Thai Red Shirt protesters are very organised

Wimonwan Suwan is one of the 'Red Shirts' who have been camping and protesting in Bangkok for weeks. 24 hours in the life of a protester.

Thursday April 15, 8 pm.

"This is the best toilet so far," Wimonwan Suwan (32) called out. She and 30 other women in red shirts stood in line to use the bathroom of Central World, a luxury mall in Bangkok. The mall had been closed for days because of the mass protests paralysing the Thai capital, but the owners had left the facilities open for the protesters; they even had them cleaned.

Two weeks ago, Wimonwan packed a little suitcase with ten bras, six pairs of trousers, some sun cream and one T-shirt, to travel to Bangkok and join the protests against the Thai government. Last Thursday, she was sitting in front of Central World, half-listening to speeches by the protests' leaders. She joined the movement of 'Red Shirt' protesters because she wants prime minister Abhisit Vejjajivato to step down, she explained, because he had not been elected. And because she was a fan of his predecessor Thaksin Shinawatra, who was ousted in a military coup in September 2006. "Other prime ministers couldn't do what he did. My motivation is for him to return and give us a better life," she said.

Wimonwan praised Thaksin and his 'war on drugs', because it made her brother stop taking them. "Drugs became so expensive that he could no longer afford them," she said. Her brother has since picked up his old habit again. She also applauded Thaskin's healthcare reforms, which gave the poor access to medical care for as little as 30 baht (70 euro cents).

Thursday, 10 pm.

Wimonwan wanted to go to sleep. She walked through the crowd for 20 minutes until she found her spot. Some of the Red Shirts were fanning themselves, others gave their neighbour a massage or watched the bloody fights of April 10 on television sets.The protests against the current government reached a violent climax on that day, when the army tried to move the protestors, who had been occupying the city centre for a month, by using tear gas, explosives, rubber bullets and real ones. Wimonwan stopped to buy two DVDs of the riots that killed 25 people.

Protesters were lining up to officially register as Red Shirts. They filled out some paperwork, had their picture taken, paid 50 baht and received an ID card. If they are killed in the protests, their relatives will receive some money from the movement.

Friday, 4 am.

Wimonwan was sleeping on a straw mat between two men she had never met before the protests. They had put up a blue plastic sheet to protect themselves from the rain. Even at this hour, the protests' leaders gave speeches on the central stage, which were alternated with karaoke. The music and speeches came through the speakers around the camp at full blast. "We are peacefully asking for democracy and they tell the soldiers to kill us," shouted the female voice washing over the croud. So-called Red Guards, dangerous looking men with tattoos that supposedly offer magical protection, stood guard at the camp in Bangkok's commercial district.

Friday, 6 am.

After Wimonwan woke up, she walked through Lumpini park, where hundreds of Bangkok locals were doing their morning exercises. In the bathrooms, red-clad women mixed with those who had just worked out to brush their teeth and shower for five baht.

Wimonwan is from a village in the Rayong province, a two and a half hour bus ride southeast from the capital. She lost her husband in a car accident nine years ago and has been running a food joint for students with her mother. Business is slow now that the university is closed. The Red Shirt leaders were smart enough to plan their protests during the summer holidays. As it is the dry season here, many farmers also have time off.

Like Wimonwan, many farmers and workers are hoping for Thaksin's return. Many of the protests' leaders are members of his former political party. But there are more affluent protesters as well. They say they are standing up for a more democratic Thailand, with less power in the hands of the army and monarchy. A 51-year old owner of a Bangkok construction company, who asked not to be named, was one of them. "I don't care about Thaksin, I care about the system," he said. "This government is dictated by the military."

Some members of Pattaya 52, the name of Wimonwan's protest group, had started preparing food. They were chopping garlic and coriander under a large white party tent that served as a kitchen. Under the table were three large boxes of chili sauce sachets. "Those are for throwing at the army," Wimonwan said. "What else can we do?"

One of the many monks who have joined the protests begged for food, which someone immediately provided. Meanwhile, nearby residents walked and cycled past the tent on their way to work. They rode expensive mountain bikes and wore polo shirts and pilot sunglasses popularised by king Bhumibol.

Friday, 10.30 am.

"Let's go," Wimonwan shouted. "We have to help our leaders." She and a few fellow Red Shirts jumped in the back of a pickup truck, provided by someone from the coastal city, Pattaya, who himself had already returned home. They took a pile of water bottles and two boxes full of ice to go on their mysterious mission. Mid-journey, the car reversed on the four-lane high way to take an alternative route. Soon after, a Red Shirt on a motorbike approached to tell them their leaders didn't need them anymore. "You can go back now, the leaders are safe," he said.

The truck returned to the camp after a 90-minute fool's errand. Only then was the full story revealed. The police had tried to arrest three of the protests' leaders at a hotel, but they managed to escape. One had lowered himself from a window using an electricity cable to get away. Hundreds of Red Shirts rallied around to protect them, but Wimonwan and her group were too late to help.

Friday, 8 pm.

As Wimonwan and her crew were handing out noodle soup to people gathered in front of the stage, she explained the anxiety she felt. She had heard the army was lining up tanks in the city. This later proved to be only a rumour, but the army was put in control of ending the riots on Friday. Wimonwan said she wasn't afraid, as she had survived the violence on April 10. But if the army did move in, she wasn't going to fight, she had decided. She would just run.