Red Shirt Political Movement in Thailand

Thailand political red shirt has been all over our TVs lately. Most of us know of Thailand for it’s beautiful holiday destinations like Phuket and Bangkok or of the terrible Tsunami that killed so many people there. What has been consistent in the Thailand political history is a violent political past with a number of coups. Violent protests have returned with a number deaths as anti-government 'red shirt' protests grow increasing violent in Bangkok.

These red short protests have gone on for two months now but the Thailand political crisis has gone for five years. The Thailand political red shirt represents the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD). The Thailand political red shirt protesters are trying to force Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva to call a new election.

The demographics of the Thailand political red shirt are Thailand’s working class and rural poor in northern and northeastern Thailand strongholds. The Red Shirt protestors have proven to be well organized and in large numbers. On March 14 over 150,000 red shirt protesters saturated Bangkok after an eight-week protest. 

The Red Shirt De facto leader is the controversial ex-telecoms billionaire fugitive Thaksin Shinawatra who was a two time Prime Minister who was ousted by a 2006 coup. The rational for supporting Thaksin is that he was seen as having pushed populist policies while he was Prime Minster from 2001-2006. His opponents believe hi to be a corrupt official ho raped Thailand for Billions of dollars. His opponents believe he was disloyal to the Thai King and nothing more but a crony capitalist that ran Thailand with an autocratic fist. 

The catalyst for the Red Shirts formation and the current protests stems from Thailand’s 2006 coup that ousted Thaksin. The argument is that unelected elites were part of a conservative conspiracy that took over a democratic countries government and judicial system. Further more Thaksin was trialed in absentia for and found guilty. They also believed that the dissolution of Thaksin’s Thai Rak Thai Party was illegal and part of the conspiracy against democracy. The People's Power Party (PPP) was also dissolved by the new leadership which fed into the anti government sentiment. 

Thaksin Shinawatra is the defector boss and assumed to be financing the UDD. There are at least ten leaders, made of further Thaksin ministers or former pro-democracy activists. 

1. Jatuporn Prompan a lawmaker in the pro-Thaksin opposition party, Puea Thai.
2. Veera Musikapong UDD chairman With Jatuporn were activists against the military dictatorship in 1992.
3. Nattawut Saikua is a UDD speaker who is a former PPP government spokesman
4. Weng Tojirakarn is a rural doctor who has become left-wing activist 
5. Arisman Pongruangrong is a well-known singer who is also on the Red Shirt album

What has surprised both the Thai people and the military is just how structured the red shirts are, Alo they have become a powerful extra-parliamentary force. The UDD has developed what it calls  'politics schools' across Thailand with political fund raising and recruiting officers from villages upwards. Red shirts receive personalized UDD identification cards at these stations.

The Red Shirt has own media mini empire that includes its’ television channel and radio stations. They also publish their own magazine and websites. They have maximized their popularity with merchandise stores and even an album.

Protests are their most visible communication weapon and come fully prepared at their mass protests. When they protest they provide masseuses, showers, canteens and infirmaries in a paramilitary operation. The protests have been ambitious and garnered worldwide attention. In April 2009 the Red Shirt ‘army’ took over the headquarters of the Thailand government for three weeks at the time of the ASEAN summit in Pattaya. The protest caused the ASEAN summit to be abandoned.

Whilst it is true most UDD protests are peaceful there have been a number of violent ones also. In the last 13 months 27 people have died and over 1,000 seriously hurt

The April 2009 takeover of the Interior Ministry was violent and Red Shirts also attacked a vehicle they believed had PM Abhisit inside. The next day buses were set alight and Molotov cocktails and rocks were hurled at the Thai military.

The protests have been increasingly violent this year and on April 10 troops when trying to remove UDD protesters killed 25 people with more than 800 people hurt including soldiers. At this protest had black-clad gunmen of their paramilitary arm to supplement at least 1,000 guards. UDD claims ignorance on the gunmen. 

On April 22 in Bangkok's Silom business district grenade attacks killed one person and left more than 80 wounded has been blamed on but not claimed by the red shirts.

On April 28 Red Shirts fought with Thai security forces on a Bangkok highway that left one soldier dead. 

We are at a critical time for the Thailand political red shirt protests. Tehre are many concerned the protests will develop into civil war. Elections seem to be the only thing that will appease the Thailand political red shirt movement.