16/04/2009 / THAILAND
It's not particularly surprising to me that Thaskin has probably helped to fund the anti-government demonstrators. The yellow shirt protesters [the anti-Thaksin group which ousted the president] who caused mayhem when they took over Bangkok's airports in November were obviously getting paid, too. The source of the funding for those protests is still a matter of great interest.
No one has argued that it is fake. People will interpret
the statement differently, but to [me] he was referring to the government
assistance programs, particularly in light of the very long queues for the 2,000
baht [€40] handout. There is a separate 500 baht [€10] assistance plan for the elderly, too.
Of course it doesn't mean that Thaksin helps to fund the protests."
Thaksin unintentionally suggests red shirts are paid to cause havoc
This video is supposed proof that the "red shirts" rioting in support for exiled former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra are being paid to cause havoc. Is it a misunderstanding, a fake, or a major boo boo on the part of the opposition leader?
The clip has received almost half a million hits in just three days, and is hotly debated by Thai Web users. It's part of a video address from Shinawatra, who has pledged to his supporters in the country that he will return and govern "if the country and the people really need me". The said "red shirts" have caused chaos in the past week, resulting in two dead and 13 under warrant for arrest (including Shinawatra). But while support for the former PM is undoubted, critics say that rioters are being paid for their efforts. The clip, which emerged Tuesday, is presented as proof of that allegation.
If you have any info on the video, leave a comment. We'll update the post tomorrow.
Translated by Jotman and subtitled by France 24. 500 Baht is €10. The original video was posted 13 April by "hatethaksin". It was broadcast online by "DStation", which transmits the video addresses from Shinawatra, who is currently based in Dubai. On Wednesday DStation was disconnected down by the Thai authorities.
"Tantamount to an admission of guilt"
Jotman blogs on Southeast Asia. He subtitled the video.
It's not particularly surprising to me that Thaskin has probably helped to fund the anti-government demonstrators. The yellow shirt protesters [the anti-Thaksin group which ousted the president] who caused mayhem when they took over Bangkok's airports in November were obviously getting paid, too. The source of the funding for those protests is still a matter of great interest.
The real story here is the degree to which this video has caught fire on the internet. (...) Hearing Thaksin talk about paying supporters obviously hit a nerve with people. Why?
It ought to be noted that conventional wisdom among Thaksin opponents holds that the former prime minister was guilty of ‘vote-buying.' To many Thai ears, hearing Thaksin confess to ‘funding protesters' must sound tantamount to an admission of guilt concerning the most popular line of attack typically made against the Thai leader: namely, the charge that Thaksin buys his supporters."
"Of course it doesn't mean that Thaksin helps to fund the protests"
Bangkok Pundit is a blogger from Bangkok. He wishes to remain anonymous.
No one has argued that it is fake. People will interpret
the statement differently, but to [me] he was referring to the government
assistance programs, particularly in light of the very long queues for the 2,000
baht [€40] handout. There is a separate 500 baht [€10] assistance plan for the elderly, too.
Of course it doesn't mean that Thaksin helps to fund the protests."
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Democracy 2.0
Submitted by Another Self-Adoring Pundit (not verified) on Thu, 16/04/2009 - 21:10.People who claim that Thaksin buys his support through 500 baht handouts are stuck in the old world, when politicians used their own money to buy support. Although there certainly had to be substantial Thaksin funding of his "revolution", probably mostly operational and logistical, he did not need to pay his followers 500 baht per red shirt. They are the faithful who love him, as he frequently reminds us. His reference was a bungled dig at his policy imitators.
Despite his first slogan of "New thinking, new actions", Thaksin is not innovative. Thaksin simply upgraded the corruption version to a modern democratic release, whereby public tax money buys votes through corrosive populist policies, which ultimately feed his connected business interests. He himself is an upgraded Juan Peron of Thailand, sowing degeneration for many years to come.
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"People who claim that
Submitted by Unregistered user (not verified) on Fri, 17/04/2009 - 07:33."People who claim that Thaksin buys his support through 500 baht handouts are stuck in the old world, when politicians used their own money to buy support." Oh, yeah. Thailand is after all the old world. I know for sure that lots of politicians use their own money to buy support. I believe that if you are Thai or know a little about Thailand, you would not say such thing. I know it is embarrassing for me to say that but it is true. You can see his reaction in the clip after he mentioned the word 500 B. And you know 500 B is very small amount for many of you but it a lot for many Thai people. We pay 30 B for a meal. That would give us at least 16 meals! If I come to protest for 3 days, that (500B x 3days) is something!!!
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Thaksin
Submitted by Unregistered user (not verified) on Sun, 19/04/2009 - 08:51.I think he was trying to say that the opposition paid Bht. 500 to incite the red shirts to riot. He said it so diplomatically that he realized that his statement could be interpreted both ways, hence his reaction
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