THAI MILITARY DETAINS FORMER PM
Thailand's former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and dozens of prominent politicians have been detained by the military a day after it took control of government.
Yingluck and Niwattumrong Boonsongpaisan, her temporary replacement, were among the 39 prominent figures who on Friday reported to a military facility in Bangkok.
A Thai military spokesman, who gave his name as Colonel Veerachon, told Al Jazeera that all those who had reported to the base had been taken into detention.
"We are looking after them very well. They are all under detention. We want them to talk and give them some time to relax. They are not together at the moment," he said.
However, he could not confirm their locations.
The Reuters news agency quoted another senior military official as saying Yingluck's sister and brother-in-law were among those being held.
The two relatives have held top political posts.
"We will do so for not more than week, that would be too long. We just need to organise matters in the country first," said the officer.
Thailand's army chief, General Prayuth Chan-ocha, seized control of the government on Thursday, two days after he declared martial law. He said the military had to restore order and push through reforms after six months of political turmoil.
Source: Al Jazeera
BANGKOK ATTACK TOLL RISES
Thailand's political crisis has become increasingly violent since mass protests began in November.
On Sunday, an apparent grenade blast near an anti-government protest site killed a woman and a four-year-old boy.
Doctors said on Monday that the little boy's sister died later of brain injuries.
Twenty-two people were hurt in Sunday's blast, including a nine-year-old boy who is in intensive care.
- Sunday's attack came hours after gunmen opened fire on an anti-government rally in eastern Thailand, killing a five-year-old girl.
- Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra has condemned the attacks, describing them as "terrorist acts for political gain".
- UN Secretary Ban Ki-moon has also spoken out, calling for violence "from any quarter" to end immediately.
There has been continued speculation that the military might step in
after three months of protests in Bangkok, the BBC's Jonathan Head in
Bangkok reports.
However, on Monday, army chief Prayuth Chan-ocha said that
the military would not intervene with force. Instead, it would deploy
troops to provide protection to people.
Source: BBC...More...
BANGKOK BURNS,THE CITY BECAME A RAGING BATTLEGROUND
BANGKOK – Downtown Bangkok became a raging battleground Wednesday as the army stormed a barricaded protest camp and the Red Shirt leadership surrendered, enraging demonstrators who fired grenades and set fires that cloaked the skyline in a black haze.
Rioters set fires at the Thai stock exchange, several banks, the headquarters of the Metropolitan Electricity Authority, the high-end Central World shopping mall and a cinema complex that collapsed.
The Thai government declared a curfew in Bangkok from 8 p.m. until 6 a.m. An announcement signed by Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and broadcast on television banned anyone from leaving home during those times without permission from authorities.
Source: AP
Rioters set fires at the Thai stock exchange, several banks, the headquarters of the Metropolitan Electricity Authority, the high-end Central World shopping mall and a cinema complex that collapsed.
The Thai government declared a curfew in Bangkok from 8 p.m. until 6 a.m. An announcement signed by Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and broadcast on television banned anyone from leaving home during those times without permission from authorities.
- At least two protesters and an Italian news photographer were killed in Wednesday's army crackdown. Three other foreign journalists and 15 Thais were wounded in the fighting.
- The chaotic end to the Red Shirt campaign is certain to deal a heavy blow to the economy and tourism industry of Thailand, a key U.S. ally and long considered one of the more stable economies of Southeast Asia. The Red Shirts are demanding the ouster of Abhisit's government, the dissolution of Parliament and new elections.
- The Red Shirt protest leadership surrendered to authorities Wednesday afternoon and the army declared itself in full control, but fresh violence soon erupted across central Bangkok and unrest boiled over in the northeastern countryside, where the protests draw many of their mostly poor, rural supporters.
- Protesters also turned their rage on the local media, which they have accused of biased coverage toward the government. Groups of rioters attacked the offices of state-run Channel 3 TV, where they set fires to cars parked outside, punctured water pipes that caused flooding and entered the building. The English-language Bangkok Post newspaper evacuated its staff after threats from the Red Shirts. A large office building down the street from the Post was set afire.
- At least 42 people have been killed, most of them civilians, in a week of violence in Bangkok as a military attempt to blockade the protesters — who had camped in a 1-square-mile (3-square-kilometer) tourism and shopping district for more than four weeks — instead touched off street fighting, with soldiers firing on protesters who fought back mostly with homemade weapons.
- On Wednesday afternoon, seven top Red Shirt leaders turned themselves in, saying they cannot see their supporters being killed anymore.
- Government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn declared the first stage of the army operation to secure the area around Lumpini Park successful.
- But the advance was stalled by sniper fire from Red Shirts, Associated Press journalists saw. Bullets flew overhead and several grenades exploded near the soldiers, forcing them to pull back and take cover briefly before pushing forward. A Canadian freelance reporter was injured by grenade shrapnel. Two other journalists were wounded earlier, one Dutch man and an American documentary filmmaker.
THAI 'REDS SHIRTS' DEMAND ROYAL PARDON FOR THAKSIN
BANGKOK, Thailand — Several thousand “red shirt” protesters rallied in Bangkok amid tight security on Saturday to demand the Thai government submits its petition seeking a royal pardon for fugitive former premier Thaksin Shinawatra.
Source: Reuters
- The United Front for Democracy Against Dictatorship (UDD) accused the government of dragging its heels in forwarding the petition, signed by 3.5 million Thais, to King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who has been undergoing treatment in hospital since Sept 19 for fever and lung inflammation.
- The 81-year-old king’s health was improving and he was not in danger, his youngest daughter, Princess Chulabhorn, said on Friday in the first public comment by a royal family member since he was admitted.
- Thai stocks plunged a combined 7.2 per cent on Wednesday and Thursday on concerns about the health of the world’s longest-reigning monarch, who is seen as a semi-divine unifier by his people, but rebounded 3.5 per cent on Friday.
- The UDD believes the self-exiled Thaksin is a victim of a vendetta by his powerful opponents in the military and the Thai establishment, who they say plotted the coup that toppled him and ensured he was convicted of graft to keep him sidelined.
- The government is still deliberating whether to submit the clemency plea, which Thaksin’s supporters hope will aide his political comeback, a scenario analysts say would deepen rifts and further destabilise Southeast Asia’s second-biggest economy.
- The UDD rally was the sixth since April, when three weeks of protests led to anarchy in Bangkok and a security crackdown that sparked the country’s worst violence in 17 years.
- The mass rallies have prolonged Thailand’s polarising four-year political crisis, spooking investors and prompting credit ratings downgrades as a result of continued uncertainty.
- Thousands of riot police and troops empowered by a tough internal security law maintained a heavy presence around the government’s headquarters on Saturday, where the crowds were growing ahead of a scheduled video address by Thaksin from Dubai.
- The demonstration was another sign of Thaksin’s mesmerising influence on the rural masses, who helped deliver two landslide election wins and have remained loyal to him, despite a graft conviction and a slew of other corruption charges.
- The 60-year-old billionaire, a former telecoms tycoon and English Premier League soccer club owner, is also backed by the Puea Thai Party, Thailand’s main opposition, which analysts say has big support and would likely win most votes in the next election.
- Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva has refused to heed UDD calls to dissolve the house and call a snap election, saying no vote will be held until Thailand’s economy has recovered and a referendum on constitutional amendments is carried out.
THAI PROTESTERS MARK ANNIVERSARY OF 2006 COUP
BANGKOK, Thailand - Police are out in force in the Thai capital, where anti-government protesters are marking the third anniversary of a coup they say was a major setback for the country's democratic system.
Source: mStar
- Many of the protesters gathering Saturday are supporters of Thaksin Shinawatra, the prime minister ousted by the bloodless Sept. 19, 2006, takeover after being accused of abuse of power and disrespect to the country's constitutional monarch.
- Thaksin, who became prime minister in 2001, won two major election victories due to his popularity among the country's rural majority, for whom he instituted generous social welfare programs. The protesters seek to have current Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva step down, claiming he came to power undemocratically.
SAFETY OF LEADERS AT THAI SUMMIT ASSURED
Thousands of protesters march from Government House to the Si Sao Thewes home of Gen Prem Tinsulanonda to press him to resign as president of the Privy Council
Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya has assured the safety of all 16 delegation heads at the East Asian summit beginning in Pattaya tomorrow.Mr Kasit yesterday confirmed security arrangements after Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva was besieged on Tuesday by red-shirt protesters when he left the Royal Cliff Beach Hotel, where the summit will be held.
Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban said the incident had not been anticipated. Security for the leaders participating in the summit will adhere to international standards.
Mr Kasit said officials were confident they could meet all security challenges. Strict surveillance measures will be in place at airports and hotels."Protests are a basic right, but we will not accept violence which could happen," he said.
So far, no government of the participating countries had inquired about the safety of the summit. The Foreign Ministry had given a briefing about the issue a few days ago, he said.
"No foreign embassy has asked about the red-shirt protesters because we have given them the confidence that we are in control of the situation today," he said.Mr Kasit said he cancelled a meeting with foreign envoys in Bangkok yesterday because of the demonstrations.
He will join the East Asian summit as well as other meetings with the foreign envoys on April 17 as planned.
National police chief Patcharawat Wongsuwon said police have designated an area for protesters who turn up at the summit 2km from the venue.
Courtesy: Bangkok Post
VISITORS GEOFLAGS SINCE AUGUST 26, 2009
