[WebDocMan]

About 50,000 red shirts from the Northeast will meet former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra in Vientiane during the Songkran festival next month.

Red shirt leader Nisit Sinthuphrai said about 50,000 Thaksin supporters are expected to leave for Laos to meet him there as he pays a brief visit to Laos and Cambodia during the festival.

The red shirts would gather at the stadium of the Nong Khai provincial administrative organisation on April 11 and leave for Vientiane the next morning.

Their travels will be broadcast live on the pro-Thaksin Asia Update television station.

Mr Nisit said red shirt co-leader Jatuporn Prompan would make arrangements for another group of red shirts to meet Thaksin in Siem Reap of Cambodia.

Theppanom Namlee, a red shirt leader in Surin province, said red shirts from Yasothon, Buri Ram, Roi Et and Surin provinces would pass the Chong Jom border pass in Kap Choeng district of Surin on April 13 and head for Thaksin's whereabouts.

Mr Theppanom said some 10,000 red shirts are expected to join the trip to meet Thaksin who will be in Siem Reap on April 14 and 15.

Mr Theppanom said MPs of the Pheu Thai Party should travel along.

Thaksin made a phone call to a meeting of his northeastern red shirt supporters last Saturday.

Thaksin, who has been living in Dubai in self-imposed exile since 2008, invited his supporters to meet him either in Siem Reap or in Vientiane during the Songkran festival. He will be in Vientiane on April 12 and 13.

Kwanchai Praipana, the red shirt's leader in Udon Thani province, said he would lead about 1,000 red shirt followers from Udon Thani to meet Thaksin at Phetchampa Hotel in Vientiane on April 12.

Red shirts plan to organise a ceremony to pray for Thaksin's well-being and smooth return to Thailand.

Thaksin's supporters from Udon Thani will return to their home province on the same day.

Mr Kwanchai said he would organise an event on April 7 at which red shirts would launch a drug campaign with police.

He expects Thaksin to phone in to greet his supporters on that day.

[flanna.kersting]

Thaksin is the only hope left for Thailand.

[WebDocMan]

Red Tour 999 will take you on a three-day road trip to Siem Reap, Cambodia, staying at a four-star hotel for 6,500 baht each _ but there's a catch.

An ad on the Facebook page of a red shirt invites people to join an April 13-15 tour to Cambodia where they can visit Angkor Wat and meet ousted premier Thaksin Shinawatra.

"You should be a red shirt," said the tour organiser who goes by the name of Ton7777.

"We have to be concerned about the safety of [former] prime minister Thaksin [Shinawatra]."

During the Songkran holidays, April 13-15, the tour will take you to cultural heritage sites such as Angkor Wat and Angkor Thom, but the highlight will be on April 14, when tour participants will get a chance to meet the ousted premier and perform a rod nam dam hua ceremony, in which Songkran celebrants show respect to their elders by pouring holy water over their hands.

Ton7777 says he does not mean to bar non-red shirts from participating in the tour, but he is concerned about two issues _ the safety of Thaksin and also the fun factor of the tour itself.

"If you are a yellow shirt, what fun will you have? How will you get along with everyone? It will be uncomfortable for you and everyone else," he said.

So far, two callers interested in his tour are on his list of suspects.

The first question he always asks before making a reservation is: "Are you a red shirt?"

If the caller says yes, but is unable to name which red shirt group he belongs to, then Ton7777 knows something is fishy.

"If it is someone who is open and doesn't hate Thaksin, it should be fine," he said of interested vacationers, but he also cautioned that he has not yet decided on how strict the policy will be.

There are two purposes for the Red Tour, according to Ton7777.

The first is for people who love and admire Thaksin to meet him in person and offer him their respect at the auspicious Songkran ceremony. A pilgrimage, if you will.

The second is to gain knowledge in preparation for the Asean Economic Community in 2015.

Ton7777 said the tour will educate them about the upcoming single economic community, focusing on issues such as the labour movement, vocational opportunities and the importance of learning English.

Ton7777 revealed he is an engineer with a multinational company. He has a master's degree and is working on his doctorate.

"I wasn't involved in politics before," he said. Like many others, he decided to don a red shirt after the 2006 coup.

On Saturday, during a phone-in to a red shirt rally in Surin, Thaksin invited supporters to meet him in Vientiane on April 12 and 13 and in Siem Reap on April 14 and 15.

Thus far, the red shirt "We Love Udon" and "We Love Isan" groups are also organising trips to meet the former prime minister. It is estimated that up to 10,000 supporters from Udon Thani alone will travel to the two neighbouring countries this Songkran holiday.

[WebDocMan]

Jatuporn paves way for Thaksin

Red shirt co-leader Jatuporn Prompan went to Laos on Friday to arrange schedules to ensure a smooth holiday for fugtive ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra who will be celebrating Songkran there.

Reporters spotted Mr Jatuporn at Udon Thani Airport with red-shirt core member Kwanchai Praipana while waiting to board a plane back to Bangkok after their trip to Laos.

Mr Jatuporn, who is also a Pheu Thai list MP, said he and his group held talks with Lao authorities, and planned arrangements and schedules including a welcoming event for Thaksin who will arrive in Vientiane, the capital, at about 11am on April 11.

Thaksin announced last weekend that he would spend his Songkran hoilidays in Laos between April 11 and 13 and in Cambodia between April 14 and 15.

The Federation of Lao Industries will host a banquet on the first day of his three-day stay in Laos, according to Mr Jatuporn. The second day will feature a merit-making ceremony and a rod nam dam hua ceremony (in which Songkran celebrants show respect to the elderly by pouring holy water over their hands) for Thaksin.

Mr Jatuporn said Cambodian officials were preparing to discuss how to handle masses of red-shirts expected to cross the border to meet Thaksin in Siem Reap on April 14 and 15. The Cambodians will allow red-shirt visitors to enter the world famous Angkor Wat temple site for free.

A Thai-Cambodian musical and cultural show will be held on the night of April 14 and Thaksin will leave Cambodia on April 16, he said.

"Prime Minister Thaksin has arranged three kinds of presents to distribute to all the brothers and sisters who go to Laos and Cambodia,'' the Pheu Thai MP said.

The presents are 20,000 full-face rubber Thaksin masks, 30,000 red polo shirts each bearing a picture of Thaksin, and 100,000 hand fans with pictures of Thaksin and his family members.

"Prime Minister Thaksin said [all can] meet Thaksin [and all can] take Thaksin home,'' Mr Jatuporn said, referring to the Thaksin face masks.

It has been estimated that up to 10,000 Thaksin supporters from Udon Thani alone will travel to the two neighbouring countries this Songkran holiday.

[Rndouglas]

This thaksin is really a tai gor tai