Gunmen in Thailand in Hot Demand as Power Shifts by Phairath Khampha 30 June 2000 Battle for control of grassroots authority In classic Thai style of bullying and a lack of any true democracy, Thailand's decentralisation of power to local administrative bodies has boosted demand for hired gunmen as conflicts of interest burgeon. Police attribute the rise in local crime to the new administrative authority the government has given to grassroot organisations. Ensuing conflicts of interest intensify political rivalry, which in turn degenerates into violence. The power decentralisation policy came with a price. As friction between elements being allocated the power leads to clashes, gunmen are paid to settle the scores, said Pol Gen Narongvich Thaithong, deputy police chief in charge of the gunmen suppression unit. This is classic Thai style for dealing with issues as bullying is the order in the day in Thailand in order to get one's way. Bodies such as the tambon (sub-district) administration organisations, municipalities and provincial administration organisations have greater freedom to manage their internal affairs as a result of budgets funded either by the government or collection of local taxes. The high associated venal interests and anticipated gains induced feuding, and this was a pressing concern, said Pol Gen Narongvich. "Power and money are a perfect chemistry for conflict," he said. It would be some time before local organisations became more developed and the system of balances and checks was properly in place. He said police were constantly monitoring known gunmen, both old hands and newcomers, and where possible helped mitigate looming conflicts that might provide a pretext for violence. in many cases the hired gunmen themselves were policemen moonlighting. There were about 1,000 gunmen on the list. A close watch was also kept on their accomplices, he said. In most cases, a gunman with a hit contract was accompanied by a person who helped identify the target and the driver of a getaway motorcycle, Pol Gen Narongvich said. The masterminds usually drew up a complex plan to ensure they could not be connected with the murder if the shooter or his helpers were ever caught. Pol Gen Narongvich said his unit worked closely with regional, city and central investigation police bureaus and could call on the national police office for logistical help. Some high-profile cases cost the police as much as 20 million baht. This included the capture operation, detention during trial and witness protection. The deputy police chief said tracking down new-face killers was an arduous task, because they usually did not have prior criminal records. Those with a criminal history knew they were easy to hunt down and so they create a network by persuading newcomers to take the job. Authorities needed a reliable and comprehensive data bank to effectively fight crime. Meanwhile, police were also focussing their attention on the known syndicates which had affiliations with gunmen. Even with all the difficulties, police last year managed to close 87 of the 119 cases involving gunmen-a clean-up rate of about 80%, he said. The police have published warrants for suspected gunmen on the website: www.specialcrime.go.th.