Security alerts for week of turmoil

Posted by admin on March 8th, 2010 filed in Bangkok, Culture & customs, Living here, People

So next week will see mass prostests as red shirt Thaksin supporters set about attempting to oust the government and getting their man back in the hot seat. For foreigners witnessing the build up to this occasion, things can be a little bemusing. But what is certain is that there are serious security risks involved for people planning to be in Bangkok on March 14 or any other population centre beforehand.

And let us not forget that four grenades were launched at banks in the capital just a few days ago. And although nobody was actually hurt in these attacks, they easily could have been and things are going to get more heated in the next few days. So what is the answer then? Button down the hatches may be one solution but for many of us who have to live and work in Thailand it is near-on impossible to avoid travel and completely remove oneself from life altogether.

But for people who plan to be in the capital next week it would be a good idea not to frequent any of the protests and to prepare for distruption. There is little doubt that there will be some trouble, and although Thailand’s beleaguered security forces are attempting to put down any problems before they happen, when you’ve thousands of people in one place it can be difficult to avoid.