BANGKOK — Leaders of the Redshirt movement said they will test the ruling junta’s impartiality by calling their own news conference in response to one held last week by archrival Suthep Thaugsuban.

By allowing the man who led street protests culminating in the 2014 military coup d’etat to broadcast his return to public life, Redshirt leader Nattawut Saikua said on Saturday the military government applied a double-standard and vowed to respond in kind.

Angry that Suthep and his former protesters seemed to be resuming the same political activities – even wearing the same shirts worn during the protests – Nattawut, a leader of the United Front of Democracy Against Dictatorship, or UDD, said it would only be fair for the military government to give his group permission to discuss a topic of their choosing.

“So, next week I intend to invite all UDD leaders to wear red shirts and host a press conference about red-whiskered bulbuls in Thailand. I am sure I will get permission. I will let you know about the details later.”

Held days after he ended a year in the monkhood following the coup, Suthep said at the conference he would not return to parliamentary politics and would devote himself to charitable works instead. Yet he also urged the military government to remain in power longer to complete its national reform efforts before new elections are held.  

"We want to see this government successfully reform the country before any election, no matter how long it takes,” Suthep said.

Jatuporn Prompan, chairman of the UDD, told reporters today that Nattawut’s call for press conference was an attempt to highlight the uneven standard applied by the junta to supporters of the former civilian government.

“He wants to communicate the issue about this double standard,” Jatuporn said. “He used the red-whiskered bulbuls as an example. Everyone knows it’s not a political issue. We want to ask, if we want to talk about an issue, can we do it?”

Meanwhile former Suthep ally and one-time head of the Democrat Party, Abhisit Vejjajiva rejected Suthep’s suggestion the junta remain in power for more time.

“The NCPO and the prime minister should stick to the existing roadmap and then return power to the people. I am sure our society will agree with me.” Abhisit said Saturday. “Under the current roadmap, an election will take place in September 2016, and a new elected government will be formed in early 2017.”

Since staging the coup against the Redshirt-backed government in May 2014, the junta has strictly enforced its ban on political activities. Soldiers and police have interfered with nearly 100 public discussions and forums in the past year, on the grounds that they may affect "peace and order" in the country, and some violators of the ban have been sent to stand trial in military court.

Supporters of the Redshirt movement routinely accuse the junta of selectively applying the ban on political activities only to them, while making exceptions for their rivals.

As for Suthep, Junta spokesman Col. Winthai Suvaree said he was “simply expressing his usual attitude” and urged the public to evaluate the message – not the man.

“I want people to look at the content, not the individuals,” he said. “If anyone believes Suthep’s action violated the NCPO’s policies, they can file complaints with us.”

As for Nattawut’s proposed ornithological discussion, Winthai said the regime would allow any activity that does not cause unrest or violate its rules.

“If he wants to do some activity, he can ask NCPO for permission,” he told reporters Saturday. “We will deliberate on the details."

Related news:

Suthep Stresses 'Reforms Before Elections,' Unveils Plans for New Foundation

Red-whiskered bulbul photo by Sandeep Gangadharan
 

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RACHABURI — A 52-year-old man is raising awareness about HIV/AIDS in Thailand by driving his motorized tricycle from Rachaburi province to Bangkok for the government’s “Bike for Mom” cycling event in August.

Nattapol Thongwan set out on his journey this morning in a rickshaw covered with portraits of the royal family, and banners encouraging people to get tested for HIV/AIDS.

He is planning to drive through several provinces and arrive in Bangkok on 16 August for the “Bike for Mom” event organized by the Thai government on behalf of Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn to honor his mother, Queen Sirikit, who will turn 83 on 12 August.

According to official statements released to the press, more than 30,000 cyclists are expected to join the 43 km route from Royal Plaza to a military base in northern Bangkok, led by the 62-year-old Crown Prince himself.

Nattapol Thongwan, 52, with his 'Bike For Mom' rickshaw in Rachaburi province, 31 July 2015.
 

Nattapol told reporters in Rachaburi province today that he has been involved in local campaigns to reduce HIV/AIDS since 1992.

"From that day to this present time, which has been around 23 years, I helped by spreading news about the danger of AIDS to the people, so that they are aware of this disease," Nattapol said. 

According to data provided by the Ministry of Public Health in 2014, around 438,000 people are living with HIV/AIDS in Thailand.

Nattapol also praised the government for organizing the "Bike for Mom" event because it is an opportunity for Thais to show their loyalty to the monarchy.

"If many people come out to join the event, it will show how much the people love [the Royal Family]," Nattapol told reporters. 

BANGKOK – The former leader of the anti-government protests that preceded the May 2014 coup reiterated his movement’s rallying cry yesterday, insisting that national reforms be completed before a new election is held, "no matter how long it takes."

"I still insist on the same principle of mine: we want a reforms before an election," Suthep Thaugsuban said yesterday in a press conference that was observed by 13 soldiers and around 20 police officers in Bangkok.

"We want to carry on the wishes and legacy of the Great Mass of the People," he said, referring to the participants in his protest movement. "We want to see this government successfully reform the country before any election, no matter how long it takes."

"Reforms Before Elections" was the chief slogan of the conservative movement led by Suthep from November 2013 to May 2014. The demonstrators demanded that then-Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra's elected government be replaced with an appointed "People's Council" tasked with reforming the country before a new election. 

The protests culminated in the coup on 22 May 2014 that brought to power the current military junta, which has largely taken up the protesters’ demands by suspending democracy to spearhead a national reform effort. The junta, formally known as the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO), has repeatedly postponed the date of elections, which are now scheduled for September 2016.

After spending a year as a monk, Suthep returned to the spotlight this week and announced his plans to run a charity founded by other former leaders of the protest movement. According to Suthep, who was previously deputy chairman of the Democrat Party and deputy Prime Minster under Abhisit Vejjajiva, the organization will steer clear of parliamentary politics.

"[The foundation] won't be related to Democrat Party at all, and I insist that I won't be a politician again," Suthep said yesterday. "I won't return to the Democrat Party. From now on, the ideas of the Foundation may not be the same as the Democrat Party. Therefore, do not have doubts. But foundation members also have the rights to favor certain political parties."

Suthep said he has legally registered his charity group, called the Foundation of the Great Mass of the People for Reform of Thailand, with the Ministry of Interior Affairs, and told reporters that he will comply with the junta's bans on public gathering and protests. 

"The Foundation will be the center for collecting proposals and suggesting constructive ways for reforming the country," Suthep said. "We will open opportunities for everyone to exercise their rights to express opinions. We will use electronic media, Facebook, websites, and emails. These days we cannot organize discussion forums. We don't want any privileges, because that would lead to chaos for the NCPO. We are willing to follow the NCPO's orders, which are laws. If anyone accuses Thailand of not being a democracy, they are wrong. We live in this country, we have to follow the laws of this country."

He added, "We don't anyone to accuse the NCPO of having double standards. And I'd like to insist that we have no political interest."

Suthep also described some of his plans for the foundation, such as sending representatives to “explain” Thailand to foreigners.

"The Foundation of the Great Mass of the People for Reform of Thailand will do everything to protect the interests of the people and the nation," Suthep told reporters. "For example, if foreigners or some organizations don't understand Thai people or conditions in Thailand, we will send our people to explain the situation to them. If some countries misunderstand us, we will send our representatives to explain to the governments, parliaments, and media of those countries. We don't want to be anyone's enemy, but we love our country." 

According to Suthep, one of the foundation's first projects will be establishing a "model community in which people live with love, unity, and have happiness under the Self-Sufficiency Economy" on island in the Gulf of Thailand. The community will be settled by 200 households, Suthep said. 

Other projects include:

• coordinating compensation money for the relatives of protesters who died in the 2013 – 2014 anti-Yingluck protests. 
• promoting Thai culture.
• organizing a mass ordination across 58 provinces in Thailand in honor of His Majesty the King.
• building a "moral" vocational college on Koh Samui island in southern Thailand.
• building schools for "Christians and Muslims" that promote morality in accordance with their religions. 
• promoting cooperation between different religions to "be freed from domination of Consumerism." 

Suthep resigned from the Democrat Party in November 2013 to lead the protests against Yingluck, whose government tried to pass a controversial amnesty bill that would have absolved the corruption conviction of her brother, former PM Thaksin Shinawatra.

Thaksin has remained extremely influential in Thai politics despite living in self-imposed exile for the past seven years, and is often accused of funding his followers, known as the Redshirts, and other pro-democracy groups from abroad.

Speaking to reporters yesterday, Suthep stressed that his Foundation will only be funded by donations from "Thai patriots."

"Donations to the Foundation will depend on the daily income of each person. It may be 300 baht for some, it may be 300,000 baht for others, but everyone will have an equal vote," Suthep explained. "Our money will have a clear background. We won't be a foundation with obscure funding. It won't be foreigners' money, but it will only be Thai patriots' money. You won't have to doubt who's behind us."