Word: abhisit
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...fitting that supporters of former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who was ousted in a 2006 coup, have chosen deep scarlet as their identifying hue. Tens of thousands of Red Shirts have thronged Bangkok's government district since March 12 in increasingly virulent demonstrations demanding that current Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva step down and hold new elections. But red is also the color of blood, and in response to Abhisit's steadfast refusal to resign, the Red Shirts decided to shed their own. As dawn broke on March 16, hundreds lined up at medical tents, where nurses siphoned blood from...
...Shirts for the color they wear, were supporters of fugitive former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who was ousted in a 2006 coup and has fled the country rather than serve a prison term on a corruption conviction. His opponents include the current Democrat-led government of Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, the military, a rival group of protesters known as the Yellow Shirts and, according to some, Thailand's monarchy. Thaksin's followers are comprised largely of the rural poor, and so it was easy to dismiss, as many commentators did, the bloody curse as a desperate act by uneducated farmers...
...Democrat party could govern. Newin's real value, however, may be his knowledge of the occult, and in particular Cambodian curses. "Newin's nickname in Thai politics is 'the Wizard of Khmer Black Magic','' Wassana says. Newin's knowledge of Cambodian occult practices may be useful for Abhisit. Because of Thailand's conflict with Cambodia over an ancient border temple, the current PM has also been cursed by Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, who proclaimed last year, "Let magic objects break your neck, may you be shot, be hit by a car, may you be shocked by electricity...
...this would appear to be Oxford-educated Abhisit. Aides say he has never to their knowledge consulted astrologers or practitioners of the occult, an aberration which may contribute to his perceived lack of connection to the rural masses. In his video speeches to Red Shirt protesters, Thaksin has accused Abhisit of having no religion. But Wassana believes Abhisit, because of his Thai upbringing, probably has some degree of belief in the supernatural and predicts he will stage a ceremony when the current protests are over to remove the blood curse put on Government House, where he works. At the very...
...curse of the Red Shirts may ultimately prove unsuccessful in its quest to unseat Abhisit and pave the way for Thaksin's return. But the Red Shirts did achieve a measure of success in making the world more aware of their movement with a black magic ceremony that spellbound news directors of international cable networks and their viewers. Whether they win their war of saiysat or not, the Red Shirts have certainly given resonance to the old newsroom adage: "If it bleeds, it leads...