Center for the Resolution of the Emergency Situation
Center for the Resolution of the Emergency Situation ( CRES for short ; Thai : ศูนย์ อำนวย การ แก้ไข สถานการณ์ ฉุกเฉิน , RTGS : Sun Amnuai Kan Kae Khai Sathannakan Chuk Choen, ศ อ ฉfor short , German: Center for solving the emergency situation ) was a Thai government organization . The Abhisit Vejjajiva government founded the CRES on April 7, 2010 with the mandate to restore order in Bangkok and various provinces in the wake of the unrest in Bangkok .
The activists of the United Front for Democracy Against Dictatorship ( UDD for short , German for example: United National Front for Democracy Against Dictatorship ; popularly "red shirts") protested in the city since March 12th and occupied the center since April 3rd Bangkok's Ratchaprasong Junction. They wanted to force the resignation of the government and subsequent new elections.
activities
The establishment referred legally to the public emergency ordinance of July 16, 2005 and was a direct reaction to the storming of the House of Representatives .
The immediately declared state of emergency authorized the CRES to detain and question suspects in unofficial locations for up to 30 days. The CRES staff were largely immune to law enforcement in these acts. The number of people detained was not disclosed.
In addition, during the time of the unrest, the CRES shut down about 1,000 websites, a television station, several online television channels and more than 40 radio stations that it had linked to the UDD.
On April 10, the CRES gathered several thousand military and police units in the occupied area. They stormed the occupied central business district, but encountered massive resistance. The soldiers withdrew in a panic and used live ammunition.
On the evening of April 16, Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva announced the restructuring of the CRES. He handed over the management of the organization from Suthep Thaugsuban to Anupong Paochinda . In addition, the center should be better able to react to terrorist elements that infiltrated the demonstration. Abhisit also mentioned the failed police attempt on the same day to arrest four red shirt leaders, including Nattawut Saikua and Arisman Pongruangrong . The crowd of demonstrators prevented the police from storming the building, allowing those wanted to escape through the windows and facade. The red shirts, according to their own statements, took four members of the operating special police unit hostage.
On May 13, the CRES changed the rules of engagement of the troops deployed. The new guidelines allowed the use of live ammunition for warning shots, for self-defense and for killing unspecified " terrorists ". According to Human Rights Watch , the government created no-go areas between the military and the demonstrators. Snipers were allowed to shoot anyone who was there.
On May 15, the CRES suspended 106 accounts. These included the bank accounts of senior members of the UDD, former Thai Rak Thai officials , the family of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and Khattiya Sawasdipol , a military leader of the red shirts.
Members
The CRES originally consisted of the following people:
| function | person | Function in the CRES | comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deputy Prime Minister | Suthep Thaugsuban | Director 1 | replaced by Minister of Defense Prawit Wongsuwan on October 5, 2010 |
| Commander in Chief of the Army | General Anupong Paochinda | Third assistant to the director from April 16, 2010 senior person in charge 1 |
replaced by General Prayuth Chan-ocha on October 1, 2010 |
| Defense Minister | General Prawit Wongsuwan | Deputy Director | from October 5th director |
| Permanent State Secretary of the Ministry of Defense | First assistant to the director | ||
| Commander in Chief of the Thai Armed Forces | General Songkitti Jaggabatara | Second assistant to the director | |
| Commander in Chief of the Navy | Admiral Khamthorn Pumhiran | Fourth assistant to the director | |
| Commander in Chief of the Air Force | General Itthaporn Subhawong | Fifth assistant to the director | |
| Police High Commissioner | Police General Pateep Tanprasert | Sixth assistant to the director | replaced on September 2, 2010 by Police General Wichian Podbhosri |
| Permanent State Secretary of the Ministry of Justice | member | ||
| Permanent State Secretary of the Ministry of the Interior | member | ||
| Permanent State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs | member | ||
| Permanent State Secretary of the Ministry of Health | member | ||
| Permanent State Secretary of the Ministry of Technology and Communication | member | ||
| Permanent State Secretary of the Ministry of Energy | member | ||
| Attorney General | member | ||
| Secretary General of the Council of State | member | ||
| Director of the State Intelligence Service | member | ||
| Director General of the Public Relations Office | member | ||
| Director of the Budget Office | member | ||
| Director General of the Office for Disaster Prevention and Response | member | ||
| Director General of the Department of Special Investigation | member | ||
| General Secretary of the Medical Emergency Institute | member | ||
| Governor of the Bangkok Metropolitan Area | member | ||
| Assistant to the Director of the Internal Security Operations Command | member | ||
| First Assistant to the Commander in Chief | member | ||
| Second Assistant to the Commander-in-Chief | member | ||
| Secretary General of the National Security Council | Member and Secretary | ||
| Secretary of the Internal Security Operations Command | Commanding member and deputy secretary | ||
| Soldiers, police officers and officials who are doing their duty in the areas affected by the declaration of emergency or who have been transferred to the affected areas. |
Annotation:
- 1 After the restructuring on April 16, 2010, the chief officer was no longer responsible for the operations of the CRES.
Responsibilities
When it was founded, the CRES was responsible for the following areas:
- Bangkok
- Nonthaburi Province
- In the province of Samut Prakan the districts: Samut Prakan , Bang Phli , Phra Pradaeng , Phra Samut Chedi , Bang Bo and Bang Sao Thong
- In the province of Pathum Thani, the districts of Thanyaburi , Lat Lum Kaeo , Sam Khok , Lam Luk Ka and Khlong Luang
- In the province of Nakhon Pathom the district Phutthamonthon
- In Ayutthaya Province, the districts of Wang Noi , Bang Pa In , Bang Sai and Lat Bua Luang
Web links
- Abhisit Vejjajiva: The Prime Minister's Special Directive No. 1/2553. (pdf) The Establishment of the Center for the Resolution of the Emergency Situation. In: Official website of the Thai Foreign Ministry. April 7, 2010, archived from the original on May 21, 2012 ; Retrieved on March 27, 2012 (English, unofficial translation of the founding directive of the CRES).
- Descent into chaos. Thailand's 2010 Red Shirt Protests and the Government Crackdown. In: Human Rights Watch. May 3, 2011, accessed on July 2, 2012 (detailed report on the unrest).
Individual evidence
- ^ Emergency Decree on Public Administration in Emergency Situation 2005. In: asianlii.org. July 16, 2005, accessed March 27, 2012 .
- ↑ a b c d e Thailand. (pdf; 27 kB) country summary. In: Human Rights Watch. January 2011, accessed on March 28, 2012 (English): "Political instability and polarization continued in 2010, and occasionally resulted in violence."
- ^ Restructuring the Center for the Resolution of the Emergency Situation to Streamline Efforts to Enforce Law and Order. (No longer available online.) In: Ministry of Public Relations, Thailand. April 17, 2010, archived from the original on July 12, 2011 ; accessed on March 27, 2012 (English). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Red shirts embarrass the police in Bangkok. In: Neue Zürcher Zeitung . April 16, 2010, accessed September 30, 2010 (Thai opposition leaders escape police presence).
- ^ The Center for Resolution of Emergency Situation declared that 106 bank accounts have been frozen. (No longer available online.) In: Pattaya Times. May 15, 2010; Archived from the original on November 27, 2010 ; accessed on March 27, 2012 (English). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Thai Cabinet extends state of emergency in Bangkok, 3 adjacent provinces ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , MCOT, October 5, 2010, accessed April 2, 2012
- ↑ Abhisit appoints Prayuth chief officer in charge of emergency resolution ( Memento of the original from October 4, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , The Nation, October 1, 2010, accessed April 2, 2012
- ↑ Restructuring the Center for the Resolution of the Emergency Situation to Streamline Efforts to Enforce Law and Order ( Memento of the original of July 12, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , The Government Public Relations Department, April 17, 2010, accessed April 2, 2012.
