailand’s Upcoming Sham “Elections”
Like tyrants throughout history, Thaksin will use “elections” to lend himself legitimacy he otherwise doesn’t have.
December 25, 2013 (Tony Cartalucci) – Elections alone do not make any given regime legitimate. Iraq, under Saddam Hussein, held regular elections – of course, Hussein was the only viable candidate running and easily was returned to power, time and time again (See BBC’s “Saddam ‘wins 100% of vote‘”). He enjoyed immense popularity especially as he stood up against the unwarranted aggression of the United States, however no one would describe his government as particularly “democratic.” Of course, the West had no problems saying so.
A similar tale can be told of North Korea’s elections – with its one-party government enjoying “landslide victories” as reported in the Telegraph’s “Elections declared a success in one party North Korea.” Similarly, the West has no problem making a mockery of the process
Image: In Saudi Arabia, women are not allowed to vote (or even drive for that matter). Despite this gross injustice, the autocratic feudal regime is one of the West’s closest allies and exists in a media black-hole of immunity and self-censorship. This reveals that what is considered “acceptable” and “unacceptable” by international standards is solely based on Western interest – not objective, impartial principles. The West’s backing of upcoming sham “elections” in Thailand, where only one main party is running and the top three candidates are all from the same family (Thaksin Shinawatra, sister Yingluck Shinawatra, and brother-in-law Somchai Wongsawa) is another display of double standards and the convenient circumvention of the rule of law.
PN 