Thailand: Regime Assassinates Protest Leader on Eve of Sham Elections
Peaceful protests turn deadly as regime unleashes "red shirt" enforcers and heavily armed assassins.
January 26, 2014 (ATN) - Regime gunmen assassinated celebrated NGO worker, activist, and protest core leader Sutin Taratin Sunday, during a brazen broad-daylight drive by shooting amid a melee between protesters and armed "red shirt" regime enforcers. Protests were held across the country at polling stations in opposition to advance voting. Forty-five out of fifty polling stations were closed in Bangkok alone.
Bangkok's English paper, The Nation would report in its article, "Thaksin's big-time opponent latest victim of political violence," that:
Sutin Taratin, one of leaders of People's Army to Overthrow the Thaksin Regime, has become the latest victim of political violence. He was gunned down Sunday outside the Bang Na advance voting station. He was an non-governmental organisaton officer working for Local Development Institute (LDI) and he was close to former secretary-general of the State Enterprises Labour Relations Confederation Somsak Kosaisuk. The assassination of Sutin Taratin came after the regime and its supporters made explicit threats of armed violence against any who opposed upcoming sham elections. TIME magazine on January 16 reported in their article, ""Bangkok Shutdown: Yingluck Supporters Prepare to Fight for Democracy," that:
As Thailand’s anti-government protests enter their fourth day, observers say prospects for violent confrontation are increasing, with reports of government supporters stockpiling weapons in case of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra’s ouster. According to the Bangkok Post, radical members of the Red Shirts — diehard champions of Yingluck and her notorious brother Thaksin Shinawatra — are readying a cache of arms in case the 46-year-old premier is forced from office by either military or judicial intervention. The paper quoted a Red Shirt source as saying “There are strong anti-coup and anti-court sentiments among the red-shirt mavericks who are familiar and experienced with weapon use.” The very next day, the attacks began. The first was a grenade attack on peaceful marches lead by protest leader Suthep Thuangsuban, which killed one and injured 39. Suthep Thuangsuban was only 30 meters away from the blast, indicating it was a likely assassination attempt. Protesters would then storm the abandoned building where the attack originated to uncover what appeared to be a weapons catch and a safehouse, just as TIME described. Another twin grenade attack took place at Bangkok's Victory Monument, along with nightly drive-by shootings up until the regime announced a "state of emergency" citing their own terror campaign as justification.
Regime's Murder & Mayhem in Defense of Sham Elections
Peaceful protests turn deadly as regime unleashes "red shirt" enforcers and heavily armed assassins.
January 26, 2014 (ATN) - Regime gunmen assassinated celebrated NGO worker, activist, and protest core leader Sutin Taratin Sunday, during a brazen broad-daylight drive by shooting amid a melee between protesters and armed "red shirt" regime enforcers. Protests were held across the country at polling stations in opposition to advance voting. Forty-five out of fifty polling stations were closed in Bangkok alone.
Bangkok's English paper, The Nation would report in its article, "Thaksin's big-time opponent latest victim of political violence," that:
Sutin Taratin, one of leaders of People's Army to Overthrow the Thaksin Regime, has become the latest victim of political violence. He was gunned down Sunday outside the Bang Na advance voting station. He was an non-governmental organisaton officer working for Local Development Institute (LDI) and he was close to former secretary-general of the State Enterprises Labour Relations Confederation Somsak Kosaisuk. The assassination of Sutin Taratin came after the regime and its supporters made explicit threats of armed violence against any who opposed upcoming sham elections. TIME magazine on January 16 reported in their article, ""Bangkok Shutdown: Yingluck Supporters Prepare to Fight for Democracy," that:
As Thailand’s anti-government protests enter their fourth day, observers say prospects for violent confrontation are increasing, with reports of government supporters stockpiling weapons in case of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra’s ouster. According to the Bangkok Post, radical members of the Red Shirts — diehard champions of Yingluck and her notorious brother Thaksin Shinawatra — are readying a cache of arms in case the 46-year-old premier is forced from office by either military or judicial intervention. The paper quoted a Red Shirt source as saying “There are strong anti-coup and anti-court sentiments among the red-shirt mavericks who are familiar and experienced with weapon use.” The very next day, the attacks began. The first was a grenade attack on peaceful marches lead by protest leader Suthep Thuangsuban, which killed one and injured 39. Suthep Thuangsuban was only 30 meters away from the blast, indicating it was a likely assassination attempt. Protesters would then storm the abandoned building where the attack originated to uncover what appeared to be a weapons catch and a safehouse, just as TIME described. Another twin grenade attack took place at Bangkok's Victory Monument, along with nightly drive-by shootings up until the regime announced a "state of emergency" citing their own terror campaign as justification.
Regime's Murder & Mayhem in Defense of Sham Elections
