Protesters pulled Niphon Promphan, secretary of Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, out of his car after attacking him at the Interior Ministry in Bangkok on Sunday. (Associated Press) April 14, 2009
By SETH MYDANS and THOMAS FULLER
The New York Times (USA)
BANGKOK — Soldiers armed with assault rifles fought running street battles with anti-government protesters in Bangkok on Monday as unrest spread through a wider swath of the Thai capital, and the chief of Thailand’s armed forces vowed to use “every means to end the chaos.”
Two people were killed and more than 113 people were wounded in the clashes, according to hospital officials. Included among the wounded were 23 security officers and other government personnel.
Major shopping malls shut their doors, foreign governments advised their citizens in Bangkok to stay inside and the government banned the sale of gasoline in the center of the city in an effort to stop protesters from making Molotov cocktails.
“We will not use weapons unless it is necessary to defend ourselves,” said Gen. Songkitti Jaggabatara, the supreme commander of Thailand’s armed forces. “We will not use them excessively.”
By late evening, security forces had cleared most major intersections and the protesters were facing off against army and police units in the streets around the prime minister’s office. Hundreds of pro-government vigilantes armed with machetes and clubs were also in the area.
In a separate clash earlier Monday at a major intersection, soldiers fired shots from automatic rifles and tear gas at the protesters, who answered with gasoline bombs. The gunfire appeared to be aimed in the air above the protesters, but hospitals reported more than 70 injured, many from tear gas, and some news reports said that two demonstrators and two soldiers had been shot and wounded.
The violence came on what is normally a day of animated celebration, the Buddhist new year and water festival. Street parties and revelry continued in some Bangkok neighborhoods untouched by the strife, but the center of the city remained tense and at least a dozen streets were barricaded by protesters, many of whom were armed with clubs and slingshots. By late afternoon, security forces had cleared most major intersections.
In a televised address, the prime minister, Abhisit Vejjajiva, sought to reassure the nation that the government was carrying out a “step-by-step process to restore order and stop the violence.”
The unrest has pitted security forces against protesters known as the ”red shirts” who are linked to Thaksin Shinawatra, the prime minister ousted in a 2006 military coup. But there are fears that the violence could spread if other groups become involved.
Mr. Thaksin, who is overseas and faces a two-year prison sentence on charges of abuse of power if he returns to Thailand, said in an interview Monday with CNN that the government was concealing “many” deaths in the clashes. “They even take the bodies on the military trucks and take them away,” he said. The government did not immediately respond to his assertion.
The red shirts are defying the government’s decree of a “severe emergency situation,” including a ban on blocking any traffic, imposed in Bangkok on Sunday, a day after protesters breached security and entered a hotel complex where Asian leaders were meeting, causing the talks to be canceled. They have vowed to continue their demonstrations, which have grown increasingly violent, until Mr. Abhisit steps down.
The prime minister’s whereabouts have remained secret since Sunday, when his motorcade was attacked and an aide was dragged out of his car by protesters and reportedly beaten.
After three years of political crisis, including the 2006 coup and a weeklong closure by protesters of Bangkok’s two airports late last year, many business leaders had hoped for a period of calm under the government of Mr. Abhisit, who came to office in December. But the prospect of continued instability and the images of soldiers and military vehicles on the streets of the Thai capital over the past two days seems sure to further damage an economy already badly battered by the global economic downturn.
“This is definitely going to hurt Thailand for a long time,” said Pornthip Hiranyakij, secretary general of the Tourism Council of Thailand, an industry association. “It’s a matter of safety and security for people. What is happening on the streets of Bangkok right now is scary for many customers coming in.”
The Tourism Authority of Thailand, a government agency, sought to play down Sunday’s emergency decree, which among other measures bans gatherings of more than five people. “The measure does not in any way apply to the organization of local and international corporate meetings, incentive events, conventions and exhibitions,” the tourism authority said.
Foreign governments appeared more alarmed. The French Embassy in Bangkok posted a warning on its Web site “strongly recommending French citizens to stay at home or in their hotel until the situation becomes clearer.” South Korea advised its citizens to return to their country if they had no urgent business in Thailand; the United States Embassy advised its citizens to “exercise caution anywhere in Bangkok.”
Janesara Fugal contributed reporting.
Two people were killed and more than 113 people were wounded in the clashes, according to hospital officials. Included among the wounded were 23 security officers and other government personnel.
Major shopping malls shut their doors, foreign governments advised their citizens in Bangkok to stay inside and the government banned the sale of gasoline in the center of the city in an effort to stop protesters from making Molotov cocktails.
“We will not use weapons unless it is necessary to defend ourselves,” said Gen. Songkitti Jaggabatara, the supreme commander of Thailand’s armed forces. “We will not use them excessively.”
By late evening, security forces had cleared most major intersections and the protesters were facing off against army and police units in the streets around the prime minister’s office. Hundreds of pro-government vigilantes armed with machetes and clubs were also in the area.
In a separate clash earlier Monday at a major intersection, soldiers fired shots from automatic rifles and tear gas at the protesters, who answered with gasoline bombs. The gunfire appeared to be aimed in the air above the protesters, but hospitals reported more than 70 injured, many from tear gas, and some news reports said that two demonstrators and two soldiers had been shot and wounded.
The violence came on what is normally a day of animated celebration, the Buddhist new year and water festival. Street parties and revelry continued in some Bangkok neighborhoods untouched by the strife, but the center of the city remained tense and at least a dozen streets were barricaded by protesters, many of whom were armed with clubs and slingshots. By late afternoon, security forces had cleared most major intersections.
In a televised address, the prime minister, Abhisit Vejjajiva, sought to reassure the nation that the government was carrying out a “step-by-step process to restore order and stop the violence.”
The unrest has pitted security forces against protesters known as the ”red shirts” who are linked to Thaksin Shinawatra, the prime minister ousted in a 2006 military coup. But there are fears that the violence could spread if other groups become involved.
Mr. Thaksin, who is overseas and faces a two-year prison sentence on charges of abuse of power if he returns to Thailand, said in an interview Monday with CNN that the government was concealing “many” deaths in the clashes. “They even take the bodies on the military trucks and take them away,” he said. The government did not immediately respond to his assertion.
The red shirts are defying the government’s decree of a “severe emergency situation,” including a ban on blocking any traffic, imposed in Bangkok on Sunday, a day after protesters breached security and entered a hotel complex where Asian leaders were meeting, causing the talks to be canceled. They have vowed to continue their demonstrations, which have grown increasingly violent, until Mr. Abhisit steps down.
The prime minister’s whereabouts have remained secret since Sunday, when his motorcade was attacked and an aide was dragged out of his car by protesters and reportedly beaten.
After three years of political crisis, including the 2006 coup and a weeklong closure by protesters of Bangkok’s two airports late last year, many business leaders had hoped for a period of calm under the government of Mr. Abhisit, who came to office in December. But the prospect of continued instability and the images of soldiers and military vehicles on the streets of the Thai capital over the past two days seems sure to further damage an economy already badly battered by the global economic downturn.
“This is definitely going to hurt Thailand for a long time,” said Pornthip Hiranyakij, secretary general of the Tourism Council of Thailand, an industry association. “It’s a matter of safety and security for people. What is happening on the streets of Bangkok right now is scary for many customers coming in.”
The Tourism Authority of Thailand, a government agency, sought to play down Sunday’s emergency decree, which among other measures bans gatherings of more than five people. “The measure does not in any way apply to the organization of local and international corporate meetings, incentive events, conventions and exhibitions,” the tourism authority said.
Foreign governments appeared more alarmed. The French Embassy in Bangkok posted a warning on its Web site “strongly recommending French citizens to stay at home or in their hotel until the situation becomes clearer.” South Korea advised its citizens to return to their country if they had no urgent business in Thailand; the United States Embassy advised its citizens to “exercise caution anywhere in Bangkok.”
Janesara Fugal contributed reporting.
7 comments:
OMA PROSITHI SOURS,
Toeub preah Is'varak chea kru proeur anh oy dak Bandassa Moeung Hun Sen, Ping Bun Rany, Moeung Sihanouk, Ping Monique, Moeung chea Sim, Moeung Heng Samrin, Moeung Pen Sovann, Moeung Hoe Nam Hong, Moeung Sok An, Moeung Pol Saroeun, Moeung Kh'both cheat khmer , Moeung Kheatakor Reas Khmer Taing Os s'lab Tai Horng, s'lab noeung Larn Krolab, s'lab noeung lich touk kopal, s'lap noeung Th'leak yon hos, s'lab noeung Runteas Banh,
Cho Moeung, Ping taing os kh'nea s'dap bangkorb anh chea kru bath'yeay, noeung totourl yok nov peak Bandassa taing os,
OMA SITHI S'VAHAYA.
Eh Sva So.
Oh Sva sach.
Ach Sva sar.
Ah Sen Tai-horng.
Ah Nuk neng-norng.
Ah Yuorn chet reuy.
Ah Siam tai lev!
Oh ma sithi sva haek yak.
Yak haek sva....
you have made the sacred words into profane, you made made the secrets of esoteric knowledge into something you can poke fun of.
what you are doing, is nothing short of disrespecting Khmer beliefs and gurus and sages.
it is not funny, or intelligent. These formula weren't meant to be twisted around, played with and laid out on the internet for others to disrespect.
If you truly know the secrets of these knowledge, you should reconsider your actions and contemplate within yourself the harm you done to the Khmer krus who held these formula sacred knowledge.
I support 100% 3:45. I want to dak tumneay pouk ah Hun Sen neung CPP the same as 3:45.
OMA SATHISVAHAKYA.
Red or Yellow are your own choice, but not very important to us, Khmer.
We have had during the last 30 years more experiences and lost about 3 Miliion human lives.
Please let us alone. We Khmer just want rebuild our country.
TO 3:45
I SUPPORT YOU 100%.
HAPPY NEW TO ALL KHMER PEOPLES WHO IS VICTIM OF KHMER ROUGE HUN SEN CPP REGIME.
MY WISH FOR THE NEW YEAR IS FOR ALL CRIMINALS ESPECIALLY AH HUN SEN IN CAMBODIA TO DIE THIS YEAR BY LIGHTNING STRIKE, CAR ACCIDENT, LAND MINE, HELICOPTER CRASH, AIRPLANE CRASH, BULLETS, RPG (ROCKET PROPEL GRENADE), HIV AIDS, HEPATITIS B, HEPATITIS C, ETC...ETC....
Gee! Ah Hun Xen will be in abig poudle of SHIT !!!
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