Tight security for big red-shirt rally today

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Tight security for big red-shirt rally today
By The Nation 2011-04-10

Red-shirt leaders plan a major gathering at Democracy Monument today to mark the first anniversary of a crackdown on their anti-government rally.

Police and the red-shirt leaders met for 15 minutes to discuss security measures yesterday.

Red-shirt leader Jatuporn Promphan said police and the red shirts would set up checkpoints within a 400-metre radius of the rally site - especially from the Giant Swing to Bang Lamphu - out of concern that ill-intentioned parties might try to disrupt the rally.

Military intelligence officials estimate that 75,000 people may join the rally while police believe 50,000 may turn up. However, the red shirts said they expected more than 200,000 people. The rally will end by 2am on Monday.

Acting Deputy Metropolitan Police Bureau Commissioner Pol Maj-General Surapong Siripakdi said 22 companies of police would be deployed to keep peace. There have been no reports of ill-intentioned parties trying to disrupt the rally, he said.

On April 10 last year, government security forces clashed with red-shirt protesters. More than 20 people were killed and hundreds of others were injured, with many soldiers among the casualties. There were reports that armed men in black fired gunshots and rockets at government forces.

Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban said there was nothing to worry when he was asked to respond over the Defence Minister calling a meeting of security agencies on Monday in the wake of the red-shirts' rally. He said that he believed no one would create turmoil when the general election is about to be held. He said it was normal for a lot of security officials to be deployed to control the situation.

Asked if the security officials were concerned that there could be clashes between the red shirts and the yellow shirts as they would be staging rallies close to one another, Suthep said it was the duty of the officials to keep peace and he called on all parties to cooperate with officials and not to create turmoil.

Department of Special Investigation director-general Tarit Pengdith said he believed there would be no violence or any turmoil during today's red-shirt rally. This is because the protesters aim to stage a symbolic rally as part of their political campaign and to keep their political base as everyone is gearing up towards a general election.

Authorities have not found evidence of any of the hardcore red-shirt leaders, who have been released on bail, violating their bail conditions