(24 October) Dissenting Pheu Thai figures who are protesting the government-sponsored ?amnesty for all? are merely acting to fool the Redshirts, said the spokesman of the Democrat Party.

His comment followed an increasingly visible rift among the ruling party between those in support of the revised amnesty bill which would grant amnesty to all sides involved in the long-running political conflict, and those who do not.

But Mr. Chavanond Intarakomalyasut, the spokesman of the Democrat Party, said the defiances are pointless, as the real power in making the calls of Pheu Thai Party rests with those who maintain close ties with former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, such as his sister Yaowapa Wongsawat, who is currently an MP of the party.

Ms. Yaowapa and her allies easily overwhelm all the dissents in the party, such as Mr. Nattawut Saikua and Mr. Weng Tojirakarn, the spokesman said.

He also accused the National United Front of Democracy Against Dictatorship (UDD) of pulling "theatrical acts" to fool the Redshirts by giving them false hope that Pheu Thai Party will change its course and withdraw the revised bill.

"The Redshirts leaders who are sitting in the Parliament should just quit their MP membership and rally against the amnesty bill outside the Parliament if they are genuinely against the bill," Mr. Chavanond said, "Otherwise, they are welcomed to continue their theatrical acts".

He added, "They are not even brave enough to raise hands and oppose the bill. Like Mr. Nattawut who refused to say whether he will vote against the bill".

Mr. Chavanond also suggested that the "play" which the Redshirts leaders are fooling their supporters should be named ?Tom Yum Redshirts?, referring to the the action film Tom Yum Goong starred by famous Thai actor, Tony Jaa.

"The difference is that in Tom Yum Goong the protagonists try to bring an elephant home, but in Tom Yum Redshirts they will try to bring Mr. Thaksin home," Mr. Chavanond said.

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(24 October) A top official of the ruling Pheu Thai Party has insisted the party will go ahead with its controversial amnesty bill, in spite of the growing dissents among the party cadets against the bill.

Pheu Thai MP Weng Tojirakarn said in a press conference today that he wants to ask his fellow Pheu Thai cadets whether they "truly love Mr. Thaksin".

"Do they want Mr. Thaksin to return to Thailand in an unblemished manner?" Mr. Weng asked, arguing that the revised amnesty bill would only turn the public opinion against the former Prime Minister.

He also warned that even if the bill is passed by the Parliament, it would still be subject to scrutiny by the Constitutional Court, its chance of survival uncertain. "The [revised] amnesty bill will never succeed in bringing Mr. Thaksin home," Mr. Weng added.

His comments followed the insistence of other prominent Pheu Thai figures such as Mr. Nattawut Saikua who similarly argued against the ?amnesty for all?. Ms. Thida Tojirakarn, the chairwoman of the official Redshirts leadership, also rejected the bill, noting that those responsible for 2010 crackdown do not deserve amnesty.

In the letter submitted today to the House Committee on the amnesty bill, Ms. Payao Akhard, a representative of families of the victims who died in 2010 crackdown, stressed her position that she will not accept the amnesty for the authorities behind the lethal crackdown.

Ms. Payao, who lost her daughter in the last day of the military operation in May 2010, urged Pheu Thai Party to reconsider its stance on the ?blanket amnesty?, recalling that the party had previously called for legal prosecution against the security forces and Mr. Abhisit during the election season of 2011.

She also lashed out at former Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat who had urged "all sides to sacrifice" and adopt the ?amnesty for all?. "Mr. Somchai said we have to make sacrifices so that the country can move forward. But we have been making so much sacrifice already," Ms. Payao said.

She continued, "The Redshirts have lost their family members. Is their sacrifice not big enough? I would like to see Mr. Thaksin making his own sacrifice, too".

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(22 October) Prominent leaders of the Redshirts and their allied activists have expressed their opposition to the government-sponsored bill that would grant amnesty for all parties involved in the 2010 political violence.

The bill was originally drafted and proposed to the Parliament by Pheu Thai MP Worachai Hema. Its initial contents promised amnesty to the Redshirts protesters currently imprisoned or detained for their alleged crimes during the violent months of April-May 2010, in which the Redshirts clashed with the security forces who ultimately dispersed them.

The amnesty would also cover protesters of all shades that had been rocking the nation since 2006.

According to Mr. Worachai′s proposal, leaders of the protests – Red and Yellow – and the former government which authorised the 2010 crackdown would not be included, although the military would be granted amnesty, much to the ire of civil rights activists who accused the military of killing and injuring scores of people throughout the operation.

The anti-government faction, namely the Democrat Party, opposed the amnesty bill, arguing that the bill would ?whitewash? the Redshirts protesters and their de facto leader, former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who was convicted in absentia for corruption charges, although Pheu Thai Party had insisted Mr. Thaksin would not benefit from the amnesty.

However, the House Committee has revised the adopted proposal to extend the amnesty to all parties involved, including Mr. Thaksin, the former government responsible for 2010 crackdown, and all ?political prisoners?; nevertheless, lese majeste convicts are curiously exempted from the amnesty deal.

The revelation that the bill has been altered from what the Parliament has adopted prompted protests and condemnations from almost every political spectrum in Thailand.

Former PM Abhisit Vejjajiva, who has been charged with murders for his role in 2010 military operation, had previously rejected the offer of amnesty for him, stating that he is willing to fight the allegation in the court.

The Democrat Party and anti-government critics view the altered proposal as the proof that the government of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra is only committed to helping Mr. Thaksin escape his convictions and return to power in Thailand.

Many prominent figures in the Redshirts movements also opposed the bill – nicknamed ?Suud Soi?, literally, To the end of soi (alley).

Ms. Thida Tojirakarn, chairwoman of National United Front of Democracy Against Dictatorship (UDD), said ?Suud Soi? amnesty would undo all the legal attempts of the Redshirts to hold the former government accountable for 2010 bloodshed.

She said she does not oppose an amnesty bill that would benefit the ordinary protesters. "But amnesty for all is too much … Pheu Thai Party and Mr. Thaksin must understand and sympathise with UDD, because we are a popular organisation for political struggle, not a political party. We cannot betray the people".

Ms. Thida added that the ?Suud Soi? amnesty draft would only become ammunition for the anti-government factions.

Meanwhile, Mr. Nattawut Saikuea, a Pheu Thai MP and leader of the UDD, said he opposed the altered version of the amnesty bill because it would exempt former PM Abhisit from legal prosecution.

"Those who [kill] the people must stand trials according to the laws," said Mr. Nattawut, "It is our principle we must put in historical records, that the powerful who resort to violence against people′s lives will no longer enjoy impunity".

He refused to say on records whether he would go as far as voting against the ?Suud Soi? bill if it ever makes it to another Parliamentary session, saying that he would prove his stance by other means, and insisted that in spite of this contentious issue, Pheu Thai Party and the Redshirts remain united.

"I don?t want the Democrat Party to expect that the Redshirts would suddenly support the party in its attempt to overthrow this government," said Mr. Nattawut.

Mr. Jatupon Prompan, Deputy Chairman of UDD and a former Pheu Thai MP echoes Mr. Nattawut′s statement, saying that he will not accept an amnesty for himself and Mr. Thaksin. However, Mr. Jatupon said Mr. Thaksin deserves an amnesty because he had been a political "victim".

One of the staunchest opponents of the ?Suud Soi? bill came from Ms. Payao Akhard, the mother of a volunteer nurse killed by the military gunfire in Wat Pathum Wanararm Temple on the final day of the 2010 military crackdown.

Since her daughter′s death, Ms. Payao has been actively campaigning for legal prosecution against the military and former government.

Speaking at a press conference earlier this week, Ms. Payao stressed her stance, noting that Thailand recently commemorated the 40th anniversary of October 14th Student Uprising but has done very little in the past decades to hold the authorities accountable for their violence against protesters throughout Thai political history.

She also made a plea for Mr. Thaksin to "think this through", as the endorsement of this bill would prove that the government has lied to the people and ignored the wills of the families of the crackdown victims.

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(22 October) A banner proclaiming allegiance to international terror network Al Qaeda has appeared in the anti-government protests encampment at Uruphong Intersection.

The banner reads: "Underground Al Qaeda is here!". It is hanging on the western side of the protest site, between two banners saying "Flowers for those who are brave and love justice" and "Bangkok people with more than 100[%] in their hearts are here!".

The context of the banner is unclear, as there is no immediate information how the protesters, who are demanding for resignation of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, might be related to the terrorist organisation.

However, in July anti-government social network sites had widely shared a video which claimed to show Al Qaeda operatives threatening to assassinate former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, the brother of Ms. Yingluck.

Security officials quickly dismissed the video as a forgery, but many anti-government netizens nevertheless cheered the alleged Al Qaeda agents for standing up against Mr. Thaksin, whom they perceived to be a corrupt dictator.

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(22 October) The anti-government protesters who have been camping at Uruphong intersection have said they will enlist divine allies for their causes against the government of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra.

Mr. Uthai Yordmanee, the leader of the Student and People Network For Political Reform of Thailand, told the press he will lead the protesters from their encampment in central Bangkok to the Grand Palace later this week, where the protesters would pray to the Emerald Buddha for a victory against the "corrupt" government.

The protesters will also appeal to the guardian spirit of Bangkok at the City Pillar Shrine for its blessing and protection for "the Thais who came out to defend their country … from the corrupt politicians, bureaucrats, and businessmen," said Mr. Utahi.

He added, "We want to solve the troubles of this nation, so that Thai people can be united and smiling to each other again".

He later submitted a letter to Pol.Gen. Adul Saengsingkaew, the Commissioner-General of the Royal Thai Police, informing him of the planned marches and requesting police support on the appointed dates to help facilitate the demonstrations.
Mr. Uthai also told Pol.Gen. Adul his group will march to the Royal Plaza tomorrow (23 October) to pray to the statue of King Chulalongkorn (Rama V) there on the occasion of Chulalongkorn Day. "We want to commemorate all the achievements he had done for the Thais and their country," said the protest leader.

Meanwhile, Ms. Tridao Abhaiwongse, spokeswoman of Bangkok Metropolitan Authority (BMA), said the Bangkok authority cannot force the Student and People Network to evacuate their campsite in Uruphong intersection as requested by a number of local residents.

The residents have previously complained to the police that the protesters had caused much nuisance in the vicinity, but Ms. Tridao insisted that the protesters were exercising their rights of peaceful assembly under the Constitution.

She claimed that the residents? grievance about foul smell of the protesters? toilet had been solved in a day, as the BMA promptly instructed the local officials to clean the protest site.

The spokeswoman also dismissed allegations that the BMA – headed by a senior Democrat member Sukhumbhand Paribatra – is treating the anti-government protesters with favouritism, explaining that the BMA has provided supports to the protesters as required by bureaucratic regulations.

For instance, the BMA has also previously provided around 200 mobile toilets to various Redshirts protests throughout the period of 2010-2013, Ms. Tridao said.

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