The victim of the violent confrontation between the pro-government and anti-government camps in February has died today without receiving justice.
Photo of Akew taken by Yongyut Makkay at 17:15 o'clock after he was shot
Akew Se-Liu, a 72 years old street vendor, was shot on his neck by gunmen, believably to be affiliated with the People’s Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC) during the confrontation between the red shirts and anti-election PDRC guards at Lak Si Intersection on 1 February.
After the incident, Akew suffered from paralysis for eight months before his death this morning.
Since the coup d’état in May, there has not been any progress on his case.
The violence erupted one day before the general election at Lak Si was supposed to be held on 2 February, when the PDRC protesters barricaded the election venue to prevent the election from taking place, leading to the violent confrontation with the red shirts, the supporters of the now-defunct Yingluck’s government.
After Akew was shot, Chitpas Kridakorn, a spokesman of the anti-election People’s Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC), as well as many other PDRC supporters, used him to create legitimacy for their movement, and blaming the red shirts for shooting him on Facebook.
Some that sided with PDRC believed that Akew was a red shirt leader. However after Akew’s daughter revealed that her father was not a red-shirt supporter, and pro-election, Chitpas quickly deleted the post.
Some went on to accuse him as the leader of a Cambodian militant group. Meanwhile, the Popcorn gunmen were praised as they came to ‘help’ the PDRC protesters.
According to Matichon, however, the direction of the bullet was from the PDRC guards, where the well-known ‘Popcorn Gunman’ and ‘Guitar Gunman’ were shooting at the red shirts.
On 20 March, the police announced that they arrested, Wiwat Yodprasit, who were suspected to be Popcorn Gunman, who used M16 covered under popcorn sack to shoot the red shirts in Lak Si on 2 February.
Several sources reported that Wiwat confessed that he was the Popcorn Gunman during the police’s press conference and the police charged him with illegal possession of weapons and attempt murder. However, according to Khaosod, Wiwat only confessed that he was a PDRC guard.
At the press conference, the police, however, made no reference that Akew was killed by accused.
On the contrary to the police’s findings, Puangthip Boonsanong, a lawyer from the Network of Student and People for Reform of Thailand (NSPRT), claimed that Wiwat was a scapegoat, who was tortured by the police to admit that he was Popcorn Gunman.
After his death, Walaiporn Se-Liu, Akew’s daughter urged that the violence that happened to her father should never happen again and that Thai people should use reasons instead of arms to solve the conflict.