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CNN greatly misinforms about Bangkok riot's dead toll.

April 14, 2009 | Bangkok, Thailand | Vetting explained

DonnyTH Posted by:
DonnyTH

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  • Last updated: April 15, 2009
 
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      I believe this would be the most proper channel to inform CNN to make a correction of an important point in their news report. (with citation at the bottom, of course.) The pictures are taken by a witness in the Nanglerng area, where the incident where two people are dead.

 

According to the aftermath report here:
http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiapcf/04/14/thailand.political.chaos/index.html

 

"About 123 people, including more than two dozen soldiers, were wounded in the skirmishes, the government said Tuesday. Two more people were killed when protesters clashed with DEMONSTRATORS SUPPORTING THE GOVERNMENT."

 

      This truth, as widely report by many witnesses in the scene and by the media is that "two people were killed when protesters clashed with COMMUNITY RESIDENTS."       (must also added that the 2 killed are residents, not protesters.)

 

      They are NOT demonstrators. They were NOT supporting the government. They were just city residents trying to protect their home.

 

      At the incident, the protesters were trying to burn another vehicle in front of their homes after raiding and done considerable damages to the Nanglerng community area. The residents then gathered up and started arguing with the protesters, asking them not to set more vehicles on fire as the blaze might catch on to their houses. The confrontation escalates, and soon a fight broke out. The red shirts started firing at the residents, who flee in panic. As a result, a 51-years-old man and an 18-years-old boy is dead, and 3 more was injured from gunshots.

 

CITATION:
This is the photos and witness report of a person who was in the Nanglern area.  (From a famous Thai webboard)
http://www.pantip.com/cafe/rajdumnern/topic/P7744762/P7744762.html
Here is an English news report of the story, from Thailand's biggest English-language newspaper.
http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/local/15014/two-shot-to-death-in-melee

 

      Since this corrected information shed a completely different light on the Thaksin-backed protesters and the casualty of the crisis, and gave false sense that there are pro-government protesters who are equally violent, I believe that CNN, as the world's most well-known media, should be responsible and correct the information reported as soon as possible.

 

      Not doing so would also be disrespectful to the Nanglerng residents who risked and gave their life in trying to protect their home. According to the photographer, The person in the last picture was the mother of the boy who was shot dead.

 

** Addition one day after the report: The mother of the dead boy was interviewed.

"How would anyone feels if something like this happens to you? We didn't take any side. No red-shirt, no yellow-shirt, we took no sides. But at the time, they were going to burn our house. Who is going to let that happen?" ,she said while still crying at her son's funeral.

source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RxaV0UYmY1A

 

* More addition: TIme has passed and CNN still hasn't change the report. Please voice your opionion to see if most people agrees or disagree with correcting the news.

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