A member of the anti-government People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) waves a Thai flag during a demonstration outside the Government House in Bangkok August 26, 2008. (Chaiwat Subprasom/Reuters)Tue Aug 26, 2008
By Nopporn Wong-Anan
BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thousands of royalist protesters stormed Thai state broadcaster NBT on Tuesday, halting programming, as a part of demonstrations to try to overthrow the elected coalition government.
NBT journalists abandoned their studio in favor of a room at the Bangkok Traffic Police headquarters, from where they resumed transmission after an hour of disruption.
"We can't broadcast from the Vibhavadi headquarters as there are 5,000 protesters on the premises," NBT chief Suriyong Hoonthasarn told Reuters.
The stock market fell two percent at the opening bell amid fears of clashes between demonstrators and police, although it was down 1.55 percent by 0400 GMT, broadly in line with other bourses in the region.
The Bangkok share market has shed nearly 23 percent since the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD), a motley group of monarchist businessmen and academics, launched its campaign to unseat the government on May 25.
The baht eased to around 34.22 against the dollar, its weakest since November, from a 34.09 close on Monday.
Earlier, police arrested 80 people armed with pistols, golf clubs and knives after they burst into NBT studios as part of a prelude to wider protests organized by PAD. When thousands of PAD supporters massed, police stood aside.
"They shouted 'Get out, get out' at us repeatedly. All 150 of us were rounded up for a short while before police arrived and talked them down to the ground floor," newscaster Soifah Osukonthip said on air.
Station chief Suriyong said the demonstrators were declaring it a "people's revolution day."
"IN OFFICE BUT NOT IN POWER"
The PAD said it was looking for hundreds of thousands of people to join a rally at Government House that forced Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej to move his weekly cabinet meeting to a military compound north of Bangkok.
Police said they were expecting only up to 35,000.
Whatever the real numbers, analysts said the disruption to the government at a time of stuttering growth and decade-high inflation was the last thing the economy needed.
"This government is in office, but not in power," said Nick Bibby of Barclays Capital in Singapore. "We need to have greater clarity that this government is going to be around next year."
With the second anniversary of the September 19, 2006, coup against then prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra only three weeks away, army chief General Anupong Paochinda said the military would not intervene to restore order.
"The army will not launch a coup. The people can be assured," he told Channel 3 television. "This is the police's job."
National police spokesman Surapol Thuanthong said on Monday police would not confront the demonstrators, but would be backed up by fire trucks and ambulances. He did not say how many riot police would be deployed.
Samak, accused by the PAD of being a proxy for Thaksin, said in a televised speech on Monday he was not threatened by the rally and would hold his weekly cabinet meeting.
"If they break any law, they will be dealt with accordingly," he said.
(Additional reporting by Pracha Hariraksapitak)
(Writing by Ed Cropley; Editing by Darren Schuettler)
NBT journalists abandoned their studio in favor of a room at the Bangkok Traffic Police headquarters, from where they resumed transmission after an hour of disruption.
"We can't broadcast from the Vibhavadi headquarters as there are 5,000 protesters on the premises," NBT chief Suriyong Hoonthasarn told Reuters.
The stock market fell two percent at the opening bell amid fears of clashes between demonstrators and police, although it was down 1.55 percent by 0400 GMT, broadly in line with other bourses in the region.
The Bangkok share market has shed nearly 23 percent since the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD), a motley group of monarchist businessmen and academics, launched its campaign to unseat the government on May 25.
The baht eased to around 34.22 against the dollar, its weakest since November, from a 34.09 close on Monday.
Earlier, police arrested 80 people armed with pistols, golf clubs and knives after they burst into NBT studios as part of a prelude to wider protests organized by PAD. When thousands of PAD supporters massed, police stood aside.
"They shouted 'Get out, get out' at us repeatedly. All 150 of us were rounded up for a short while before police arrived and talked them down to the ground floor," newscaster Soifah Osukonthip said on air.
Station chief Suriyong said the demonstrators were declaring it a "people's revolution day."
"IN OFFICE BUT NOT IN POWER"
The PAD said it was looking for hundreds of thousands of people to join a rally at Government House that forced Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej to move his weekly cabinet meeting to a military compound north of Bangkok.
Police said they were expecting only up to 35,000.
Whatever the real numbers, analysts said the disruption to the government at a time of stuttering growth and decade-high inflation was the last thing the economy needed.
"This government is in office, but not in power," said Nick Bibby of Barclays Capital in Singapore. "We need to have greater clarity that this government is going to be around next year."
With the second anniversary of the September 19, 2006, coup against then prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra only three weeks away, army chief General Anupong Paochinda said the military would not intervene to restore order.
"The army will not launch a coup. The people can be assured," he told Channel 3 television. "This is the police's job."
National police spokesman Surapol Thuanthong said on Monday police would not confront the demonstrators, but would be backed up by fire trucks and ambulances. He did not say how many riot police would be deployed.
Samak, accused by the PAD of being a proxy for Thaksin, said in a televised speech on Monday he was not threatened by the rally and would hold his weekly cabinet meeting.
"If they break any law, they will be dealt with accordingly," he said.
(Additional reporting by Pracha Hariraksapitak)
(Writing by Ed Cropley; Editing by Darren Schuettler)
26 comments:
The Cambodian people must follow suit by using "People Power."
If the Thai people can do it, we can too.
We must utilize all electronic means as the mechanism to desseminate the information.
You're going down hill, bro..
Don't drag my beloved nation off its track. If you haven't done any good to your nation...don't jeopardize it.
I totally agreed with 5:33 PM.
Forget it brothers, you don't have so many bitches in PP.
CPP no more control of any thing but Hun Xen do!
...sometime the Revolution will rise up not in Phnom Malay, but in the middle of Phnom Penh.
Hun Sen will taste the real People Power.Once he said himself :"It's going to be revolution soon ".
I like to know where is he going,Hanoi ?
The only party that think about the nation is the PAD, Samak and his party are only working for their pocket. Down Samak.
My beloved 9:43PM!
You are almost completely right,
CPP and Hun SenVarman are always no longer controling of anything, but their master Youn does!
These CPP and Hun SenVarman are only undoubtedly good for controllingly killing the poor and innocent Khmers!
Got to remember what HUN SEN had said last time. "Nobody can defeat HUN SEN only HUN SEN can defeat himself. Sometime you got to take this serious. It might be a curse to end HUN SEN. Look at Saddam Hussein, he brought himself down by underestimate the atmosphere.
Khmer Pride,
Thai democracy is much more mature than khmer's.If it's happen in Cambodia,HUN SEN will definitely crush them.
You mean Bhumibol and Boonsang democracy. Subtle democracy, addictive like opium.
6:39
It's already off track you idiot! We're trying to get it back on course. It's idiots like you who can't tell the different!
Thailand is heading down hill. The Muslim in the south slaughtered and killed many Thai's soldiers.
They want to separate from the control of Thailand and have their own country.
Thai is going down!!!!!
I can feel Thai higher democracy from the US.
What about those people that voted for Mr. Samak? why are they so quiet? Get out there and defend your top dogs dude!
12:04AM!
Dude , I don't care whether a demonstration is for a pro or against the govt, the point is THAI's govt allowed its people to express their unhappiness on the street.Can HUN SEN's govt allow khmer people to do the same ?i thought not.
These Thai protesters were set up by Thai king to overthrow the democratic elected government again. They called Thaksin the theft and the corrupted leader, but how's about their king who heritages $35 billion in their bank account. What do they call the unhappy King who never smiles?
These stupid people do the same thing as the Khmer did in the past by joining Sihanouk in the jungle to fight Lon Nol regime. So what happened to the Khmer? The answer is 2 million people were perished under Khmer rouge.
It's time to have people power to overthrow Ah Hun Sen and CPP from Cambodia. We need to call upon Khmer people around the world to topple Ah Hun Sen, Kbort Chheat.
1:50
Most of the people who voted for Samak are the poor people in rural area. They don't have power to control media and they can't easily go to Bangkok to protest because of the very poor transportation. In contrast, people who voted against Samak are the elites and the middle class in Bangkok. They are supported by the King and his network. The King wants people to remain poor so that he can continue to use them as slaves. So, this is not a real people revolution. I would compare HUN SEN to King Bhumibhol rather than Samak.
Thailand needs to sort this out quick and get back on track. So Our both nation can resume more cooperation. DON'T LET AH YOUNAM GET MORE THAN YOU.
2:06 AM
"the point is THAI's govt allowed its people to express their unhappiness on the street."
The truth is: these people are supported by the king so no one dare to stop them. The government is so weak now. They don't have real power: half of the members of the senate are appointed by the king and all of the courts are controlled by the king. You can protest the govt but you can't criticize the king, otherwise you'll get jailed. There are many people in prisons 'cuz they criticized the king. Never think that Thailand is a democracy. It's just the Bhumibhol regime under the mask of democracy.
Sam Rainsy is not Charles De Gaule nor Napoleon.
Khmer people don't know him as a hero of the nation and don't know him very well.
Now Khmer people are mature enough, they don't want to commit the same mistakes in the past and they prefer the corrupted Hunsen for peace, stability and prosperity of the nation.
PEOPLE POWER TO THE PEOPLE OF CAMBODIA.
MR. HUN IS ALREADY JITTERY OF THE TERM "PEOPLE POWER"; IN FACT, IN THE PAST, HE HAD WARNED H.E. RAIMSY ABOUT PEOPLE POWER.
YES! ONLY THE POWER OF PEOPLE CAN TOPPLE MR. HUN AND HIS ADMINISTRATION.
Better or worse, Thailand become more and more democracratic. No places for communism or authoritarian.
PAD, you do great job. Please do more to force-out the weekness Samak...he is the pupet of Shinawatra.
8:38 AM
Also, the puppet of Hun Sen and the US, so does the king.
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