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[united]

Thaksin is a damn shrewd man.......... just when you think he is cornered, he can pull off such a stunt.

Apr 15 - Ousted Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra is a "special ambassador" for Nicaragua and holds a diplomatic passport issued by the Central American country, the government said on Wednesday.

Thaksin received the passport after a February meeting with Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega, the Nicaraguan government said in a press release.

The Thai government stripped Thaksin of his passport this week, accusing him of instigating violent protests that forced the cancellation of an Asian summit.

Thaksin has lived in self-imposed exile to avoid a two-year jail sentence on corruption and abuse of power charges after being deposed by a coup in 2006. It is unknown where he is now living.

Ortega appointed him to the post to help attract investment to the impoverished nation, the government said.

Protesters loyal to Thaksin surrendered on Tuesday after besieging Government House in the capital, Bangkok, for more than two weeks in a bid to force new elections. Two people were killed in the unrest

[Octopuss]

Is Thaksin working for another country~? 

[united]

Is Thaksin working for another country~? 

no no.

to cut a long story short - he is now wanted by Thai authorities for corruption, so the Thai govt took away Thaksin's Thai passport this week. this makes it harder for Thaksin to travel freely.

now, Thaksin has been given this new passport by Nicaragua, in exchange for some heavy investment into the country, which is very poor.

in summary, he has "bought" himself a passport, and it is much more difficult to track him down now, as he can travel without the knowledge of the Thai govt (since he is not using Thai passport anymore).

but who knows, he could also be holding secret passports from other countries too.

[Octopuss]

OIC thanks for the s_xplaination Bro United~ Gong Tao akuma you 

[sᴇᴄᴛ HΛTΞ ⌘ MΞ]

Thai protest leader in "serious condition" after assassination attempt

BANGKOK: The Thai activist who led a blockade of the kingdom's main airports last year was shot in the head Friday in an assassination attempt the government said was aimed at inciting fresh unrest.

Doctors said that Sondhi Limthongkul, founder of the "Yellow Shirts" royalist movement that helped topple former premier Thaksin Shinawatra, was in a serious condition and in surgery to remove a bullet from his skull.

Gunmen wielding automatic weapons fired about 100 rounds at the car in a dawn attack, injuring Sondhi as well as his driver and aide, a local police commander told AFP.

The attack will heighten tensions between Sondhi's Yellow Shirts and Thaksin's rival "Red Shirts," who took to the streets of Bangkok this week in violent battles with security forces.

The ambush took place as Sondhi, the leader of the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) which mounted a nine-day seizure of Bangkok's two airports last year, was on his way to record a programme for his private television station.

"At least two attackers followed Sondhi's car, overtook it and sprayed it with about 100 rounds of gunfire from AK-47 and M-16s," said the police commander, Colonel King Kwaengwisatchaicharn.

"The motive for the attack is still under investigation," he said.

Hospital authorities said that Sondhi was conscious and talking when he arrived for treatment.

"He has a bullet inside his skull at the right temple. It will take some time because it is brain surgery," said Chaiwan Charoenchoketavee, director at Vajira Medical College.

"His condition is serious but he will be safe. Do not worry," he told AFP.

News websites showed pictures of Sondhi standing in front of his car, his white shirt covered in blood, and later lying conscious on a hospital stretcher with a pad held to the small wound on his temple.

Police said that Sondhi's driver was in a serious condition, while an aide suffered minor injuries.

Government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn said the attack was an attempt to create fresh troubles in Thailand, where Red Shirts protests left at least two dead and 123 injured before being shut down by security forces Tuesday.

"There have been attempts to assassinate Sondhi as well as the government, including the prime minister and other leading figures, from time to time. Thus this is not new," Panitan told AFP.

“But this time the act took place while the state of emergency is still in effect. It was an attempt to create unrest," he said. Bangkok and surrounding areas remain under a state of emergency declared on Sunday.

"This incident may affect confidence a bit among citizens and foreigners but overall the unrest is over," Panitan said.

Thailand has been beset by nearly three years of political turmoil, with mass protests wreaking havoc with daily life and occasionally erupting into violence.

At the heart of the dispute has been Thaksin, a polarising populist adored by his mainly poor supporters and loathed by Sondhi's PAD and its backers among Bangkok's elite in the palace, military and bureaucracy.

The PAD held huge rallies in the streets in 2006 that opened the way for the military to remove Thaksin from power in a coup.

Thaksin supporters are pushing for the current premier, Abhisit Vejjajiva, to resign and call fresh elections, saying he came to power illegitimately in the wake of a court decision that ousted Thaksin's allies.

Anti-government rallies shut down a summit of Asian leaders in the kingdom last weekend, prompting the government to cancel Thaksin's passport and begin a campaign to arrest the leaders of the protest movement.

Media mogul Sondhi was once friends with Thaksin and at one point declared him Thailand's "best prime minister ever" - but then began a campaign against him in late 2005.

Thaksin said Sondhi wanted revenge after the media tycoon invested heavily in a new television station that was blocked by regulatory hurdles.

Thaksin, a billionaire tycoon, is currently living in exile to escape a jail term for corruption.