27/02/2010
Bangkok Post
Tears, jeers, expletives, crumpled handkerchiefs and something resembling war cries greeted the fact Thaksin Shinawatra is now 46 billion baht poorer.
About 300 red shirts at the Puea Thai Party headquarters yesterday responded with anger and tears at the Supreme Court's final verdict which was delivered at 8.50pm.
Upstairs on the fourth floor, 30 Puea Thai MPs sat in anxious silence while one of the nine judges presiding over the case at the court's Criminal Division for Holders of Political Positions read the last portion of the historically-long verdict.
One MP blurted: ''This is not acceptable.''
Fifteen minutes later in front of a screen beaming Thaksin's image, Krongthong Puengsanga, white-haired woman said: ''Red shirts from every province must now come out to fight.''
In her hands she clutched an large photograph of Thaksin sitting astride a white horse.
Although the verdict could not have come as a total shock, the red shirts maintained high spirits throughout a day that could not accurately be described as eventful. The lengthy, monotonous reading of the court's deliberations had the dual effect of inducing heightened expectations and prolonged boredom.
Loyal supporters, mostly middle-aged women, sat glued to their seats in front of the projector's screen from early afternoon until late evening, listening to every word uttered by the judges and reacting with occasional hooting.
When the day began, it was expected that the drama would be focused on the Supreme Court near Sanam Luang.
In the afternoon, a handful of red shirts showed up, followed by an appearance by Maj Gen Khattiya Sawasdipol. The view of riot police and barbed barricades gave the high-fenced building a timely gravity.
Across the street, the Daeng Siam (Red Siam) stage in Sanam Luang was a paltry affair that only attracted a small crowd.
By the afternoon, it was clear that the ebb and flow of emotions was actually taking place at the Puea Thai head office on Rama IV Road, Klong Toey, where the mood was upbeat, buoyant, even optimistic.
The red shirts turned the steps of the building entrance into an entertainment arena. They sang and danced and shouted Thaksin's name in glorious unison. The northeastern mor lam songs were a staple that spurred people to get up and shake their hips, like a mini carnival.
Puea Thai chairman Chavalit Yongchaiyudh arrived and roused the crowd into great emotion. Former prime minister Somchai Wongsawat's arrival again provoked a hubbub, with a number of women clamouring to have their photos taken with him.
''We're singing because we believe that we're fighting for justice and we enjoy doing it,'' said one man.
Yet there was tension in the air. At 3.30pm, loud cheers broke out on the steps of the building when, to the surprise of reporters, someone had mistaken the court's reading of the statement from Thaksin's defence as an acquittal. Prasith Chaisriya started to cry with joy. ''I was so happy,'' he said as he wiped his face, then was stunned speechless when he realised that it was a false alarm. ''I'm singing because today we're not fighting for one man but for justice,'' another woman said.
The same woman sobbed quietly six hours later when she learned her hero was a loser in the historic court case that will determine the course of Thai politics for years.
Only 100 Thaksin supporters turned up at the People Channel station to listen to the live broadcast of the court's verdict.
They occupied seats near a large projector set up in front of the office on the sixth floor of the Imperial Department Store at Lad Phrao.
One red shirt member said he arrived at the station early to listen to the verdict, which he did not expect would favour Thaksin.
The judges' explanations were lengthy and confusing, he said.
The once-cheering crowd of Thaksin's supporters quietly dispersed once the court ruled to seize 46 billion baht of the Shinawatra family's 76.6 billion in frozen assets.
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