Mob 11 June 65: Teacher Kanokrat, Chulalongkorn University analyzes the return of the Red Land Independent Mass Rally.

A rally of independent mass groups in the Din Daeng Triangle on the night of 11 June after the end of the “Walking Du” activity from the Democracy Monument. Arrived at the Victory Monument in the evening, marking the return of independent mass rallies in seven months since the last time in November 2021.

From the afternoon of June 11, a number of people gathered at the Democracy Monument. in a rally without leaders to express themselves symbolically Walk to Victory Monument to call on Gen. Prayut Chan-o-cha, Prime Minister and Minister of Defense resign

The rally ended in the evening with a “stand-alone” activity calling for the release of nine political prisoners and flashing cell phones. is the last activity before the protesters dispersed After that, at the Din Daeng intersection throughout the night Clashes erupted between the crowd control police and the independent masses.

The incident lasted all night until around 11 p.m., with some demonstrators throwing objects at police lines. Some people threw firecrackers onto the road, setting off fireworks. A man smashed and burned a police car. Crowd control police Has sprayed water to block the protesters, fired tear gas and rubber bullets. In addition, undercover officers appeared to arrest and search independent media.

“It repeats the pattern. (This is a recurring pattern) when August – October last year, which the group came at night. will see the pattern quite clearly as a youth surpassing gas last year,” Asst. Prof. Dr. Kanokrat Lertchusakul, Lecturer at the Faculty of Political Science Chulalongkorn University Tell BBC Thai

The gathering of independent mass groups on the night of June 11 comes after the last time in November 2021 there were rallies and violence between police, crowd control and independent masses in the Din Daeng Triangle and Vibhavadi Road. For almost 4 months between Aug.-Nov. 2021, it was an event that the media and academics called “Din Daeng Battlefield”

assembly of independent masses A 15-year-old boy was shot in the head during an anti-government rally. General Prayut Chan-o-cha during a rally in front of the Din Daeng police station that continued after the rally in Din Daeng on August 16 and died in October.

Why is the rally of the independent masses, also known as “Thabing Gas”, is back? Asst. Prof. Dr. Kanokrat which went to the area to study the origin of the occurrence of the assembly at Din Daeng Intersection Interview with 30 youths who attended the protest in 2021 told the BBC Thai that Because since the rallies of the “Thaw Gas” group ended, the government has never studied the problem. What is the origin of the “mob” at that time? They did not have a request for Gen. Prayut to resign. It also ended with the arrest of nearly 400 protesters, according to observations. It is estimated that there will be around 500-600 leaders at the forefront.

“The state’s solution to litigation increases the cost of the protesters. and then let the mob disintegrate in the midst of outstanding problems This is the first story why Thru Gas has returned.”

Asst. Prof. Dr. Kanokrat said that Conditions for easing measures for COVID-19 Conducive to political rights activists to come out and join the rallies. However, another important issue is The economic situation was worse than last year. Even if it’s starting to open more from covids

Chulalongkorn academics said that the economic situation was worse than last year. Make the lives of youths who join the rally “through the gas”, which from a brief research trip last year They are the descendants of the lower classes in the city. children dropped out of education Young people who can open their eyes and open their mouths before COVID Pulled back into poverty during coronavirus They were the first to be affected immediately. because they are both The workers in the sector are informal and are also youths. Therefore, they do not have access to the welfare of the state that adults can access, such as having money to heal Or the welfare that the state provides is not as accessible to the informal and informal workers as adults.

“In this kind of economy, he is still abandoned. They are also people who are in poverty and have no access to new opportunities. The situation of youth who came during the night (June 11) was even worse. Many have become homeless children with no jobs, no homes. abandoned by family After being prosecuted, to put it simply, this group of problems has not yet been resolved. and heavier.”

Even though the government is nearing the end of its term in early 2023 and the atmosphere is beginning to prepare for elections, Asst. Prof. Dr. Kanokrat said that The problem of youth groups in the form of independent masses or “through gas” is a problem that needs urgency to solve. It’s an urgency that contrasts with the demands of the 2020 youth rally, who gathered because an ineffective government made it difficult for him to achieve his dreams. But for the group through gas the urgency is life

“Youth go through gas. His problem. It’s a problem that means life or death. Today, he will be or will die. Will there be money to pay the rent tomorrow? Will he have to become homeless? Where will he get the money to pay off the motorcycle? For him it was life and death. So his solution is not a constitutional amendment. new elections only which he may demand But it’s not a short term solution. anyway They need a short-term solution. and immediate short-term changes”

Asst. Prof. Dr. Kanokrat also revealed an in-depth interview on why they had to resort to violence. Firecrackers are used because “for them it is At least let the government know that he exists, let the government know that their problems still exist,” which is how these youths communicate with the state.

“This is part of their daily struggle. He faced this with government officials. He was the first to be hit by government officials. violation in all dimensions This is what he normally reacts to government officials.”

Facebook page “Thaw Gas – Thalugaz”, which in 2021 was the central page for meetings. There was movement following the events of the last night’s rally, most recently at about 11:00 a.m., the page posted a message saying that People are suffering from the administration of the country by the government of Gen. Prayut and want the parliament to be dissolved urgently. and not to soldiers and The “invisible hand” is involved in politics. with confirmation of being an “independent mass” that does not require a leader

“Why is this call for a better quality of life less important than others? Every time people come out to protest about expensive oil, expensive things, high cost of living. The rider was oppressed by wages so he didn’t get the attention of the people in society. Or to follow leaders, activists and refugees alone is the right thing to do,” said Facebook Thalugaz.

while the Facebook page “14 generals of the people of the people lll”, which has a movement reporting on the event of the Red Land rally as well posted a message saying reunification “It must have been a lot of resentment and hatred towards the government.”

“At the end of last year’s Din Daeng Mob, there was a saying that will let us stand and hold the mic to arrange a peaceful mob we probably can’t Yes, we really can’t because we have done it after the end of the Red Land Mob and many groups. Tried, but never received the attention of the peace movement. never received the attention of the media…”

Pol Maj Gen Jirasan Kaewsangek, deputy commissioner of the Metropolitan Police (Commander of the Royal Thai Police) and spokesman for the Metropolitan Police Headquarters (BACC) announced the situation at the Red Triangle junction when At 22.00, it was stated that it was a non-peaceful rally. Weapons were used to cause chaos. resulting in damage to government property and trouble with the general public traveling in the area with a warning to stop such actions and will collect evidence to further prosecute the offenders

Chronology of the night of 11 Jun 2022, as recorded by observations by the Internet for People’s Law Project (I Law) and various media outlets.

18.10 Most of the people who gathered at the Victory Monument dispersed. Some remain settled in the same place. But there are some scattered towards the Din Daeng junction. which if you turn left to Vibhavadi Road will go to the 1st Infantry Regiment, where the residence of Gen. Prayut At the Din Daeng intersection, there is a crowd control police unit. with audio equipment, water spraying vehicles and crowd control equipment to line up off the outbound Vibhavadi Road Preventing the protesters from traveling to Flat Page 1, causing most of the protesters, about 60-80 young men, gathered before reaching Din Daeng intersection.

18.45 Some of the demonstrators threw objects at the police line. Some firecrackers were thrown onto the road in front of the police line. The police loudspeaker has repeatedly announced that Ask the protesters not to provoke The officers just wanted to keep the line.

7:07 p.m. Police line up to enclose both sides Most of the police were dressed in khaki and wore armor. Policemen holding shields and guns shooting rubber bullets. by using the police pickup to turn on the emergency lights as the main vehicle

7:15 p.m. at Soi Boonyu In front of the Friendship Tiara Hotel A group of capable men smashed into a parked police truck with emergency lights on. and a fire lit up at the police car.

7:26 p.m. Police pickup truck loaded with police cars. Close the road to move to clear the area from the Din Daeng intersection heading to the monument. While most of the protesters had retreated from the area. During the movement there is also the sound and light of firecrackers or firecrackers periodically.

After that, the protesters dispersed back. the event calmed down and the police pickup gradually move away Open to traffic back to run normally.

After 8:30 p.m., there were still clashes. There were people yelling at the police. sound of firecrackers And the police fired rubber bullets at the protesters at the Din Daeng intersection.

A gathering of “independent masses” in 2021, Asst. Prof. Dr. Kanokrat Lertchusakul, Lecturer at the Faculty of Political Science Chulalongkorn University and Thanapong Gengpaiboon studied the origin of the gathering at Din Daeng Intersection. In the preliminary report, the research project titled “The Formation, Development and Dynamics of Assembly at Din Daeng Intersection” during Aug. – Oct. 2021

In a study by interviewing 30 participants in the assembly, it was found that Most of the participants were youth groups. lower class in society Most of the informants came from poor families. I grew up in a family where my parents had temporary jobs. Low-paid jobs and no housing security From the in-depth interviews, it was found that They dropped out of the education system at an early age and had to start working hard. resulting in lack of opportunities and choices in life

The research report also stated that From the interview, it was found that All protesters at Din Daeng intersection have been hit hard by COVID-19, most of them informal workers in the service and tourism sectors. They were among the first to be fired from their jobs or cut their salaries. In the past, the government had a remedy But it’s not enough and not thorough. Many informants under the age of 18 are not healed and do not have access to government welfare systems such as social security.

For the reason they chose the face-to-face movement, they saw that traditional nonviolent methods were ineffective. No matter how neat and peaceful the protesters are Government officials have treated the same violence.