Thailand: Regime Assassinates Protest Leader on Eve of Sham ElectionsPeaceful protests turn deadly as regime unleashes red shirt enforcers and heavily armed assassins. Regime gunmen assassinated celebrated NGO worker, activist, and protest core leader Sutin Taratin Sunday, during a brazen broad-daylight drive-by shooting amid a melee between protesters and armed red shirt regime enforcers. Protests were held across the country at polling stations in opposition to advance voting. Forty-five out of fifty polling stations were closed in Bangkok alone. Bangkoks English paper, The Nation would report in its article, Thaksins big-time opponent latest victim of political violence, that: Sutin Taratin, one of leaders of Peoples Army to Overthrow the Thaksin Regime, has become the latest victim of political violence. He was gunned down Sunday outside the Bang Na advance voting station. He was an non-governmental organisaton officer working for Local Development Institute (LDI) and he was close to former secretary-general of the State Enterprises Labour Relations Confederation Somsak Kosaisuk. The assassination of Sutin Taratin came after the regime and its supporters made explicit threats of armed violence against any who opposed upcoming sham elections. TIME magazine on January 16 reported in their article, Bangkok Shutdown: Yingluck Supporters Prepare to Fight for Democracy, that: As Thailands anti-government protests enter their fourth day, observers say prospects for violent confrontation are increasing,with reports of government supporters stockpiling weapons in case of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatras ouster. According to the Bangkok Post, radical members of the Red Shirts diehard champions of Yingluck and her notorious brother Thaksin Shinawatra are readying a cache of arms in case the 46-year-old premier is forced from office by either military or judicial intervention. Regimes Murder Mayhem in Defense of Sham Elections With a state of emergency announced, the regime is now free to openly wield authoritarian power, and will continue to do so in the lead up to sham elections on February 2, 2014, and well beyond. In the wake of the decree, the regime has summoned entertainers who have participated in recent anti-regime protests as well as declared 31 businesses blacklisted for allegedly supporting the ongoing opposition. The regime has also continued its campaign of terror directed at both protesters and their leaders. The result is a one-party election (all major oppositions parties are boycotting it) carried out under an authoritarian decree being actively used to intimidate and silence the opposition, amid a campaign of systematic terror and assassinations putting it on par with sham elections in Saddams Iraq, or Kim Jong Ills North Korea. Elections held under these conditions are clearly indicative of a dangerous dictatorship, but are instead being defended by the West as a legitimate democratic process being obstructed by anti-democratic militants. This is being done through a campaign of intentional and systematic omissions and distortions particularly in the BBCs coverage of the political crisis. BBCs latest report, in the wake of Sutin Taratins assassination, briefly mentions the attack and skips past it, focusing instead on portraying the protesters as the violent aggressors. Jonathan Head of the BBC would state: Thailands protest movement has an image problem. It is commonly viewed outside Thailand as undemocratic. The movements leader, Suthep Thaugsuban, even wrote a letter to US President Barack Obama this week pleading for more understanding of his goals. But the scenes of his supporters forcefully blocking people from voting wont help that negative image. Of course, that image problem is owed entirely to the Wests disingenuous coverage. Head would also claim in his article that: Protesters, who started their campaign in November, want to install an unelected peoples council to run the country until the political system is changed. They [the protesters] say Ms Yinglucks government is being influenced by her brother, exiled former leader Thaksin Shinawatra. Of course the protesters say Ms Yinglucks government is being influenced by her brother, Thaksin Shinawatra, because both her own political party and Thaksin Shinawatra himself have openly and repeatedly admitted as much. While Thailand is technically under the premiership of Thaksins sister, Yingluck Shinawatra, by his partys own admission, Thaksin is still literally running the country. The election campaign slogan for the last general election in 2011 was literally, Thaksin Thinks, Puea Thai Does, Puea Thai being his political party. Forbes would report in their article, Thaksin in Exile: Advising Sister, Digging for Gold, that: Regarding his behind-the-scenes role in the party and policy, he is not shy: I am the one who thinks. Like our slogan during the campaign, Thaksin thinks, Pheu Thai acts. The New York Times admitted in an early 2013 article titled, In Thailand, Power Comes With Help From Skype, that: For the past year and a half, by the partys own admission, the most important political decisions in this country of 65 million people have been made from abroad, by a former prime minister who has been in self-imposed exile since 2008 to escape corruption charges. The countrys most famous fugitive, Thaksin Shinawatra, circles the globe in his private jet, chatting with ministers over his dozen cellphones, texting over various social media platforms and reading government documents e-mailed to him from civil servants, party officials say. The NYT piece would also report: Hes the one who formulates the Pheu Thai policies, said Noppadon Pattama, a senior official in Mr. Thaksins party who also serves as his personal lawyer. Almost all the policies put forward during the last election came from him. There is no question that an accused mass murderer and convicted criminal hiding abroad from a 2 year jail sentence, multiple arrest warrants, and a long list of pending court cases, is illegally running Thailand by proxy.Being unelected, Thaksin Shinawatra is by all accounts a dictator, and his government a regime, however cleverly they try to dress it up. In this context, protesters blocking elections seeking to reinstall this illegitimate regime run openly by a convicted criminal wouldnt seem so unreasonable, perhaps justified which is precisely why the BBC intentionally omits this fact. And while regime supporters attempting to cast ballots during Sundays advance voting was cited as an indication that the majority wants to vote, several facts should be kept in mind. Despite a larger number of eligible voters this year compared to 2011, those registering for advance voting has actually declined (2.6 million in 2011 vs. 2.1 million in 2014). And even in 2011s elections, the final tally conducted in 2011 by Thailands Election Commission showed that Thaksin Shinawatras proxy political party received 15.7 million votes out of the estimated 32.5 million voter turnout (turnout of approx. 74% voting is compulsory in Thailand). This gave Thaksins proxy party a mere 48% of those who cast their votes on July 3rd (not even half), and out of all eligible voters, only a 35% mandate to actually lead the country. Desperate Dictatorship Western Backers Can Only Delay the Inevitable It is difficult to understand how there are people still claiming terrorism, assassination, plus draconian emergency decrees, plus nepotist criminal party leaders running in one-party elections, all somehow equal democracy. It is much easier to see how they all add up to a dictatorship desperately trying to disguise itself as democratic. With such brazen, dangerous, and quite deadly criminality infecting the highest levels of governmental power in Thailand, it is no wonder unprecedented protests have taken to the streets, and will continue to do so until Thaksin Shinawatra and his corrosive effect on the nation has been uprooted completely and permanently. Whatever the outcome over the next few weeks and months, resistance and awareness will only grow. If Thaksin manages to cling to power this time, he will only be all the weaker the next time around. The disadvantage of being deceitful and exploitative, is that eventually people will uncover the truth. Once these people wake up, they will not go back to sleep. Those with the truth on their side, also have time on their side all they need is the patience to use it to their advantage. Tony Cartaluccis articles have appeared on many alternative media websites, including his own at Land Destroyer Report, Alternative Thai News Network and LocalOrg. Read other contributed articles by Tony Cartalucci here. 