Word: thaksin
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Dates: during 2010-2019
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...Thaksin's opponents are equally steeped in the supernatural. The generals who overthrew Thaksin made special trips to Chiang Mai to consult a leading astrologer both before and after their 2006 coup. According to Wassana, the astrologer told her in an interview that he advised the coup makers they would be successful in their putsch, and afterwards performed ceremonies with them in Bangkok to further increase their power. "In the last two successful coups in 1991 and 2006,'' says Craig Reynolds, a professor of Thai history at Australian National University, "the astrologer who advised the chief coup planner became...
...Shirts are not the only ones to perform blood rites. Sondhi Limthongkul, leader of the anti-Thaksin Yellow Shirt movement and the owner of ASTV satellite news network, spread menstrual blood at the base of a statue in a black magic ritual meant to neutralize Thaksin's supernatural weapons. It was just one of several acts staged by Sondhi with black magic overtones...
...political factions and the military are wary of Newin Chidchob, a political boss from Buriram near the Cambodian border who commands the Bhumjai Thai political party. Newin is something of a kingmaker, having been a loyal aide to Thaksin before switching camps so the 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...
...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...