Comments on: Bangkok bombings

By: patiwat

patiwat — Mon, 01 Jan 2007 17:45:39 +0000

How does Surayud know that it wasn't the Southern insurgents? The Thai Prime Minister explains, "I don't think they would come here as they could get lost in Bangkok." See here. That has to be the most absurd statement EVER.

By: polo

polo — Mon, 01 Jan 2007 17:33:21 +0000

I would add that this statement by Surayuth is pretty weak:
“It is unlikely that it was related to the unrest in the south because the militants are not familiar with the area.”
There is a significant and often even hostile Muslim population in Bangkok and they could have planted any of the bombs in those areas. Indeed, many live on Khlong Saen Saep that puts them right close to the Pratunam -Rajprasong area bombings.
This is in no way to say that Thaksinists did not do it. They may have. But the rush to declare one or another, with not very good evidence made public, should make anyone hesitate to accept any comment, at this point even by Surayuth and Gen. Sonthi.

By: polo

polo — Mon, 01 Jan 2007 10:16:34 +0000

I think one has to dismiss most of what the Bangkok media says about attributions, especially in the first 48 hours after any incident. Most of them come from unnamed sources and/or people, high and low level, who often speak off the cuff without thinking or caring what they say and how it is understood. And the journalistic “filter” in Bangkok has become worse/more unreliable than ever in the past 20 years.

For that reason I would ignore all these suggestions that it came from Thaksin-ists until there is clear evidencegiven by top officials publicly.

By: Newley Purnell » Blog Archive » Who’s Responsible for the Bangkok Bombings?

Mon, 01 Jan 2007 09:15:45 +0000

[...] From the New Mandala blog: … I suppose restraint would be too much to expect from the military junta. According to The Nation (thanks Patiwat) members of the Council for National Security are already linking the bombings to Thaksin and using this as a pretext to call for the seizure of his assets: [...]

By: patiwat

patiwat — Mon, 01 Jan 2007 03:46:04 +0000

A meeting between Premier Surayud Chulanont and various security and intelligence agencies on the evening of the 31st failed to identify culprits for the attacks. See here. The junta's men are stating otherwise, and are clamoring to have the CNS (not the government) seize Thaksin's assets. See here.