I got to the Pan Fah bridge just before 9am, approaching by boat, to find thousands of red shirts in their vehicles already lined up. The mood was festive and jubilant. It seems clear from watching the red shirts went they are on the move around the city, that they are reveling in being able to show their colours so to speak, in Bangkok.
Message to the city : join the cause -- PHOTO: NIRMAL GHOSH
They procession is following a 46 kilometre route. The convoy itself is possibly around 4 kilometres long. It is being joined at different points by random small bands of red shirts in their vehicles or on motorbikes. The vanguard of the main procession consists of well over 1,000 motorbikes.
I met prof Jaran Ditta-apichai backstage before the procession got rolling. He is among the 30-odd who sit on the leadership committee of the red shirted United Front for Democracy against Dicatorship (UDD). He said over 50 bus loads of red shirts had joined the crowd from the provinces of Udon Thani, Khon Kaen, Si Saket, Ubon Ratchathani and Nakorn si Thammarat.
The route is 46 km long and the convoy itself, possibly around 4km long. -- PHOTO: NIRMAL GHOSH
‘’Our message today is to invite Bangkokians who have shown their support for us, to the rally tonight or tomorrow’’ he said. The show of strength would add to the pressure on the government to call an early election, he said.
‘’If tomorrow many Bangkokians come, this will have been a success’’ he said.
Asked how long they intended to sustain the rally he said ‘’At least another week.’’
There was no tension at all as the reds surged through the city. -- PHOTO: NIRMAL GHOSH
The UDD would make way for the annual Red Cross fair which is held on Rajadamnoen, he said. But meanwhile, the UDD has invited all small entrepreneurs from the One Tambon One Product (OTOP) scheme to set up a market in tandem with the rally.
Tambon is a small administrative unit. The OTOP scheme was started by former premier Thaksin Shinawatra – loathed by the elite establishment but a hero to most of the red shirts. The scheme brought small entrepreneurs – essentially working on handicrafts – in contact with buyers abroad.
Prof Jaran is a former national human rights commissioner. I asked him what the status of mediation efforts by the current National Human Rights Commission was. He said the UDD’s leadership had yet to meet collectively and discuss the issues.
I walked up to the head of the procession, which started rolling around 10am. It was a long walk. I saw quite a few locals happily cheering the red shirts. One, a 60 year old street food vendor, who gave his name as Sommai – and who was not wearing any red clothes, told me ‘’70 per cent of the people in this country are poor. The Prime Minister (Abhisit Vejjajiva) can hardly go outside Bangkok. He only has the support of the army.’’
There was an incredible din as I made my way through the procession. When the convoy backed up some people would jump out of their vehicles and walk – and then jump in again as the vehicles moved forward.
Many ordinary Bangkokians have been cheering the red shirts on. -- PHOTO: NIRMAL GHOSH
There was music and dancing and slogan-shouting and much blowing of horns and clattering of plastic foot clappers. Police and soldiers in riot gear stood discreetly at certain points – Petchaburi’s soi 7 for instance, which houses a mosque – probably as standby in case there were clashes with locals.
But the procession was fairly disciplined, even stopping at traffic lights, and I did not see any sign of tension at all.