Daily Lessons from Life 15 May 2010 - 16 dead, 1141 injured in Bangkok volence

"16 dead, 141 injured in Bangkok violence - CNA Posted: 15 May 2010 0300 hrs

BANGKOK: Shots and an explosion were heard in Bangkok on Saturday as the death toll from the latest clashes between the Thai army and anti-government "Red Shirt" protesters hit 16.

Three foreigners were injured, emergency services said on Saturday. Tyres, apparently set alight by demonstrators, were burning in an area where troops opened fire on protesters on Friday near their vast fortified encampment.

It was not clear who was doing the shooting, said an AFP reporter at the scene, as soldiers ran to take up positions after an explosion near the Suan Lum Night Bazaar, a market and dining area normally popular with tourists."

So it has come to this. Did it surprised anyone? Probably not except the most optimistic and idealistic.

A nation held in ransom for more than 5-week. Whether the causes are just and deserving to get a fair hearing by the people of the nation, the actions taken did not produce the desired consequence. The inconvenience the silence majority in Bangkok suffered pushed them to put other consideration above this supposedly 'just cause for the blockage and protest' by the Red Shirt folks.

The leaders have to take a big part of the responsibility for leading a well intended and well funded civil unrest movement to force the ruling elites to listen to their plights that failed - thus far.

Lessons for me are:

1. leaders can see things that others do not see. The leaders need to help the others to see that the vision they had is going to be helpful to the people. This I think the Red Shirt had done;

2. leaders have to facilitate the people to execute on the vision. Strategies and tactics are employed. Progress or setback assessed. Original aims and objectives and hence strategies and tactics need adjustment to make sure that the overall purpose is still achievable. This I think the Red Shirt had failed. Too long a campaign that riled people who were neutral or even sympathetic to their causes from continuing their indifference or support!;

3. leaders must be able to extract their people out of a potentially dangerous and failed situation by negotiating for a graceful stepping down and exit peacefully. This the Red Shirt has failed too. 16 dead. Violence is now the order of the day instead of the initial peaceful civil unrest movement it intended to be. Blames can be pointed at the Red Shirt or the government or the pro-government ordinary citizens or the 'could not wait for the firework to go off and create a large bang and disaster' terrorists. The FINAL blame, if any, has to be on the Red Shirt leaders. When you congregate thousand of people in a concentrated area without excellent screening for weapons, or inevitably letting slip those with other ideas and with weapons, it is a volatile situation waiting for an eruption - controlled or accidental!

May good sense prevail and let our neighbour gets back to nation building and let the 'Land of the Smiles' be smiling again!