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Showing posts with label ASEAN summit cancelled. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ASEAN summit cancelled. Show all posts
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Thailand has 'deep problems'
'This is disappointing for all heads of government,' Mr Rudd told reporters after returning to Australia. -- PHOTO: AFPApril 12, 2009
AFP
Chaos in Pattaya
MELBOURNE - AUSTRALIAN Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said on Sunday he was disappointed protesters in Thailand had forced the cancellation of a major Asian summit, saying there were 'deep problems' in the host nation.
Mr Rudd was en route to the summit in the beach resort of Pattaya Saturday when his plane was forced to divert mid-flight after anti-government protesters smashed their way into the event venue.
The meeting, at which Mr Rudd would have held important talks on the global financial crisis, was cancelled amid extraordinary scenes of foreign leaders being plucked by helicopter from the roof of their luxury hotel.
'This is disappointing for all heads of government,' Mr Rudd told reporters after returning to Australia.
'There's important business to discuss on the future of the regional economy given the impact of the global economic recession. And we'll have to, of course, reconvene this meeting at a later time.' Mr Rudd said he hoped Thailand would return to political normality soon.
'Obviously there are deep problems in Thai domestic politics at present,' he said.
'I think all friends of Thailand want to see a return to political normality in the kingdom of Thailand.
'It's going to be important for the future for that to occur and we all urge all parties to adhere to peaceful, democratic means to return Thai politics to normal.' Rudd also urged Australians in Thailand to heed warnings in a government travel advisory issued after the latest unrest.
The advisory warns visitors to stay away from political demonstrations and rallies.
Mr Rudd was en route to the summit in the beach resort of Pattaya Saturday when his plane was forced to divert mid-flight after anti-government protesters smashed their way into the event venue.
The meeting, at which Mr Rudd would have held important talks on the global financial crisis, was cancelled amid extraordinary scenes of foreign leaders being plucked by helicopter from the roof of their luxury hotel.
'This is disappointing for all heads of government,' Mr Rudd told reporters after returning to Australia.
'There's important business to discuss on the future of the regional economy given the impact of the global economic recession. And we'll have to, of course, reconvene this meeting at a later time.' Mr Rudd said he hoped Thailand would return to political normality soon.
'Obviously there are deep problems in Thai domestic politics at present,' he said.
'I think all friends of Thailand want to see a return to political normality in the kingdom of Thailand.
'It's going to be important for the future for that to occur and we all urge all parties to adhere to peaceful, democratic means to return Thai politics to normal.' Rudd also urged Australians in Thailand to heed warnings in a government travel advisory issued after the latest unrest.
The advisory warns visitors to stay away from political demonstrations and rallies.
Thai PM vows swift action against summit wreckers
By Alan Raybould
BANGKOK, April 12 (Reuters) - Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said on Sunday that legal action would be taken in the next few days against those responsible for disrupting an Asian summit in Thailand that had to be cancelled.
In a weekly address to the nation, he also said the days immediately ahead would be crucial in restoring order to the country after demonstrations by supporters of ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra had tipped over into illegality.
"I insist that over the next three or four days, it is most important for the government to prove it can bring peace to the nation," he said.
"If there are requests for me to resign or dissolve parliament, don't worry, I am prepared to make such decisions. But today, in the current situation, what I have to do is to bring peace to the country, bring back governance and have a process of political reform," he added.
Abhisit suffered a huge political reversal on Saturday when an Asian summit in Thailand he had presented as a sign of the country's return to normality had to be cancelled after red-shirted anti-government protesters broke into the venue.
Asked by Reuters on Saturday if he planned to resign, Abhisit said simply: "We have to restore law and order."
The events will pile more pressure on an economy teetering on the brink of recession, especially if foreign tourists are put off by the scenes of chaos, and emboldened protesters intensify the fight to kick out Abhisit.
"Yesterday was a truly shameful day for our country, which had its international image destroyed by the siege of the ASEAN+6 summit venue in Pattaya and the embarrassing postponement of the forum," the Bangkok Post said in a front-page editorial.
COUP RUMOURS
Thaksin's supporters say Abhisit became premier illegitimately after a parliamentary stitch-up engineered by the army. They demand his resignation and new elections, which Thaksin's allies would be well placed to win.
The "red shirts" were regrouping around his office in Government House, Bangkok, on Sunday. They have surrounded it since late March and stepped up the demonstration last week.
However, the Thai New Year is celebrated from Monday to Wednesday and many people leave the capital to spend the holiday with their families. Numbers at Government House had dwindled before the weekend and it was unclear how many would stay on.
Newspapers were outraged both by the pro-Thaksin supporters' insult to foreign leaders and by the government's inability to put proper security in place. Police and soldiers put up little resistance as the demonstrators marched towards the summit hotel.
"Rumours of a possible coup or House dissolution were spreading last night as it appeared the government had lacked cooperation from police and military in preventing the protesters from entering the summit venue's compound," the Nation reported.
Four prime ministers over the past 15 months have failed to resolve Thailand's deep political rift between the royalist, military and business elite on the one hand, and a rural majority loyal to Thaksin, ousted in a military coup in 2006.
Thaksin, who lives in self-imposed exile to avoid jail on a corruption conviction and is thought to be bankrolling the protests, phoned in to his "red shirts" at Government House late on Saturday.
Less rabble-rousing than on some occasions, he thanked them for their sacrifice at this holiday time and asked them to be patient for a few more days as they were on the point of achieving something.
"If our people in Bangkok and all the provinces unite, ... I think this time we can change the country. We will see real democracy with the king as the head of state," he said.
(Additional reporting by Vithoon Amorn and Viparat Jantraprap; Editing by Jerry Norton)
In a weekly address to the nation, he also said the days immediately ahead would be crucial in restoring order to the country after demonstrations by supporters of ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra had tipped over into illegality.
"I insist that over the next three or four days, it is most important for the government to prove it can bring peace to the nation," he said.
"If there are requests for me to resign or dissolve parliament, don't worry, I am prepared to make such decisions. But today, in the current situation, what I have to do is to bring peace to the country, bring back governance and have a process of political reform," he added.
Abhisit suffered a huge political reversal on Saturday when an Asian summit in Thailand he had presented as a sign of the country's return to normality had to be cancelled after red-shirted anti-government protesters broke into the venue.
Asked by Reuters on Saturday if he planned to resign, Abhisit said simply: "We have to restore law and order."
The events will pile more pressure on an economy teetering on the brink of recession, especially if foreign tourists are put off by the scenes of chaos, and emboldened protesters intensify the fight to kick out Abhisit.
"Yesterday was a truly shameful day for our country, which had its international image destroyed by the siege of the ASEAN+6 summit venue in Pattaya and the embarrassing postponement of the forum," the Bangkok Post said in a front-page editorial.
COUP RUMOURS
Thaksin's supporters say Abhisit became premier illegitimately after a parliamentary stitch-up engineered by the army. They demand his resignation and new elections, which Thaksin's allies would be well placed to win.
The "red shirts" were regrouping around his office in Government House, Bangkok, on Sunday. They have surrounded it since late March and stepped up the demonstration last week.
However, the Thai New Year is celebrated from Monday to Wednesday and many people leave the capital to spend the holiday with their families. Numbers at Government House had dwindled before the weekend and it was unclear how many would stay on.
Newspapers were outraged both by the pro-Thaksin supporters' insult to foreign leaders and by the government's inability to put proper security in place. Police and soldiers put up little resistance as the demonstrators marched towards the summit hotel.
"Rumours of a possible coup or House dissolution were spreading last night as it appeared the government had lacked cooperation from police and military in preventing the protesters from entering the summit venue's compound," the Nation reported.
Four prime ministers over the past 15 months have failed to resolve Thailand's deep political rift between the royalist, military and business elite on the one hand, and a rural majority loyal to Thaksin, ousted in a military coup in 2006.
Thaksin, who lives in self-imposed exile to avoid jail on a corruption conviction and is thought to be bankrolling the protests, phoned in to his "red shirts" at Government House late on Saturday.
Less rabble-rousing than on some occasions, he thanked them for their sacrifice at this holiday time and asked them to be patient for a few more days as they were on the point of achieving something.
"If our people in Bangkok and all the provinces unite, ... I think this time we can change the country. We will see real democracy with the king as the head of state," he said.
(Additional reporting by Vithoon Amorn and Viparat Jantraprap; Editing by Jerry Norton)
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Cambodian PM returns home after ASEAN summits cancelled in Thailand
Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen gives a traditional greetings as he depart from U-Tapao military airport in Sattahip on April 11, 2009. A summit of Asian leaders in Thailand was cancelled on Saturday after hundreds of anti-government protesters broke through a cordon of troops and swarmed into the meeting's venue. About half of the Asian leaders attending the summit were evacuated by helicopter to a nearby military airbase. REUTERS/Pornchai Kittiwongsakul/Pool PHNOM PENH, April 11 (Xinhua) -- Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen arrived home from Thailand Saturday afternoon, after the ASEAN (the Association of Southeast Asian Nations) summits in Pattaya were cancelled due to security reasons.
"The delegations could not enter the meeting place, and we delayed the meetings time after time. The time for the meetings was soon over and finally we decided to return home," Sry Thamrong, adviser for Hun Sen, told reporters at the airport.
"The protesters controlled the meeting place," he said.
It has been scheduled that Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva will visit Cambodia on April 18, but the plan might change because it depends on the internal situation of Thailand, he added.
While in Thailand on Friday, Abhisit Vejjajiva met with Hun Sen and handed over a piece of ancient Khmer artifact to him as a symbol of the bilateral friendship.
When Abhisit Vejjajiva visits Cambodia, at least 7 out of 24 pieces of ancient Khmer artifacts will be returned to Cambodia, according to Sry Thamrong.
These Khmer artifacts were stolen and trafficked out of Cambodia, but finally arrested by the Thai authorities.
The Cambodian delegation left for Thailand on Friday. Hun Sen was originally scheduled to meet with Chinese premier, UN secretary general, Malaysian prime minister and Australian premier over issues of bilateral cooperation.
According to an official press release, the Cambodian delegation for the ASEAN summits included Prime Minister Hun Sen, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Hor Nam Hong, Commerce Minister Cham Prasidh and other governmental officials.
"The delegations could not enter the meeting place, and we delayed the meetings time after time. The time for the meetings was soon over and finally we decided to return home," Sry Thamrong, adviser for Hun Sen, told reporters at the airport.
"The protesters controlled the meeting place," he said.
It has been scheduled that Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva will visit Cambodia on April 18, but the plan might change because it depends on the internal situation of Thailand, he added.
While in Thailand on Friday, Abhisit Vejjajiva met with Hun Sen and handed over a piece of ancient Khmer artifact to him as a symbol of the bilateral friendship.
When Abhisit Vejjajiva visits Cambodia, at least 7 out of 24 pieces of ancient Khmer artifacts will be returned to Cambodia, according to Sry Thamrong.
These Khmer artifacts were stolen and trafficked out of Cambodia, but finally arrested by the Thai authorities.
The Cambodian delegation left for Thailand on Friday. Hun Sen was originally scheduled to meet with Chinese premier, UN secretary general, Malaysian prime minister and Australian premier over issues of bilateral cooperation.
According to an official press release, the Cambodian delegation for the ASEAN summits included Prime Minister Hun Sen, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Hor Nam Hong, Commerce Minister Cham Prasidh and other governmental officials.
ASEAN summit disruption by Red Shirt Demonstrators: A huge embarrassment for Thailand and Abhisit
Armed security officers draw their weapons after supporters of ousted Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra tried to enter one of the venues of the 14th ASEAN Summit and Related Summits in Pattaya April 11, 2009. A summit of Asian leaders in Pattaya, Thailand, has effectively been cancelled after anti-government protesters broke into part of the conference venue, a Thai government spokesman said on Saturday. REUTERS/Sukree Sukplang
Anti-government demonstrators celebrate after storming past Thai soldiers as they force their way into the 14th ASEAN Summit convention center Saturday, April 11, 2009, in Pattaya, Thailand. A Thai government officials say a summit of Asian leaders has been canceled for security reasons. The announcement Saturday came after more than 1,000 anti-government protesters smashed through glass doors to storm into the convention hall where some of the meetings were scheduled to take place. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
Thai anti-government demonstrators wave their flags after breaking their way into the meeting venue of the 14th ASEAN summit venue on Saturday, April 11, 2009, in Pattaya, Thailand. A Thai government officials say a summit of Asian leaders has been canceled for security reasons. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)
A Thai military helicopter leaves a rooftop carrying unidentified leaders Saturday, April 11, 2009, in Pattaya, Thailand, following the storming of the 14th ASEAN Convention Center by anti-government protesters. A Thai government officials say a summit of Asian leaders has been canceled for security reasons. (AP Photo/David Longstreath)Helicopters evacuate leaders from ASEAN summit
2009-04-11
AFP
AFP
PATTAYA: Helicopters began evacuating foreign leaders Saturday after anti-government protests forced the postponement of a major Asian summit in Thailand, AFP reporters and officials said.
Philippines President Gloria Arroyo boarded a civilian helicopter which landed on the roof of the luxury beach resort in the coastal town of Pattaya where the meeting was being held, an AFP correspondent said.
Police separately said that Myanmar Prime Minister Thein Sein had been airlifted by chopper to a nearby military airfield.
Philippines President Gloria Arroyo boarded a civilian helicopter which landed on the roof of the luxury beach resort in the coastal town of Pattaya where the meeting was being held, an AFP correspondent said.
Police separately said that Myanmar Prime Minister Thein Sein had been airlifted by chopper to a nearby military airfield.
Thai protesters force Asia summit cancellation
- Summit cancelled after protesters swarm into venue
- North Asia leaders huddle at besieged hotel
- Anti-government "red shirts" clash with pro- "blue shirts"
PATTAYA, Thailand, April 11 (Reuters) - A summit of Asian leaders in Thailand was cancelled on Saturday after anti-government protesters breeched security and swarmed into the media centre at the hotel complex where it was being held.
Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva declared a state of emergency in Pattaya, where the East Asia Summit was being, a beach resort about 150 kms (90 miles) south of the capital, Bangkok.
"The task for me and the government now is to provide security for the leaders to travel back home safely," Abhisit said in a brief address on television.
The cancellation is a huge embarrassment for Abhisit's government, which came to power in December via parliamentary defections the opposition says were engineered by the military.
The weekend's events will raise questions about how enduring his government can be after four prime ministers over the last 15 months have failed to resolve Thailand's deep political rifts.
Many of the leaders of 16 Asian nations due to attend the summit had already arrived or were arriving in Pattaya on Saturday.
Hundreds of red-shirted supporters of ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra broke through lines of soldiers and smashed a window at the conference centre housing the media adjacent to the summit venue, the Royal Cliff hotel, blowing whistles, waving flags and shouting slogans.
Troops chased after them, but then bolted down the road to the hotel itself to prevent the protesters from reaching the venue where Asian leaders were scheduled to hold a lunch.
RED SHIRTS v BLUE SHIRTS
After rampaging about the media centre, the "red shirts" were soon huddling with reporters in impromptu news conferences around the vast conference centre. Among them was a 90-year-old woman in a wheelchair.
The East Asia Summit brings together the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia and New Zealand for discussions about trade, economic issues and regional security.
ASEAN leaders were to sign an investment agreement with China, but that was scrapped after the blockade kept Chinese Premier Wen Jiaboa from reaching the Royal Cliff Hotel.
The "red shirts" had intended to protest peacefully but became infuriated when a group of blue-shirted pro-government protesters arrived on the scene.
"There were at least two cases of shootings aimed to harm our red-shirt supporters, a clear evidence of government supporters possessing guns and using them directly at us," the United Front of Democracy against Dictatorship said.
Government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn earlier described the "blue shirts" as people "we believe are concerned about the meetings. They want them to continue, and they want them to continue peacefully".
But Reuters photographers said the blue shirts, wearing balaclavas or scarves to keep from being identified, had clubs, bricks and slingshots and thrown smoke bombs as they clashed with "red shirts".
On Friday, at least 2,000 "red shirts" broke through roadblocks manned by police and soldiers, pushing aside police vans and buses and even commandeered a fire truck.
Abhisit has insisted he will not give in to demands to step down made by Thaksin, a billionaire populist living in exile to avoid jail on a corruption conviction.
He was ousted in a 2006 coup, but his reconstituted party regained power after elections, sparking months of protests last year by "yellow shirts" that closed airports in Bangkok and took a huge toll on the economy.
(Additional reporting by Isabel Reynolds, Martin Petty and John Ruwitch in Pattaya, Viparat Jantraprap, Kittipong Soonprasert, Alan Raybould and Panarat Thepgumpanat in Bangkok; Editing by David Fox)
Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva declared a state of emergency in Pattaya, where the East Asia Summit was being, a beach resort about 150 kms (90 miles) south of the capital, Bangkok.
"The task for me and the government now is to provide security for the leaders to travel back home safely," Abhisit said in a brief address on television.
The cancellation is a huge embarrassment for Abhisit's government, which came to power in December via parliamentary defections the opposition says were engineered by the military.
The weekend's events will raise questions about how enduring his government can be after four prime ministers over the last 15 months have failed to resolve Thailand's deep political rifts.
Many of the leaders of 16 Asian nations due to attend the summit had already arrived or were arriving in Pattaya on Saturday.
Hundreds of red-shirted supporters of ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra broke through lines of soldiers and smashed a window at the conference centre housing the media adjacent to the summit venue, the Royal Cliff hotel, blowing whistles, waving flags and shouting slogans.
Troops chased after them, but then bolted down the road to the hotel itself to prevent the protesters from reaching the venue where Asian leaders were scheduled to hold a lunch.
RED SHIRTS v BLUE SHIRTS
After rampaging about the media centre, the "red shirts" were soon huddling with reporters in impromptu news conferences around the vast conference centre. Among them was a 90-year-old woman in a wheelchair.
The East Asia Summit brings together the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia and New Zealand for discussions about trade, economic issues and regional security.
ASEAN leaders were to sign an investment agreement with China, but that was scrapped after the blockade kept Chinese Premier Wen Jiaboa from reaching the Royal Cliff Hotel.
The "red shirts" had intended to protest peacefully but became infuriated when a group of blue-shirted pro-government protesters arrived on the scene.
"There were at least two cases of shootings aimed to harm our red-shirt supporters, a clear evidence of government supporters possessing guns and using them directly at us," the United Front of Democracy against Dictatorship said.
Government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn earlier described the "blue shirts" as people "we believe are concerned about the meetings. They want them to continue, and they want them to continue peacefully".
But Reuters photographers said the blue shirts, wearing balaclavas or scarves to keep from being identified, had clubs, bricks and slingshots and thrown smoke bombs as they clashed with "red shirts".
On Friday, at least 2,000 "red shirts" broke through roadblocks manned by police and soldiers, pushing aside police vans and buses and even commandeered a fire truck.
Abhisit has insisted he will not give in to demands to step down made by Thaksin, a billionaire populist living in exile to avoid jail on a corruption conviction.
He was ousted in a 2006 coup, but his reconstituted party regained power after elections, sparking months of protests last year by "yellow shirts" that closed airports in Bangkok and took a huge toll on the economy.
(Additional reporting by Isabel Reynolds, Martin Petty and John Ruwitch in Pattaya, Viparat Jantraprap, Kittipong Soonprasert, Alan Raybould and Panarat Thepgumpanat in Bangkok; Editing by David Fox)
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