Dissident Thai general is dead

The renegade Thai general shot and wounded at an anti-government protest site Thursday has died.

Izvor: VOA

Monday, 17.05.2010.

09:21

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The renegade Thai general shot and wounded at an anti-government protest site Thursday has died. General Khattiya Sawasdiphol, better known as "Seh Daeng," or Commander Red, had enemies in the government he broke rank with and the protest movement he vowed to defend. Dissident Thai general is dead He was shot in the head while giving an interview to a reporter from The New York Times last week. His last words were "the military cannot get in here." Seh Daeng was a legendary figure in Thailand, famous for the battlefield prowess he showed while fighting communist insurgents in the 1970s. A staunch supporter of ousted Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, the general assumed a leading role with the pro-Thaksin "Red Shirt" political movement. The 58-year-old general commanded a small team of loyal hardline-supporters who guard the Red Shirt encampment in downtown Bangkok. He was frequently seen dressed in his camouflage uniform, inspecting the crude bamboo barricades built around the site as admirers approached him for his autograph. But many within the protest movement had openly distanced themselves from Seh Daeng, out of concern that his methods were too violent. He was accused of being responsible for several grenade attacks in Bangkok in recent weeks, a charge he denied. The current government called him a terrorist and suspended without pay. The general faced disciplinary action before. In 2008, he was famously reassigned to teach an aerobics class as a form of punishment. As the Thai government puts more pressure on the Red Shirts to vacate their protest site, Seh Daeng had defiantly vowed not to let security forces in without a fight.

Dissident Thai general is dead

He was shot in the head while giving an interview to a reporter from The New York Times last week.

His last words were "the military cannot get in here."

Seh Daeng was a legendary figure in Thailand, famous for the battlefield prowess he showed while fighting communist insurgents in the 1970s.

A staunch supporter of ousted Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, the general assumed a leading role with the pro-Thaksin "Red Shirt" political movement.

The 58-year-old general commanded a small team of loyal hardline-supporters who guard the Red Shirt encampment in downtown Bangkok.

He was frequently seen dressed in his camouflage uniform, inspecting the crude bamboo barricades built around the site as admirers approached him for his autograph.

But many within the protest movement had openly distanced themselves from Seh Daeng, out of concern that his methods were too violent. He was accused of being responsible for several grenade attacks in Bangkok in recent weeks, a charge he denied.

The current government called him a terrorist and suspended without pay.

The general faced disciplinary action before. In 2008, he was famously reassigned to teach an aerobics class as a form of punishment.

As the Thai government puts more pressure on the Red Shirts to vacate their protest site, Seh Daeng had defiantly vowed not to let security forces in without a fight.

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