Sept 18, 11.30pm: Got back half an hour ago from a round of Royal Plaza and General Prem Tinsulanonda’s residence at Si Sao Thewes. At key intersections around the area there are police/military, dressed in black, were standing discreetly below trees, watching the traffic. At Royal Plaza a couple of companies of police with riot shields were stationed around the square, but with nothing much to do; there weren’t many people around. Many of them were chatting with the odd passer-by.
There were about a dozen or so red shirts, mostly taxi and motorcycle taxi drivers. There was a slight hubbub around a man and when I got closer, I discovered it was Major-General Khattiya Sawasdipol, better known as Seh Daeng, with some smiling but efficient looking men with him dressed in black. He remembered me from last year, and pumped my hand with a grin. 'Long time' he said, and when I asked what he was doing here he just said 'Looking around.'
Major general Khattiya signing autographs.
Major General Khattiya had last year, as the rival People’s Alliance for Democracy remained encamped at Government House in a bid to force the Samak Sundaravej government out, trained young men for security and combat, creating his own ragtag maverick unit. He had threatened the PAD and warned that a military coup would be met with fierce resistance. (See my blog at the time - 'Nobody messes with Seh Daeng' )
There was little other security in sight. The road to Ban Si Sao Thewes was free of roadblocks. At the house itself concrete blocks lined the frontage, manned by up to 100 riot police, sparsely spaced. There was a roll of concertina wire at the base of the wall of the house.
Police deployed at Ban Si Sao Thewes on Friday night: in readiness.
I got a call from Nick Nostitz over in Korat, who was covering the red shirt demonstration there. The red shirts were getting ready to march to general Prem’s house in Korat, he said. There were perhaps a few hundred at around 10pm but the numbers were swelling. Nothing untoward was happening there.
Sept 19, 9.30am: Today's Bangkok Post reports Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban saying as acting premier in the absence of PM Abhisit Vejjajiva who is departing for the US on Sunday, he has full authority to declare a state of emergency if the situation demands it.
But other reports quote sources downplaying the prospect of violence, and army chief General Anupong Paochinda has pledged that the military will not intervene in a coup d’etat.
In fact fears of a coup appear to be driven more by general jitters and the ever-present shadow of the army as a force in Thailand, than by facts on the ground. There is little reason as of now, for the army to intervene to topple a government it had encouraged to take power in the first place.
Will be going to the rally in a few hours.