Internal Security Operations Command
Encyclopedia
The Internal Security Operations Command (ISOC) is a unit of the Thai
military devoted to national security issues. It was responsible for suppression of leftist groups during the 1970s and 1980s during which it was implicated in numerous atrocities against activists and civilians. The modern ISOC was implicated in a plot to assassinate Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra
. After Thaksin was deposed in a military coup, the junta transformed the ISOC into a "government within a government", giving it wide-reaching authority over the National Counter Corruption Committee, the Department of Special Investigation, and the Anti-Money Laundering Office. The junta also authorized it to help provincial authorities in marketing OTOP products. In June 2007, the junta approved a draft national security bill which would give ISOC sweeping powers to handle "new forms of threats" to the country. The ISOC revamp modelled it after the US Department of Homeland Security, and would give ISOC sweeping new powers and allow the ISOC chief to implement security measures such as searches without seeking approval from the prime minister. As of June 2007, ISOC was headed by Army Commander-in-Chief and junta head General Sonthi Boonyaratglin
. Apart from this the ISOC is under the authority of the Office of the Prime Minister
.
Following the 17 November 1971 coup by military dictators Thanom Kittikachorn
and Prapas Charusathian, Praphas appointed himself Interior Minister, Chief of Police, and head of the CSOC.
The CSOC was implicated in several atrocities in its 1970s war against leftist groups. This included the murder of southern Thai activists by putting them into drums of boiling oil.
Student leader Thirayut Boonmee showed evidence that the destruction of Ban Na Sai village in the Northeast of Thailand was the handiwork of the CSOC. The military had earlier claimed that the Communist Party of Thailand
had been behind the villages destruction.
The ISOC succeeded the CSOC after the overthrow of Thanom and Prapas.
Future Prime Minister Prem Tinsulanonda
was a senior officer of the ISOC.
The ISOC's role declined starting in the early 1980s after the downfall of the CPT. However, its still had great influence. In 1 April 1987, after Prime Minister Kukrit Pramoj
claimed that the ISOC had been brainwashed by communists, over 200 Thai Army Rangers attacked the Prime Minister's residence.
was sacked from his position after Lieutenant Thawatchai Klinchana, his driver, was found driving a car containing 67 kilograms of explosives around the residence of Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra
. Pallop denied all involvement, noting that "If I was behind it, I would not have missed." Metropolitan Police Bureau commissioner Lt-General Wiroj Jantharangsee noted that the explosives in the car were completely assembled, equipped with a remote unit sensor and ready to be detonated, and would have a blast radius of around one kilometre.
appointed himself head of the ISOC (its previous head had been the Prime Minister) and transformed the ISOC into a "government within a government", described as being equivalent to the US Department of Homeland Security. The ISOC was given wide-reaching authority over the National Counter Corruption Committee, the Department of Special Investigation, and the Anti-Money Laundering Office. The new ISOC was criticized as being a shadowy puppet master pulling strings among existing agencies, answerable to no one but its leader.
To protect people in the south of Thailand from insurgency-related violence
, the ISOC produced Jatukham Rammathep
amulets for distribution to the Buddhist minority. The renowned animist amulets were believed by some to have magical powers to protect their holders from violence and large sums are paid for them. The plan was developed by Colonel Manas Khongpan, deputy director of the ISOC in Yala province
.
The Cabinet of General Surayud Chulanont
gave the ISOC staff a 84.3 million baht "reward". The ISOC had originally requested the reward in 2003, but was turned down by the Thaksin government.
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
military devoted to national security issues. It was responsible for suppression of leftist groups during the 1970s and 1980s during which it was implicated in numerous atrocities against activists and civilians. The modern ISOC was implicated in a plot to assassinate Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra
Thaksin Shinawatra
Thaksin Shinawatra is a Thai businessman and politician, who was Prime Minister of Thailand from 2001 to 2006, when he was overthrown in a military coup....
. After Thaksin was deposed in a military coup, the junta transformed the ISOC into a "government within a government", giving it wide-reaching authority over the National Counter Corruption Committee, the Department of Special Investigation, and the Anti-Money Laundering Office. The junta also authorized it to help provincial authorities in marketing OTOP products. In June 2007, the junta approved a draft national security bill which would give ISOC sweeping powers to handle "new forms of threats" to the country. The ISOC revamp modelled it after the US Department of Homeland Security, and would give ISOC sweeping new powers and allow the ISOC chief to implement security measures such as searches without seeking approval from the prime minister. As of June 2007, ISOC was headed by Army Commander-in-Chief and junta head General Sonthi Boonyaratglin
Sonthi Boonyaratglin
General Sonthi Boonyaratglin is former Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Thai Army and former head of the Council for National Security, the military junta that ruled the kingdom. He is the first Muslim in charge of the mostly Buddhist army...
. Apart from this the ISOC is under the authority of the Office of the Prime Minister
Office of the Prime Minister (Thailand)
The Office of the Prime Minister of Thailand is the central executive agency in the Government of the Kingdom Thailand. It is classified as a Cabinet Department of Thailand and is led by its own Minister. The office main responsibility is to assist the Prime Minister of Thailand in his role as the...
.
Communist Suppression Operations Command
The CSOC was established in 1966 with the assistance of the United States to coordinate nationwide anti-Communist operations.Following the 17 November 1971 coup by military dictators Thanom Kittikachorn
Thanom Kittikachorn
Field Marshal Thanom Kittikachorn was a military dictator of Thailand. A staunch anti-Communist, Thanom oversaw a decade of military rule in Thailand from 1963 to 1973, until public protests which exploded into violence forced him to step down...
and Prapas Charusathian, Praphas appointed himself Interior Minister, Chief of Police, and head of the CSOC.
The CSOC was implicated in several atrocities in its 1970s war against leftist groups. This included the murder of southern Thai activists by putting them into drums of boiling oil.
Student leader Thirayut Boonmee showed evidence that the destruction of Ban Na Sai village in the Northeast of Thailand was the handiwork of the CSOC. The military had earlier claimed that the Communist Party of Thailand
Communist Party of Thailand
The Communist Party of Thailand - CPT was a Marxist-Leninist, Communist political party in Thailand, active from 1942 until the 1990s. Initially known as Communist Party of Siam the party was founded officially on the 1st of December 1942, although communist activism in the country began as early...
had been behind the villages destruction.
The ISOC succeeded the CSOC after the overthrow of Thanom and Prapas.
Operations during the 1970s
The ISOC conducted operations in cities and the Thai countryside to subvert leftist groups through propaganda and violence. In 1973, the ISOC commenced a bombing campaign against hill tribe villages in the North of Thailand.Future Prime Minister Prem Tinsulanonda
Prem Tinsulanonda
General Prem Tinsulanonda is a retired Thai military officer who served as Prime Minister of Thailand from March 3, 1980 to August 4, 1988. He now serves as the Head of the Privy Council of the King of Thailand, Bhumibol Adulyadej....
was a senior officer of the ISOC.
The ISOC's role declined starting in the early 1980s after the downfall of the CPT. However, its still had great influence. In 1 April 1987, after Prime Minister Kukrit Pramoj
Kukrit Pramoj
Mom Rajawongse Kukrit Pramoj was a Thai politician and scholar. He was Speaker of the House of Representatives of Thailand 1973-1974 and was the thirteenth Prime Minister of Thailand, serving in office from 1975-1976.- Early years:Of royal descent, M.R...
claimed that the ISOC had been brainwashed by communists, over 200 Thai Army Rangers attacked the Prime Minister's residence.
Plot to assassinate Thaksin Shinawatra
ISOC Deputy Director Pallop PinmaneePallop Pinmanee
General Pallop Pinmanee is a retired Thai Army general who took part in several coups, ordered the massacre of insurgents at Krue Sae Mosque and allegedly played a role in the attempted car bomb assassination of Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra...
was sacked from his position after Lieutenant Thawatchai Klinchana, his driver, was found driving a car containing 67 kilograms of explosives around the residence of Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra
Thaksin Shinawatra
Thaksin Shinawatra is a Thai businessman and politician, who was Prime Minister of Thailand from 2001 to 2006, when he was overthrown in a military coup....
. Pallop denied all involvement, noting that "If I was behind it, I would not have missed." Metropolitan Police Bureau commissioner Lt-General Wiroj Jantharangsee noted that the explosives in the car were completely assembled, equipped with a remote unit sensor and ready to be detonated, and would have a blast radius of around one kilometre.
Post 2006-coup ISOC
Thaksin planned a major restructuring of the ISOC prior to the coup which overthrew him in September 2006. Soon after the coup, the junta released three of the Army suspects in the car bomb plot. Junta leader and Army Commander-in-Chief General Sonthi BoonyaratglinSonthi Boonyaratglin
General Sonthi Boonyaratglin is former Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Thai Army and former head of the Council for National Security, the military junta that ruled the kingdom. He is the first Muslim in charge of the mostly Buddhist army...
appointed himself head of the ISOC (its previous head had been the Prime Minister) and transformed the ISOC into a "government within a government", described as being equivalent to the US Department of Homeland Security. The ISOC was given wide-reaching authority over the National Counter Corruption Committee, the Department of Special Investigation, and the Anti-Money Laundering Office. The new ISOC was criticized as being a shadowy puppet master pulling strings among existing agencies, answerable to no one but its leader.
To protect people in the south of Thailand from insurgency-related violence
South Thailand insurgency
An ethnic separatist insurgency is taking place in Southern Thailand, predominantly in the Malay Pattani region, made up of the three southernmost provinces of Thailand. Violence has increasingly spilling over into other provinces...
, the ISOC produced Jatukham Rammathep
Jatukham Rammathep
Jatukham Rammathep is the name of an unusually popular amulet sold by some Buddhist temples in Thailand. The amulet is named for two princes of the Srivijaya kingdom of southern Thailand, and is believed to provide protection and good fortune to the bearer...
amulets for distribution to the Buddhist minority. The renowned animist amulets were believed by some to have magical powers to protect their holders from violence and large sums are paid for them. The plan was developed by Colonel Manas Khongpan, deputy director of the ISOC in Yala province
Yala Province
Yala is the southernmost province of Thailand. Neighboring provinces are Songkhla, Pattani and Narathiwat. Yala is the only land-locked province in the south of Thailand...
.
The Cabinet of General Surayud Chulanont
Surayud Chulanont
General Surayud Chulanont is a Thai political figure. He was the Prime Minister of Thailand and head of Thailand's Interim Government between 2006 and 2008...
gave the ISOC staff a 84.3 million baht "reward". The ISOC had originally requested the reward in 2003, but was turned down by the Thaksin government.