CHIANG MAI: For police and officials summoned by Thailand's new military rulers in the northern pro-government stronghold of Chiang Mai on Saturday, the reception at the headquarters of the 33rd Army was all sweetness up to a point.
Outside, female soldiers sat behind a plastic pot plant, smiles affixed, as they signed in new arrivals. But inside, with doors closed and tea and biscuits served, Major General Sarayuth Rungsri, the regional army commander, wasted little time.
Reading out orders from the new military ruler, General Prayuth Chan-ocha, Sarayuth had a blunt message for civilian officials: squelch anti-army dissent, or be transferred.
Such a call reflects the army's unease about whether it can ensure control of the country's north and northeast, both hotbeds of support for the deposed government of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra.
Chiang Mai, home of the Shinawatra clan, is a particular challenge. Protests, banned since Thursday's coup, have swelled in recent days in line with growing opposition on the streets of Bangkok.
On Saturday evening, a crowd of about 200 people faced off with the army near the walls of the old city, lighting candles and jeering at armed soldiers.
Phalanxes of troops periodically plunged into the crowd to grab vocal protesters, leading to sporadic scuffles and the detention of at least six people, Reuters reporters saw.
Missing from the scene have been the organised protesters by the "red shirt" supporters of the Shinawatra family, in particular Thaksin Shinawatra, Yingluck's brother, who was himself prime minister until he was deposed in Thailand's previous coup, in 2006.
Troops have shut down the city's pro-Thaksin radio stations and have held 16 local leaders of the movement incommunicado, one fugitive red shirt leader, who declined to be identified, told Reuters.
"I don't think we can do much at the moment since they've taken our radio equipment away. We'll have to put our movement on hold for a couple of months since the army is closely watching us," he said.
Army commander Sarayuth told Reuters only three red leaders had been detained. "We're taking good care of them, regardless of their colours," he said.
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