By Kyaw Lynn

LETPADAN, MYANMAR (DPA) — At least 30 demonstrators were taken away in trucks Tuesday as Myanmar police cracked down on students marching to the commercial capital Yangon to protest a recently passed education law.

Hundreds of police beat student demonstrators at a protest camp in Letpadan, 145 kilometres north of Yangon. A group of around 50 people clashed with police outside the camp.

Student protesters shout slogans at a demonstration in Letpadan, Bago division, about 145 kilometres north of Yangon, Myanmar, on March 10, 2015. EPA/NYEIN CHAN NAING

Students have been marching from Mandalay, the country's second-largest city, and two other cities toward the commercial capital of Yangon since January, demanding the education law ne changed or scrapped.

Early Tuesday, authorities told the protesters they could march to Yangon under the precondition that they would not raise flags or shout slogans while marching.

Student protesters rejected the offer and attempted to march through a police barrier.

In the early afternoon, police began to crack down on the protesters and others gathered outside the camp.

BANGKOK — Former Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva has formally acknowledged the "abuse of power" charge filed against him for his role in the deadly crackdown on Redshirt protesters in 2010.

Democrat Party leader Abhisit dispatched his lawyer, Bundit Sitthipan, to hear the charge on his behalf at the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) headquarters today. 

Abhsit’s deputy at the time, Suthep Thaugsuban, was also summoned to acknowledge the charge. Bundit said he is still "coordinating" with Suthep, who led the anti-government protests that preceded the May 2014 coup and is now living as a monk in Surat Thani. 

Soldiers fire in the direction of Redshirts on Rama IV Road in Bangkok, 14 May 2010.

In February the NACC charged Abhisit and Suthep with “abuse of power” for failing to stop the use of excessive violence against civilians in the military crackdown they authorized on Redshirt protesters in April – May 2010. More than 90 people were killed in the violence, including demonstrators, soldiers, rescue workers, and two foreign journalists.

The charge is a preliminary step in an impeachment process against the politicians. If the NACC continues with the case, Abhisit and Suthep’s fate will be determined by the junta-appointed interim parliament, who will vote on whether to retroactively impeach the pair and thereby ban them from political office for five years.  

Bundit, the lawyer who represented Abhisit today, declined to say whether military commanders involved the operation, such as the current Prime Minister Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha, would be summoned as witnesses in the investigation.

"How many people will be summoned and how many witnesses there are depends on the NACC. I cannot say at the moment," Bundit said. 

Abhisit previously urged the NACC to interview the army commanders who led the crackdown, saying they would know more details about the operation.  

In a response to Abhisit's remark, Gen. Prayuth, who commanded the First Region Army in 2010, said he was willing to testify before the NACC. Gen. Prayuth led the coup last May and was later chosen as Prime Minister by an interim parliament whose members he appointed.

Speaking to reporters today, Bundit said he "is not troubled" by the charge against Abhisit, who he insists acted in accordance with the Emergency Decree that was imposed over Bangkok at the time. 

"It went through every correct procedure. Everything was documented," Bundit said. 

However, the lawyer did express concern that the impeachment process may be affected by "extralegal power and external pressure," though he did not elaborate.

Tens of thousands of Redshirt demonstrators occupied parts of Bangkok in March 2010 to demand a new election. On 10 April 2010, Abhisit ordered the military to disperse the protesters on Ratchadamnoen Avenue, but the operation was called off after security officers were attacked by shadowy militants known as theBlackshirts. Following a month of skirmishes between protesters and security officers, the Abhisit government authorized another military operation in May 2010 against the protesters. Redshirt leaders eventually surrendered and called off the protest on 19 May 2010, after at least 90 people – mostly civilians – had died. 

Abhisit, Suthep, Gen. Prayuth, and other members of the government at the time have sought to distance themselves from the fatalities, shifting the blame to the Blackshirt militants who were allegedly allied with the Redshirt protesters. 

However, numerous court inquests from 2013 have attributedcivilian deaths to soldiers, some of whom shot indiscriminately into crowds of unarmed protesters.

 Redshirt protesters fire slingshot at the soldiers, 16 May 2010

Human rights groups have also faulted Thai authorities for failing to hold state officials accountable for the 2010 crackdown and accused the NACC of using a "double standard" against Redshirt groups and politicians.

In January, the NACC successfully brought about the impeachmentof former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, who led the government toppled in the 22 May coup and is wildly popular among Redshirts. The agenecy also recently began prosecutionagainst former Redshirt-allied Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat for authorizing a police crackdown on Yellowshirt demonstrators in 2008.

In his interview with the reporters today, Abhisit's lawyer dismissed the "double standard" accusation, drawing a contrast between the 2008 crackdown on Yellowshirt protesters and the unrest in 2010. 

"In 2008, the People's Alliance for Democracy did not have any weapons, and the Emergency Decree wasn't imposed back then," Bundit said, "But the crackdown in 2010 was a different matter. There were Blackshirt militants. How can anyone argue that there was no armed militants? The foreign media reported it. Even though these media agencies were based in other countries, they could still see it. Therefore, the facts are different."

He added, "How can it be double standard? Double standards are when the same facts get judged differently. But these situations are different. How can people claim it’s a double standard?" 

BANGKOK — A cousin of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra has denied involvement in the grenade attack on the Criminal Court in Bangkok on Saturday.

Gen. Chaiyasith Shinawatra was responding to police reports that his name was found in the phone book of the 34-year-old man who allegedly threw a hand grenade at the parking lot of the Criminal Court on 7 March.  

Gen. Chaiyasith Shinawatra speaking at a press conference at his home in Pathum Thani, 9 March 2015.

Gen. Chaiyasith, who has served as army chief and commander of the Thai armed forces, said today that he had no connection to the bomb plot and only knew the suspect from “a long time ago,” when the man sought his help.

"Whoever comes to seek my help because of some troubles, I have always helped as much as I could. Some people ask for money. Some ask for food," Gen. Chaiyasith said at a press conference at his home in Pathum Thani today. "It happened long time ago. So long that I forgot about it. As for the intention to drag me into this and attempt to link me to anyone, please, don't drag me into this." 

According to the military, soldiers posted near the court saw the explosion and chased after the suspect, identified as Yutthana Yenpinyo, who fired a pistol at soldiers while he fled on the back of a motorcycle. Soldiers shot back, injuring the suspect’s getaway driver, Mahahin Khunthong. Both men, and two others arrested in connection with the attack, are now in military custody.

Gen. Chaiyasith accused security officers of trying to implicate him in the bombing today, and threatened to take legal action against those tainting his reputation.

"The police have been doing good work — they knew in advance that there would be an attack, so they should focus on that point, instead of focusing the point about the discovery of my phone number," Gen. Chaiyasith said.  "It shows that there is an intention to drag me into the case … They should prepare to see my lawyer, because they are damaging me. I will sue them all, because they like to put misleading questions [to the suspect]. And I am starting to feel suspicious about whether the suspect was persuaded or fooled [in the interrogation]."

He added, "However, I am confident that the justice system in Thailand would still allow a Shinawatra some place to stand, instead of going after all Shinawatras." 

Mahahin Khunthong, 34, was arrested for allegedly throwing a hand grenade at the Criminal Court in Bangkok on 7 March 2015.​

Gen. Chaiyasith's cousin, Thaksin Shinawatra, was ousted in a coup in 2006 but remains the de facto leader of the Redshirt movement, despite having living in self-imposed exile to avoid a corruption conviction. Thaksin’s allies have repeatedly risen to power in every election since his ouster, thanks to broad support from Redshirts in Thailand’s north and northeast. Thaksin's sister, former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, led the Redshirt-allied government toppled in the 22 May 2014 coup.

In yesterday’s press conference, military officers said they believed that Redshirt activists in Pattaya supplied weapons to the suspects behind the grenade attack.

According to Lt.Gen. Pongsawasdi Panchit, commander of the 1st Infantry Division, the group was also preparing to stage an attack on 15 March.

"Security officers are not letting their guard down," Lt.Gen. Pongsawasdi said, "The people should be eyes and ears of the authorities." 

Since seizing power last May, the ruling junta and its appointed interim government has sought to dismantle the Shinawatra political machine. In the wake of the coup, Thaksin's allies in the bureaucracy were transferred from their posts, a ban on all political activities was imposed, and hundreds of activists, politicians, and academics deemed sympathetic to Thaksin were detained in army camps for "attitude adjustment." 

In January, the junta-appointed interim parliament also voted overwhelmingly to impeach Yingluck on charges of corruption in her government's rice policy, banning her from politics for five years.

Gen. Chaiyasith told reporters today that he hopes the military will not let "ill feeling" about the Shinawatras guide their investigation into the grenade attack. 

"I hope that they will check their intelligence well, and check it thoroughly. I don't want to see intelligence units making things up, or using their ill feeling about people in the Shinawatra family," Gen. Chaiyasith said. "Don't assert baseless things. Don't drag me into it. But I won't run anywhere. Some people want me to flee, but I won't. I want to know why I can't stay in Thailand. I am a Thai person, too. I love the King. I love everything about Thailand." 

He continued, "If they want to issue an arrest warrant on me, then do it. Issue an arrest warrant and let the legal system decide. I want to know if the court will approve an arrest warrant on me just because the suspect's phonebook has my name. I want to know what this country is like."  

CORRECTION: The original report identified Mahahin Khunthong as the suspect who allegedly threw the grenade, when in fact police say he was only the driver of the getaway vehicle. 

BANGKOK — His Majesty the King visited a royal agriculture project inside his palace in Bangkok today in his first trip outside the hospital since he was checked in last October.

King Bhumibol, 87, was escorted out of his ward at Siriraj Hospital to Suan Chitralada Palace at around 3.30 pm today. At the palace, His Majesty visited farm projects that he helped initiate, according to a statement provided by the Royal Household Bureau. 

HM the King at  Suan Chitralada Palace in Bangkok, 9 March 2015.

Suan Chitralada Palace is the official residence of His Majesty the King, though in recent years he has spent most of his time at a summer palace in Prachuap Kiri Khan province, approximately a two hour drive south of Bangkok. 

According to the Royal Household Bureau, the king returned to the hospital at around 5 pm today. Crowds of well-wishers lined the roads and shouted "Long live the King" as his motorcade passed. 

HM the King at  Suan Chitralada Palace in Bangkok, 9 March 2015.

The king's frail health is a cause of anxiety for many Thais. The monarch is widely credited with bringing stability to the Kingdom during his more than 60 years on the throne.

BANGKOK — His Majesty the King visited a royal agriculture project inside his palace in Bangkok today in his first trip outside the hospital since he was checked in last October.

King Bhumibol, 87, was escorted out of his ward at Siriraj Hospital to Suan Chitralada Palace at around 3.30 pm today. At the palace, His Majesty visited farm projects that he helped initiate, according to a statement provided by the Royal Household Bureau. 

HM the King at  Suan Chitralada Palace in Bangkok, 9 March 2015.

Suan Chitralada Palace is the official residence of His Majesty the King, though in recent years he has spent most of his time at a summer palace in Prachuap Kiri Khan province, approximately a two hour drive south of Bangkok. 

According to the Royal Household Bureau, the king returned to the hospital at around 5 pm today. Crowds of well-wishers lined the roads and shouted "Long live the King" as his motorcade passed. 

HM the King at  Suan Chitralada Palace in Bangkok, 9 March 2015.