Screenshots

oh well. military just cut out all medias and communication in thailand. just had a little chat with my thai friends. General. Sonti Highest commander is probaly behind the coup.internet will be out in 1 hour time. good luck to all my thai friends. i wish i were there now :( sawasdeekap!

oh well. military just cut out all medias and communication in thailand. just had a little chat with my thai friends. General. Sonti Highest commander/with opposition backing is probaly behind the coup.internet will be out in 1 hour time. good luck to all my thai friends. i wish i were there now :( sawasdeekap!

Out in the news already...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/5361512.stm

Thai PM 'overthrown in army coup'

Tanks took up positions outside Government House

Tanks in Bangkok
Military leaders in Thailand say they have overthrown the country's Prime Minister, Thaksin Shinawatra.
Soldiers seized government offices and took up strategic positions around the capital, Bangkok. Parliament and the constitution have been suspended.

The head of the army, Gen Sonthi Boonyaratglin, will assume prime ministerial powers, the army said.

But a spokesman for Mr Thaksin, who is at the UN in New York, insisted the government was still in control.

The spokesman said the coup "could not succeed". It had not been decided when the prime minister would return home from the UN, he added.

In pictures: Coup attempt
Britons in Bangkok warned
Coup-leaders' statements

However, in a broadcast on all Thai television channels, the leadership of the armed forces said it had taken control of Bangkok, declared nationwide martial law and ordered all troops to return to their bases.

"We ask for the co-operation of the public and ask your pardon for the inconvenience," the announcement said.

A spokesman for the coup leaders, Gen Prapart Sakuntanak, said the seizure would be temporary and power "returned to the people" soon.

Declaring themselves the "Council of Political Reform", the rebels - who said they were led by Gen Sonthi - visited the king and declared loyalty to him.

However the BBC's Kate McGeown in Bangkok says the highly revered King Bhumibol has made no comment about whether he backs the takeover attempt.

Our correspondent says low-level rumours of a possible coup have been circulating for weeks.

There has been pressure growing on the prime minister to resign, including from groups close to King Bhumibol, following a political impasse in which April's general election was declared invalid.

Cancelled speech

The streets in Bangkok were quiet on Tuesday night, our correspondent in the city says. People were calm for the most part, curious about what was going on, but some said they were scared.

Traffic moved through the streets normally and in the bars of the city centre, foreign tourists seemed oblivious to what was going on.

One soldier on a tank said: "We don't know why we're here, we've been told to say nothing. We're just following orders."

Russell Miles emailed the BBC News website to say there were troops "dressed in Swat-style gear strolling around" near Government House, and "a tense, but fairly controlled atmosphere".

Troops and guys dressed in Swat-style gear are strolling around

Russell Miles, Bangkok

Witnesses describe turmoil
Send us your comments

He said: "We saw a group of blokes bundling a cameraman and another chap into a van. We are taking photos, but not out in the open."

The military said the country's stock market, banks and schools would remain closed on Wednesday.

BBC World, CNN and other international news channels were taken off the air, and Thai stations played out images of the royal family and patriotic songs.

The EU's Finnish presidency expressed "grave concern" at events, and the US called on Thais "to resolve their political differences in a peaceful manner".

It is the first coup attempt in 15 years in a country where they used to be commonplace.

At the United Nations, where the annual General Assembly is under way, it was announced that the Mr Thaksin's address had been cancelled.

I am sympathetic here, but just could not resist from saying these:

"I am the Prime Minister."

"I have not lost control."

Go figure.

Pray to God, forbid the same from happening in our beloved Malaysia.

And hope the Thais would recover better then before after this.

Do not worry. The Malaysian government acted smartly(?) and rotates the head of the armed forces frequently to prevent any military figures from becoming too powerful.

Apparently, from the Thai forums I visited many Thais support this coup. They even argue if there's an election Thaksin will bribe his way to victory.Does this mean democracy will never work in Thailand and that they have to rely on the military to make the right decision for them?

Sometimes I wonder whether a military coup could be a feasible option to remove an incompetent Prime Minister. (Hint Hint! We all know who we are referring to.) Say whatever you want, but the Thais have grown accustomed to the number military coups that they have had over the years.

Should we learn to be like them? One thing for sure, other neighbours like Philippines and Indonesia have had the history of military coups. And they are all preceded by rampant corruption, mismanagement, nepotism, favouritism and abuse of power by their leaders.

Are we looking at similar traits around here? It is unimaginable for Malaysia to have a military coup, but the idea of everyone and everything (including the military) to remain subservient to the politicians really stinks.

Should we let our army take over to remove the current incompetent leaders of our government? Ask yourself, and seek the answer from your heart. For all we know, it could be a simple "yeah, why not..."

Hey, even the Hungarians are going to arms (literally) against their Prime Minister for lying on national television.

A secret recording was leaked, in which the PM confessed lying about the state of economy.

Thailand. And Hungary.

Next..?

For all we know, it could be a simple "yeah, why not..." - nukethem

(Pretending that) I am against you.

didn't Thailand appoint the first muslim to head the army recently? That figures.
On comments made earlier on a similar coup in Malaysia, beware. the Malaysian armed foces are even more incompetent.
This whole thing started when thaksin sold his stake in Shin corp to Temasek for several billion dollars, one day after a law was passed in parliament whereby he does not have to pay any taxes from the proceeds.
Hence, personal biz conflict against national interest.

@sysdput
I hope you do your homework on the MAF before making compelling statements they are incompetent. I am a military enthusiast and I know they are not incompetent.

BTW, Gen Sonthi will only be appointed as a temporary PM until a new PM is elected.

FYI, this is the 28th military coup in Thailand and probably the only one that receives approval from the Thai King.

Personally, i think it is highly irresponsible to even suggest or hinting ,however remote, that military intervention could be an option to remove "imcompetant leaders" in Malaysia. Even though they were expressed in "thinking aloud way".

Bearing in mind the real politics that is still very racial in nature, any indication or suggestion to that effedct could spell disaster to a country like Malaysia.

No matter how dire the political problems plaguing Malaysia, we must never resort to unconstitutional means to resolve them.

Do pardon me for being a little bit emotional in reading some postings here that , prima facie, give rise to such "dangerous" interpretation.

Despite being a Muslim, Gen Sonthi actually receives popular support for conducting the coup and some Thai forumers in AF would actually vote him as PM.

The coup is not motivated by any religious cause as sydput tries to implicate in his post.

The Thais have long abandoned religious and racial backgrounds when it comes to electing their leaders.

The idea of "The role of the military is to protect the government, not to be the government" seems so watertight and meant to quash any idea of allowing the military to take more role in the government.

If we could have a military that's committed to laissez-faire economy, upholding the independence of Central Bank, seriously committed to the total eradication of illegal immigrants, loyal to whomever the Supreme Head of the country, respect for private ownership of assets and businesses, respect to the judiciary...why can't the military be a possible alternative to the current government?

Maybe it's too far fetched...

Perhaps this is a great way to keep our govt in check?

Maybe not "great" but it is A way I suppose.

"didn't Thailand appoint the first muslim to head the army recently? That figures."

sydput, what do you mean by this?

are you saying all Muslims want to overthrow governments?

In this day and age, the mention of islam or muslim usually means disaster.
The MAF is insompetent when compared to politicians administrating the country. We can actually observe if the MAF is competent or otherwise by the state of their camps.

Sydput, u make compelling statements.

Bear in mind this is the 28th coup de tat by the military and the only one legitimized by the Thai King. It is nothing new and nothing to do with the fact that the Commander in Chief is a Muslim.

Concerning the MAF,it is obvious u know nothing of the MAF.Do not try to wear a big hat when you have a small hat.

Sydput,

Do not let hatred for a race affect your assessment of the Malaysian Armed Forces.

This is the very same force that held the line, while still in its infancy, with the imperial forces against the Japanese (I know there are some commy lovers who would say otherwise) and later the MCP.

This force served with distinction is a string of UN peacekeeping missions. We must surely have fooled the government of Timor Leste big time because they asked for our soldiers (again) during their latest troubles (besides Big Brother Autralia, New Zealand and former colonists Portugal).

Why is they MAF incompetent? Because the Malays are running it and since you believe we as a race are incompetent, therefore the MAF must also be incompetent?

My late father served the MAF, I went to school at the Boys' Wing of the Royal Military College, I have friends and relatives who died or were injured in serving this nation and I still have friends of various ranks still serving and prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice. Underpaid, ill-equipped often not appreciated (by people like you) yes! But not incompetent.

The MAF has a solid foundation built on the British Military tradition. In this region Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei share this tradition and they are the only nations that have yet to experience a coup.

I can go on and on but I think I will be wasting my time because Sydput's hatred filled eyes only see what he wants.

sydput,

You said the MAF was incompetent because of the state of their camps?

For your information, back when there was still a threat from the MCP and the civvies needed the MAF and PDRM to keep this country safe so that they could countinue to get richer, there was a branch of the JKR called the JKRAB (the AB was for Angkatan Bersenjata). The soldiers and policemen could get their work done while the JKR even cut the grass for them.

Now that the MCP are retired, almost every known privilege, including duty free goods at the old NAAFI (later Pernama), were withdrawn and budgets for maintenance reduced. Like the British Military, the MAF is very subservient to its civilian counterparts.

hold on to your horses guys. I did not say the MAF is incompetent militarily. I know for sure that in guerilla warefare, our MAF is acknowledged even by the Americans.
It is the administration of th MAF that is being questioned.
But please bear in mind, during the fifties and sixties, the army and police were the main focus for job seekers and attracted the best brains after graduation. In the new age,these two institution, the very foundation of the nations security, will be the last on any graduates job lists (Global trend). Certain religious values have also crept into the services, creating, for some, a sense that those not from similar background are considered as outsiders and would not be able to command a force made up of the majority, whose teachings regards non-believers as infidels and therefore an enemy. How do you solve this problem if you want to have a coherent and united armed forces? And hey, i am no racist bastard. I have stopped going to mosque due to too many hateful sermons, especially the ones made near mindef, KL.

sydput: you said "Hence, personal biz conflict against national interest"

and all i can say: "It's so dejavu!!"

Coup d'état in Thailand?
If it works, why not?

Malaysia Boleh?

we don't need a military coup, and I have the greatest respect for the armed forces.

If anything he should worry about..he should worry about revolts from within, among his ranks, rent seekers, back stabbers, fence sitters, little napoleons etc etc