Wear them down, advises strategist

Army has time, money on its side in UDD fight
Published: 29/04/2010 at 12:00 AM


Patience coupled with pressure and psychological tactics is the best way to approach the red shirt protest at Ratchaprasong intersection, an army strategist advises.
Teeranan Nandhakwang, deputy director of the army's Strategic Studies and Research Division, said on Wednesday taht both troops and protesters had too much to lose if the government retook the protest site through force.
Pressure tactics such as laying siege to the protest site, blocking logistics and arresting the red shirt leaders would set the stage for military action to retake the area with minimal losses.
Ratchaprasong intersection is unlike Ratchadamnoen Avenue in that it is a commercial district lined with high-rise buildings, he said. Storming the site would not be a good idea.
Col Teeranan said the red shirt protesters should not be underestimated.
The April 10 clashes with security forces had hardened many of the demonstrators and turned them into "warriors". Their leaders have also kept them fired up.
"The longer it takes, the wearier they become," he said.
"The military has better logistics and management. We [the army] have the leverage."
Col Teeranan admitted his proposal was unlikely to bring any comfort to people suffering as a result of the protest and its consequences.
"But politics or pressure should never influence military operations. The question is: Can we endure?"
He expressed concern that the issues of "terrorism" and the alleged movement to topple the monarchy raised by the government and emerging pressure groups would lead to calls for the use of force.
He said the Centre for the Resolution of the Emergency Situation (CRES) had been under pressure to act but the issue could not be solved by the military alone.
He suggested that the government should be ready to rehabilitate those who were involved in the rally and proceed to tackle the political problems by the time a military operation is launched to retake Ratchaprasong intersection.
"The problems do not end with retaking the protest area. The government must not leave the bruised and battered protesters as they are. [It must] do all it can to rehabilitate them.
"The political problems must also be addressed.
"The suspended negotiations about a dissolution of the House or charter amendments should resume," he said.
Col Teeranan dismissed fears about the country descending into civil war, saying what is happening did not yet fit that description.
Even though the protesters were armed, their weapons were only good enough for self defence. "They are the weapons of ordinary people who are afraid of being dispersed," he said.
Col Teeranan said that by proposing this model, he risked being labelled a "watermelon soldier", terminology in use to describe soldiers with green uniforms but hearts that belong to the red shirt movement. "But I can tell you this is the way to end the crisis."