ANALYSIS: Reds offer free accommodation, meals, pocket money to woo their supporters

The United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) has declared war on the government and vowed to drum up a million supporters for its mass protest in Bangkok.
Tactics in maintaining the size of the crowds have changed over the past eight days since the rural red shirts descended on the capital.
The UDD had announced it was playing a numbers game to force Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva to dissolve the House. But as the days wore on, the crowds thinned, prompting the rally organisers to rethink their strategy.
They had planned to bus in more supporters from the North late last week to replace those who went home. But the number of these reinforcements fell short of their target.
The UDD opted to solicit support from red shirts in Bangkok, figuring that supporters who worked by day and joined the rally at night would help sustain the gathering.
In a test of city people's support for the red shirts, the UDD went on a mobile rally along main streets of Bangkok on Saturday. About 65,000 people took part in the convoy.
Some analysts said the large turnout was made up mostly of loyalists of the red-affiliated Puea Thai Party.
It is still open to question how many politically-neutral city residents or those formerly opposed to the red shirts actually changed their stand and jumped on the UDD bandwagon on Saturday.
Political sources, nonetheless, agreed that putting together such a mass gathering took a "lot of time and means".
The government has claimed to have reliable information that certain businessmen were funnelling financial aid to the red shirt movement. The aid allegedly flowed through core members of the protest network responsible for bringing supporters to Bangkok.
Community leaders such as kamnan and village heads mobilised supporters through an intricate web of personal ties. New supporters also came from groups disenchanted with government policies.
The source said it was agreed the core members would provide free transport, food and possibly pocket money to some of the supporters who joined the rally.
With the present rally, a "package" was arranged: four nights and three days at the rally with free meals and transport and pocket money of 2,000 baht for each person.
Many protesters had expected the rally to end with the collapse of the government by the middle of last week.
A core member said the supporters came of their own free will. They were strongly attached to former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra and his populist policies which they insisted had improved their lives.
Others had taken the protest to a new level, demanding an end to social inequality through the eradication of "double standards", which has been the mantra of the red shirt rally.
The member said after the harvest season, many farmers were free to travel to Bangkok.
"It's much better than doing nothing staying in the village. Here, the members have some income," the source said.However, the source admitted some red shirt protesters did not get all the pocket money they had been promised after the core members had taken their cut.
Some supporters were attracted to the pocket money but asked that the core members absorb their petrol costs.
In the Saturday mobile rally, it was alleged some motorcycle taxis were offered from 300 to 500 baht and taxis up to 1,000 baht each so they could afford to join the convoy, the source said.