Tag: thailand_protests

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Misc.

Thailand protests: Video and images from yesterday’s demonstration

Here’s a short video and some images I snapped at Bangkok’s Government House yesterday, where tens of thousands of anti-government protesters gathered to demand the resignation of Thailand’s prime minister. (More details on my observations from yesterday are here.)

I took this 32-second video clip (embedded below) near the main stage:

And below are the pics. You can find five more images on Flickr here. Click the images for bigger versions.

Thailand protests: Red shirt demonstrators at Government House
Protesters with a banner near the main stage

Thailand protests: Red shirt demonstrators at Government House
Listening to a speech

Thailand protests: Red shirt demonstrators at Government House
Cheering

Thailand protests: Red shirt demonstrators at Government House
One of many banners

Categories
Misc.

Thailand protests: red-shirts shut down Victory Monument

The latest from Bangkok: red-shirt protesters have shut down the Victory Monument area, one of the city’s busiest intersections, with parked taxis.

Here’s more from The Straits Times, The Nation, and the Bangkok Post.

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Misc.

Thailand protests: three observations

Tens of thousands of red-shirt (anti-government) protesters descended on Government House here in Bangkok today to demand that Prime Minister Abhisit step down. I spent a few hours there speaking with demonstrators and taking in the scene.

Some observations, a few of which I mentioned in various tweets earlier today:

  1. The crowd was so large that it was difficult to negotiate the area. Some estimates put the number of protesters at 60,000 or even 100,000. It was so crowded near the main stage, for example, that it took me twenty minutes to move a distance of just a few hundred meters. It was difficult to walk around in many areas due to the volume of people.
  2. Emotions were running high. Speakers gave impassioned speeches. The crowded chanted. And sang songs. And rattled plastic clappers.
  3. While the overall mood was pro-Thaksin, some people told me they were there to demand democracy, not necessarily to support the exiled PM. Signs read “We want democracy,” “Return the power to the people” and “Where’s the justice?” Many people wore shirts that read “Truth today: it’s time for change in Thailand.”

    One man, a 34-year-old taxi driver from Bangkok, told me that he didn’t like Thaksin, in fact, but that he wanted a change in government. “I want democracy but I didn’t come for Thaksin,” he said. “I want democracy…I don’t like Abhisit. He came to power not through democracy.”

For ongoing updates the protests, you can search Google News or consult the Bangkok Post or Nation newspapers.

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Misc.

Thai PM’s car attacked by protesters

Two developments here in Thailand today:

First, Thai PM Abhisit Vejjajiva’s car was attacked by ant-government red-shirt protesters in Pattaya this afternoon. It was the first violence targeted at Abhisit since he came to power in December. Reuters has the story.

And second, tension is mounting ahead of a massive red-shirt rally planned here in Bangkok tomorrow. Abhisit has vowed to prevent a “civil war.” The AP has this story.

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Misc.

WSJ: Thaksin “ups ante,” calling for “people’s revolution”

Today’s WSJ has this story: “Thaksin Ups Ante In Thai Struggle”

BANGKOK — Thailand’s fugitive former leader, Thaksin Shinawatra, has picked a fight from which he may find it hard to back down — and which economists say could hinder this Southeast Asian economy’s efforts to recover from the global slump.

Mr. Thaksin on Friday rejected the Thai government’s offer of talks to resolve political conflicts. He told his supporters — who are barricading the main government complex in Bangkok — to prepare for a “people’s revolution” in defense of democracy.

“Negotiation is out of the question. We are talking about the nation’s future now,” Mr. Thaksin told cheering supporters in a live video link from an undisclosed location overseas. He urged people to turn out for a mass show of support in Bangkok on April 8.

Categories
Misc.

Thailand protests: cabinet meeting cancelled

The BBC has the story of the day here in Bangkok: “Thailand cabinet cancels meeting“:

The Thai government has called off its weekly cabinet meeting as thousands of protesters continue to lay siege to government offices in Bangkok.

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva has stayed away from Government House since the demonstrations began six days ago.

Mr Abhisit is about to travel to the UK to attend the G20 summit – but opponents say his own government is so paralysed it cannot even hold meetings.

They are calling on him to resign, saying he has no legitimate power.

Mr Abhisit took office in December after a court dissolved the previous government following months of protests.

There’s more from Reuters and AP, as well.