Flag-waving protesters vowing to topple Thailand’s prime
minister took to the streets of Bangkok for a fourth day Wednesday, massing in
the thousands at half a dozen government ministries and raising fears of fresh
political violence in Bangkok.
An
anti-government protester blows a whistle outside the Government complex in
Bangkok, Thailand, Wednesday, Nov. 27, 2013. (AP Photo/Wason Wanichakorn)
In a city of some 10 million people, the demonstrators
appeared to number in the tens of thousands — far less than the 100,000-plus
mustered when they began Sunday. The numbers indicate they are unlikely to
bring down the government on their own without more popular support, or
judicial or military intervention.
Suthep says his
goal is to replace the government with a non-elected council
By late afternoon, whistle-blowing throngs had massed
inside or around at least six of the government’s 19 ministries, although they
left half of them after a few hours. One large group led by protest leader
Suthep Thaugsuban entered a sprawling government office complex that houses the
Department of Special Investigation, the country’s equivalent of the FBI, and
prepared to camp there overnight.
Yingluck has repeatedly offered to negotiate an end to
the crisis. So far, security forces have not even fired tear gas to prevent
protesters from forcing the closure of multiple government offices.
“We must not regard this as a win-or-lose situation,”
Yingluck told reporters at parliament. “Today no one is winning or losing, only
the country is hurting.”
A Thai government tourism official said the country has
lost 300,000 tourists from the ongoing protests so far, at a cost of half a
billion U.S. dollars.
Late Tuesday, police issued an arrest warrant for Suthep,
a former lawmaker. There appeared to be no attempt to detain him, however, as
he led some 6,000 supporters early Wednesday out of the Finance Ministry, which
had been converted into an ad hoc protest headquarters since crowds stormed it
Monday.
As Suthep walked through the crowd at the DSI offices, he
was regarded as a hero, treating admirers to a big smile in the manner of the
veteran politician he is. Many of the occupiers are from the country’s south,
Suthep’s homeland and the stronghold of the opposition Democrat Party, which is
aligned with the protest. Free food and water is available at all times, but
boredom or paranoia causes a few to turn their attentions to foreign
journalists, who are eyed warily. On Tuesday, a German photographer was roughed
up at one of the other protest sites.
Suthep says his goal is to replace the government with a
non-elected council, a change he said was necessary to eradicate the political
machine of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.
In broad terms,
the confrontation pits the Thai elite and the educated middle-class against
Thaksin’s power base in the countryside, which benefited from populist policies
designed to win over the rural poor.
The
anti-government campaign started last month after Yingluck’s ruling Pheu Thai
party tried to pass an amnesty bill that critics said was designed to absolve
Thaksin and others of politically related offences and allow him to return
home. The Senate rejected the bill in a bid to end the protests, but the
rallies have gained momentum.
Suthep served
as deputy prime minister under a previous Democrat Party administration, which
faced mass protests led by Thaksin’s “Red Shirt” supporters, who occupied
Bangkok’s city centre for two months in 2010. Those demonstrations ended in an
army crackdown which left about 90 people dead and left swathes of downtown in
flames.
Pro-Thaksin
parties have won every election since 2001, and the Democrats were crushed by
Yingluck’s ruling party during a landslide vote that brought her to power in
2011.
Suthep has
rejected new elections, which the now-opposition Democrats are certain to lose.
Akanat
Promphan, a protest spokesman, earlier said the offensive to seize government
offices would be extended nationwide. On Wednesday, protesters gathered around
20 of Thailand’s 77 provincial halls, where the local governments are located.
Most of them are southern provinces.
Yingluck’s
government is also fending off sharp criticism during a parliamentary
no-confidence debate this week. A vote is expected Thursday, although it would
be impossible to unseat Yingluck since her party controls the House of
Representatives
(chiangraitimes.com)