New Mandala

The relative peace of 24 November seemed too good to be true. The PAD have now reverted to their regular strategy of extreme provocation. This clip from TPBS is well worth a look. Apparently the PAD has already denied that they are responsible. It’s a “third hand” of course!
And here is an extract from a statement from Giles [...]

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The day of the last battle went without any casualties, thanks to the enormous restraint by all parties – the police, the pro-government United Front for Democracy Against Dictatorship (UDD) and the anti-government People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD). Several explosions were heard in the morning hours of 24 November, raising fears of another day of escalating [...]

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Several vehicles of the People’s Alliance for Democracy caused traffic snarls in front of the Yommaraj gate of the expressway after the protesters refused to pay toll for using the expressway. By 5 am, the protesters failed to negotiate the expressway officials to allow them to pass the tollgate without paying.
- “PAD vehicles not allowed to [...]

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The word is ‘kilt’. The metaphor might be a stretch, but in the spirit of the four-letter word series, the word ‘kilt’ reminds us of why there’s more to some policies than meets the eye.
As Thailand careens eagerly toward aims of achieving Gross National Happiness by bringing itself in line with Bhutan on some aspects [...]

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It’s only 6 PM in Thailand and there is still time for further developments. But it’s getting late here in Australia so here is my brief reflection on the day’s events.
After today’s “final showdown” things are as unresolved as ever in Thai politics. Both sides can claim victory. The PAD succeeded in delaying the joint meeting [...]

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Ed Cropley from Reuters has put together a useful set of scenarios for Thai politics in the coming days, weeks and months.  These range from “Messy Sunday” to “PAD campaign fizzles out” to “King intervenes”.  His analysis is well worth a look.

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I have received this update on Harry Nicolaides:
Harry’s 84 day remand period expired yesterday but unfortunately he was taken to the Bangkok Criminal Court yesterday morning and the prosecutor served its criminal complaint against him for the charge of Lese Majeste. He will now remain detained in prison until a trial, the date of which [...]

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The final scene, as overseen by the big shots of the People Power Party, will produce one of two outcomes. First, there will be bloodshed, which will lead to a political compromise (Thaksin gets part of his money back; he has a room to move on Thai soil). Second, there will be bloodshed, which leads [...]

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I’ve just finished reading Paul Ginsborg’s Democracy: Crisis and Renewal. It’s a short book (just 124 pages) but there is a lot in it that could contribute to ongoing debates about the future of democracy in Thailand. It’s relevance to Thailand should come as no surprise given that Ginsborg is also the author of a study [...]

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The Cambodian Blogger (or Clogger) summit, which began earnestly in 2007 brought together a nascent group of Cambodian and foreign bloggers to explore the possibilities, technologies and contentions of blogging in Cambodia. Unfortunately I was unable to attend, but more details can be found here.
Despite the alleged murder of particularly outspoken journalists, and Cambodia’s continued [...]

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