Don't join campaign to wear red, Yingluck tells supporters
FORMER prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra has asked her supporters not to join a campaign that is calling on them to wear red on November 1 - to show moral support for her.
Yingluck was afraid that by wearing red in her support, her backers could end up sparking a new conflict, her team’s staff member, Wim Rungwattanajinda, said yesterday.
Wim said Yingluck did not know who had initiated the online campaign for supporters to wear red, but the former PM thought the move would create a divide, instead of real backing for her.
The government is seeking damages from Yingluck, who has been held responsible for the loss of more than Bt500 billion stemming from her government’s corruption-plagued rice-pledging scheme.
Yingluck had already acknowledged people’s support through their warm greetings during her recent temple trips in several provinces, Wim said. So, he said, she thought the plan for a symbolic act of support was not necessary.
“If one day people see Yingluck receives injustice, they will come out by themselves anyway.” Wim said. Yingluck’s lawyer Norrawit Larlaeng yesterday declined to comment on the legal consequences of the act of support.
He said he had not discussed the matter with the former PM.
National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) spokesman Colonel Winthai Suvari warned yesterday that the authorities would take action against any red-wearing protest – if it was provocative.
He said such an activity would need to be allowed by relevant authorities.
The NCPO does not limit people’s rights, Winthai said, but rather seeks cooperation from people in a specific, sensitive political situation. For example, the act of wearing red could be seen in a political perspective, despite the reported intention to show support to Yingluck.
Government spokesman Maj-General Sansern Kaewkamnerd said the NCPO and the government would not prohibit such a gathering, if it happened. The government also wishes to remain still (???) on the matter, for example whether a gathering of more than five people would be banned.
People, however, should use their discretion to see if the act of wearing red could once again divide Thai society, Sansern added.
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